I want to talk about something that’s near and dear to my heart: images.

They’re an integral part of modern websites and can be a powerful tool for driving traffic, engaging visitors, and increasing conversions. However, in order for your images to be effective, you need to handle them properly. In this article, I’ll be discussing best practices for image handling on WordPress-based websites, including optimizing file names, compressing images, and writing effective ALT tags and captions.

First, let’s talk about file names. When it comes to images on your website, the file name is more important than you might think. A descriptive, keyword-rich file name can help search engines understand what the image is about and can improve its visibility in image search results. For example, if you have an image of a cute golden retriever, a file name like “cute-golden-retriever.jpg” is much more descriptive and helpful than “IMG1234.jpg”. So, make sure to take the time to choose meaningful file names for your images.

Next, we’ve got image compression. You want your images to look great, but large image files can slow down your website, which can negatively impact your search engine rankings. Compressing images before uploading them to your website can help reduce their file size without sacrificing quality. There are a number of tools available that make this process easy, including WordPress plugins like TinyPNG and Kraken.io. Just remember, you don’t want your images to be so compressed that they look blurry or pixelated.

Now, let’s move on to ALT tags and captions. These two elements are important for both accessibility and search engine optimization. ALT tags are a brief text description of an image that is displayed if the image fails to load, and they’re also used by screen readers to describe the image to visually impaired users. Captions provide additional context and can also help with keyword optimization. When writing ALT tags and captions, be sure to use descriptive, keyword-rich language that accurately describes the image and its context.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that WordPress makes it easy to handle images on your website. When you upload an image to your WordPress media library, you have the option to add an ALT tag and caption. You can also specify the size and alignment of the image when inserting it into a post or page. These features make it simple to ensure that your images are handled properly and effectively.

In conclusion, images play an important role in modern websites and can be a powerful tool for driving traffic and engaging visitors. By optimizing file names, compressing images, and writing effective ALT tags and captions, you can ensure that your images are working for you and not against you. So, don’t neglect your images! Take the time to handle them properly and you’ll see the benefits in no time.

That’s it for today, folks! Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to take care of your images!