The significance of Alt text is often underestimated and is moderate in search engine algorithms, while optimizing images can actually help you with search engine rankings. Moreover, while designing a web page to attract both the humans and search bots, every page element should be made utmost use of. W3C recommendation reads to provide a text-equivalent for every non-text element to help users with visual impairments and those using text based browsers like Lynx. That includes images, animations, frames, graphical buttons, audio files etc. Read on W3C Guidelines that describes HTML techniques for web content accessibility.

As a generic rule, Alt attribute may be used as a general description/functional description of the image depending on the type you have. Adding one is easy; there is no complex HTML coding. Example of an Alt text looks like this:

A well optimized alt text offers the benefits of aiding people with visual impairment using text readers, increasing your page's density of targeted keywords and overcoming the hurdles set by web browsers configured to restrict or not load images by displaying the alt description. While there are no clear guidelines, some rules on Alt text optimization can be laid out as:

• If the image is just a decorative text (eg. .gif), put in the text itself as the Alt attribute.
  
  
  
  
• If the image is used for layout/design purposes, to create bullets, decorative lines etc, the Alt attribute should be left empty (e.g., alt="").
  
  
  
  
• If the image presents a lot of important information (eg. A whole lot of informative text embedded in an image), create a summarized text for the Alt attribute and add a longdesc link to a more detailed description.
  
  
  
  
• If the image is used as a link, the Alt text should be equivalent to the title of the linking page. Consider that the role of your Alt text here is similar to your anchor text; it is therefore regarded important.
  
  
  
  
• If the image is used for navigational purpose, the Alt text should carry/match with the keyword used in the image.
  
  
  
  
• If the image showcases your product for example, use the name of the product itself as the Alt attribute. That will fetch you ranking in image searches for product name phrases.
  
  
  
  
• No stuffing of keywords in Alt attributes. Use relevant targeted keywords without compromising the message of image functionality/description. Irrelevant keywords used is an abuse.
  
  
  
  
• Each individul image should be given a unique Alt text. The keywords you prefer to use must be compliant with what the image projects. Be precise and specific.
  
  

While that said about the alt text optimization, this alone wouldn't render image optimization. A few other things to take care of while performing SEO for your images are to describe the content of your image to search engines by using appropriate filenames embedded with relevant keywords, adding a short descriptive caption underneath to reinforce the meaning of your image and making sure the image is inserted to well fit into the context of the surrounding text.

While the importance of Alt text has been lowered by major search engines due to the webmasters spamming the alt text with keywords, a standard-based HTML coding requires the element of Alt text which can actually help you generate search engine rankings provided they are implemented appropriately.

I am not going to give you a yet another "old school" blog post on link building tactics, so you need not frown at me now. I am here to share ways of not letting you get burned by the search engines through quick hit gimmicks of link building tactics. Yes, to actually get you fixed on a natural and relevant way of link building. There are many quick fixes, many listed unethical, but for a long term success one must stick to building link popularity the relevant way - the natural way.

Link building hasn't really changed over the years and it probably won't. After having heard of and tried all those link building tactics, many which cost you search engine credibility, can you imagine of building links the natural way? Now that's the relevant way in fact, to not let lose your time and resource into thinking and finding ways of how to conceal your tactics from getting recognised by the SEs.



1. Submission to Free Directories

While this is a dropped out tactic of getting indexed in the SEs (nevertheless no harm in doing that), it might help you with natural link building and therefore, better rankings. Firstly, choose a directory that has a fairly current cache date with Google, just to ensure that it has some PageRank power to pass. Secondly choose a directory that is dedicated to providing information and not a gimmicky favour of link building. While this method is employed as a means of link building, it can bring in quality powerful one-way inbound links provided you choose relevant, search friendly topic driven directories that are of value to the visitors.



2. Worthy Content

The all time favourite saying goes "Content is King". It is not very easy to get people convinced into giving a link to your site. So you need to have a worthful site to be considered for a link to. Design, architecture and content of your website should be made appealing and link worthy. Come up with anything interesting or engaging, for example, product reviews, guides, tips & tactics etc.



3. Information Hub

Be generous to link out to top resources expecting no link in return; because you are doing this to show your visitors that they've landed on an information hub. You shouldn't be even thinking about reciprocal links as they are no more powerful and SEs have usurped them with ways of digging and finding out the little games you are trying to fool around with. Bait links by offering free tools, services and resources of fresh updated information. Being natural is a way of building natural links.



4. Reviews

A worthy outstanding content is going to get a review from the social media diehards. And if you hired an expert review writer to do that for you, that would be like hiring a magician and trying to convince the audience into believing that he possesses almighty powers. The incoming links to your website from reviews should be coming as a result of interesting and informative content in your website, which is link worthy. Such natural links possess viral potentials and will take the natural glide of achieving online media popularity and permanent one-way inbound links, with no investments of new strategies and gimmicks.



5. Articles

Articles can fetch you inbound links in a number of ways. It has to be ensured that you offer only quality and engaging articles to ultimately lead the readers to your websites, to avoid a repercussion. Write on an outstanding, debated or current hot topic, and you will be amazed by the extent of popularity and links reaching to your website. As from a search engine perspective, its sophisticatd technology are apt enough to identify relevant websites through one or more search phrases with lightning speed. So if you want to make it to the top of SEs to bring in the traffic for potential link baiting, your keywords must be ideally spread throughout the page, and within the context. Writing quality articles will also prove your expertise in the selected niche and establish you as an authority.



6. Press Releases

Though backlinks in press releases may not be as effective as articles, the bang created by them can gain attention and free traffic to your website, which can then lead to more natural links. Press releases are one of the best ways of securing publicity and as a result get natural links to your outstanding resources. You might be in posession of a next great idea or an amazing product that will get everyone thrilled about. Use them to buy out free links through press releases.



7. Forums

Forums are places where business discussions are held. Usually all forums do allow adding a signature with backlinks to your site. But what matters is, if it renders access to search robots as some of them use "nofollow". This shouldn't be of utmost concern to link building anyway, because the backlinks generated from a forum are not permanent as the forum topics get buried soon. What one must be looking forward to is the recognition achieved through helping other entrepreneurs that will eventually lead to solid natural links.



8. Web Community

Participate in social media websites and contribute actively and sincerely to the web community. You will be loved for your expertise and generosity, which is acknowledged through the links coming in from others on the web2.0 sites. Sharing your insights through commenting on blogs relevant to your niche would bring rewards to your link building efforts, if the weblog happens to "follow" links instead of "nofollow". When you are identified as a participant in web community conversations, it has a positive impact on your future link building prospects too.



9. Create and Share Authority Documents

An authority document is one which people rely on for guidance on doing something new or enhancing the present. And please don't expect your content to pull people to your site for its own merit or simply because it's there. Get them out to sharing. Social bookmarking sites such as Digg and Delicious offer opportunities to share your ideas and content. Moreover, however informative, useful or outstanding your content be, it does not become an authority unless you have the power to influence. It therefore, is a slow process and not something that yields results overnight.



10. Keyword Research

As I said earlier, simply creating an outstanding content alone will not get you natural links. You got to find ways to promote and reach them out to people just like what the ads do. Study the keywords that bring visitors to your website and more importantly, the keywords which draw visitors to your competitors' websites. Write up your content/articles around those keywords and you are putting your best foot forward on popularity and natural link building.



11. Blogosphere

Blogging is a powerful and natural way of link building. Bloggers are very generous and forward in linking to good articles, and if you blog one such you may well be linked to. All you need to do is to keep up your value and maintain active engagement in blogsphere.




So no more link farms, reciprocal links, triangular links etc. Do not think of fooling the search engine when it has got all the computing resources at its disposal to detect your unfair methods, if not soon, at least in the near  future. If you simply make your site search engine relevant you will find people linking to you naturally. All you need is time, dedication, and most importantly, patience in abundance.