If you’ve read our blog post on whys and ways for website speed optimization, you already know that if you don’t optimize your image, your website can suffer.
Even if you’ve identified that your graphics and images are an issue, it can be overwhelming to find out the steps you should consider getting a solution for the situation. The following is a simple guide that will help you figure out ways to optimize your images.
There are three main types of files used for images on websites. You’re probably already familiar with.jpeg because they’re most commonly in use. Generally, .jpeg files work best because they can be compressed without affecting the quality of the image.
However, you might also use .gif if you are including an animation on your website. And the third option in use is a .png file that is preferred when the details in an image are especially important or in case of edited files. You can also make use of .png format to save your animation.
Image size is the most crucial aspect of your website photos or graphics when it comes to SEO. If your image size is too big, your site can take time to load and ultimately leading to slow loading speed and you’ll lose customers. On average, most customers will leave a page that doesn’t load within 2 to 3 seconds.
You should strive to keep your image at 70 kb or less, but it is impossible if you’re working with large size images.
If you’re a Photoshop user, you’re lucky enough. Photoshop has some of the best tools to optimize images without compromising looks. One of the best ways to resize and optimize your images without losing the quality of the image:
Click on File> Save for Web when you save your image.
Using Photoshop, you can also mess up with their different image optimization options as well as for the compression level. If you don’t have Photoshop, then you can choose free services like Canva and PicMonkey to optimize your image size.
You need to pay attention to your image’s file name and the alt attribute. As effective file names and alt attributes can help you with SEO.
For example, if you’re posting a picture of a black leather purse, you should name your file something like ‘black-leather-purse.jpg’ and have your alt attribute do the work of describing your image in easy language.
The most important things to keep in mind when creating names for files and writing alt attributes are:
• Be descriptive.
• Don’t stuff with keywords.
• Use easy language.
It’s important to note that you should avoid the use of alt attributes for decorative images, for instance, an image that does not add to the content of the page.
Image size, alt attributes, and the name of your file don’t affect social media. On Social media, you must be editing your photos so that they appear best on the different platforms you’re using.
This may mean you have to create different versions of the same image or graphic for each of the platforms you make use for your business.
Web Media Infotech can help you bring your website up to speed. If you’re looking to update and optimize an old website or create one from scratch, we can do it all. You can contact us online or give us a call at +91-9988821943
Web Media Infotech offers services in website design, website development, and website management worldwide.