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What does Alt text mean in website design?

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What does Alt text mean in website design?

Understanding Alt Text

Alt text, or alternative text, is a short description of an image that is used by screen readers and search engines. It’s crucial for website accessibility and SEO. Essentially, it provides context for images to those who can’t see them, ensuring everyone can understand the content of your website.

Why is Alt Text Important?

Alt text serves several vital purposes:

  • Accessibility: Screen readers use alt text to describe images to visually impaired users, allowing them to understand the image’s content and context.
  • SEO: Search engines use alt text to understand the content of images. Well-written alt text can improve your website’s search engine ranking by providing relevant keywords.
  • Improved User Experience: Even for sighted users, alt text can improve the user experience. If an image fails to load, alt text provides a textual description, preventing a gap in understanding.

How to Write Effective Alt Text

Writing effective alt text requires careful consideration. Here are some key guidelines:

  • Be Concise and Descriptive: Use a brief and accurate description of the image. Avoid overly long descriptions.
  • Use Relevant Keywords: Include relevant keywords that accurately reflect the image’s content and context, helping with SEO.
  • Focus on the Content, Not the Format: Describe what the image shows, not its technical attributes (e.g., “a photo of a cat” instead of “a JPEG image of a cat”).
  • Context is Key: Ensure the alt text provides context within the surrounding text. The alt text should make sense in the overall flow of the page.
  • Leave Blank for purely decorative images: If an image serves purely a decorative purpose and adds no meaningful information, leave the alt text field blank.

Examples of Good and Bad Alt Text

Good Example:

Image: A picture of a smiling woman holding a coffee cup. Alt Text: “Smiling woman enjoying a cup of coffee.”

Bad Example:

Image: The same picture. Alt Text: “Image001.jpg”

The Company’s Commitment to Accessibility

At The Company, we are committed to providing a website that is accessible to everyone. Using alt text correctly is a crucial part of this commitment. We strive to ensure all our images are described accurately and effectively, making our content enjoyable and understandable for all users.

Need Help with Your Website’s Accessibility?

Contact The Company today to learn more about our website design and accessibility services.

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“The Bride”.  A an example of an experimental, or concept album project from 2022.  Painted in acrylic. (Private collection)

Building Confidence Through Language: A Guide for the Collector

One of the biggest barriers for aspiring art collectors is not a lack of taste, but a lack of confident language. People know what they are drawn to, but they often struggle to articulate the ‘why’ behind their emotional connection. Providing them with a basic vocabulary can be transformative.

By explaining core artistic concepts, we can bridge this gap. An artist’s newsletter or a gallery brochure could break down:

  • The Architecture of Composition: How lines and shapes lead the eye and create a focal point.
  • The Emotional Weight of a Color Palette: Why a limited, muted palette feels different from a vibrant, high-contrast one.
  • The Role of Value in Creating Depth: How the interplay of light and shadow builds a believable world.

It’s like being given a phrasebook in a foreign country; suddenly, you can navigate and connect with more assurance. Consider Edward Hopper, whose stylized realism simplifies scenes to their emotional core. Understanding this allows a collector to explain why the work feels so dreamlike and memorable. This knowledge doesn’t replace the emotional response; it validates it.

The Dialogue Between Feeling and Form

Great art speaks to us on two levels: the immediate, gut-level emotional reaction and the deeper intellectual appreciation. You might feel the perpetual warmth and light in a Monet, which immerses the viewer in the sensory experience of a moment. Conversely, you might sense the rugged, stoic soul of the landscape in a piece by Canada’s Group of Seven, which evokes a feeling of profound solitude.

These feelings are universal, but the ability to discuss why we feel them builds a stronger connection. From a marketing perspective, this education slots perfectly into the buyer’s journey. During the “comparison” phase, an artist who also educates their audience is building a relationship of trust and authority, making the final “decision” more likely.

Conclusion: A Bridge of Shared Understanding

Art, in its purest form, is an act of communication. Whether through the calculated narrative of a storyteller or the freeform expression of a poet, the artist extends an invitation to the viewer. By providing the language to understand this invitation, we empower collectors to move beyond simple preference and into the realm of true appreciation. It transforms a simple transaction into a meaningful connection, where the viewer doesn’t just own a piece of art—they become part of its ongoing story.

About the Author

Jaeson Tanner is a Marketing Thinker at Zero Noise Marketing and a narrative artist once in a blue moon. You can see his work on Instagram at @jaeson_tanner.