Alt Texts: What They Are and How to Use Them to Your Advantage

Alt text (short for alternative text) is one of the most overlooked and most valuable SEO opportunities on a website. When we are putting our gifts online, there is a lot of competition out there and we need to utalize every opportunity we have to be found.

Let’s break down what alt text is, why it matters, and how to use it correctly.

What Is Alt Text?

Alt text is a written description added to an image on your website. It serves two main purposes:

  1. Accessibility – Screen readers use alt text to describe images for visually impaired users.
  2. SEO – Search engines use alt text to understand what an image represents.

Essentially alt text tells Google what’s in the image and why it’s relevant.

Why Alt Text Matters for SEO

Google can’t “see” images the way humans do. It relies on signals, file names, surrounding text, and alt text, to understand what an image represents.

When alt text is added correctly it helps Google better understand your page and increases the chances of your images (and products) appearing in search results.

Just as importantly, a site where every image is properly filled out signals competence and completeness. Google favors sites that are well maintained. Missing alt text is a small thing, but small things add up.

There should not be a single image on your website without alt text.

Image File Names Matter Too

Before an image even gets an alt text, it has a file name, and that file name is another SEO signal.

Uploading images named:

  • IMG_48392.jpg
  • DSC_1049.png

…adds zero context.

Instead, images should be titled descriptively before uploading. For example:

  • gourmet-snack-box-washington.jpg
  • corporate-gift-box-artisan-snacks.jpg

This gives search engines one more layer of relevance and reinforces what the image represents. 

Shopify’s Auto-Generated Alt Text (and Why It’s Not Enough)

Assorted snack packages including Pacific Popcorn, Oberto beef jerky, and other branded items on a light background

By default, Shopify will often auto-generate alt text based on:

  • the product title
  • or the image file name

For example, Shopify might auto-generate something like:

“Snack box”

Or worse:

“IMG_48392”

Auto-generated alt text (weak):

"snacks in a box with chips and nuts on a white background"

Strategic alt text (strong):

Gourmet snack box made in Washington featuring artisan popcorn, Oberto beef jerky, Bobby Sue’s Nuts, and fresh baked cookies from Cougar Mountain Cookies in Issaquah, perfect for corporate gifting or a family snack box

That’s a lot of relevance, without keyword stuffing.

It reads naturally, accurately describes the image, and gives search engines meaningful context.

Best Practices for Alt Text

A few rules to keep things clean and effective:

  • Describe what’s actually in the image
  • Use full sentences when it makes sense
  • Include keywords naturally, don’t force them
  • Avoid repeating the same alt text on multiple images
  • Don’t keyword stuff or list words unnaturally

Alt text should sound like something a human would say if asked, “What’s in this image?”

The Big Picture

Alt text and image naming aren’t flashy. They don’t feel like marketing. And that’s exactly why they work.

Websites that:

  • properly name image files
  • fill out alt text consistently
  • describe products thoroughly

…signal to both users and search engines that they know what they’re doing.

This is the kind of behind-the-scenes detail that separates hobby sites from professional ones.

Final Thought

If you take one thing from this:

There should not be a single image on your website without a proper file name and alt text.

It’s simple. It’s free. And it compounds over time.

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