The Importance of Including Image Alt Text for Accessibility and SEO Purposes

Including alternative (alt) text with images is one of the simplest yet most powerful steps ecommerce operators can take to improve their site’s accessibility and SEO. For shoppers using screen readers, alt text ensures that product images, banners, and icons are fully understandable, creating a more inclusive shopping experience. 

It’s not just users who make use of alt text, though; search engines rely on alt text to interpret visuals, making it an important factor in ranking your products in image search results. Visuals are especially important on platforms like Shopify and BigCommerce; on these platforms, alt text bridges the gap between usability and discoverability. 

Below, our in-depth guide to controlling your ecommerce JavaScript budget provides practical tips for including alt text for accessibility and SEO purposes while ensuring your site stays lean.

Why Alt Text Matters for Ecommerce

Alt text is the written description you add to images on your site. It appears in an image’s HTML tag and serves two purposes: describing visuals for those who cannot see them and providing context to search engines. Without it, you risk alienating customers who depend on assistive technology and losing valuable SEO opportunities. 

Every product image is a selling point, so even with visually optimized product photography, a lack of alt text means leaving an important piece of accessibility and SEO value on the table. Properly written descriptions help users understand what they’re browsing, and they help Google and Bing better match your products to search intent. 

Accessibility Is More Than a Checkbox

Today’s online retailers are expected to comply with accessibility standards like WCAG 2.1 and ADA guidelines. Missing (or generic) alt text is a common accessibility failure that can alienate key demographics and lead to your site being penalized or facing compliance-related fines. 

You’ll want to create descriptions that are clear, specific, and concise as you incorporate new images onto your site. Doing so makes it so customers can immediately understand your listings, and search engines will receive descriptive signals about what the image represents. 

Alt Text and the Ecommerce JavaScript Budget

Many teams try to patch their accessibility gaps with automated JavaScript overlays or plug-ins. And while these tools may seem like shortcuts at first glance, they often bloat your ecommerce JavaScript budget, slowing down your site’s performance. 

Every kilobyte matters when you’re trying to maintain a Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) under 2.5 seconds, especially given that images are often the biggest factors that weigh on your LCP score. Place alt text directly in your HTML image tags; that will make it instantly available to screen readers and search engine crawlers without relying on extra scripts. 

Avoiding excess JavaScript is also important for other speed-related factors on your site, such as your Interaction to Next Paint (INP). By keeping your ecommerce JavaScript budget lean, you improve INP scores and create a smoother interaction for shoppers. 

How to Write Effective Alt Text

Proper alt text isequal parts descriptive and efficient. Follow these guidelines when adding it to your Shopify or BigCommerce store:

• Describe the product clearly
• Stay concise
• Avoid keyword stuffing
• Tailor for function
• Don’t duplicate content

Using these tips whenever you edit or add alt text ensures it will be in line with what search engines are looking for. 

Platform-Specific Best Practices

You’ll need to make a few minor tweaks to your alt text strategy depending on which platform hosts your store. 

If you use Shopify, you’ll need to do the following:

• Use the image alt text field in the product and media upload process
• Check theme customizations to ensure alt attributes aren’t being stripped
• Test accessibility with Shopify’s built-in tools to verify the text is live 

If you run your store on BigCommerce, take these steps:

• Enter alt text through the image manager when uploading product images
• Confirm that custom Stencil themes preserve alt attributes across templates
• Audit pages with Chrome Lighthouse to find missing or duplicate alt tags

Using these strategies, in addition to the general best practices outlined above, will guarantee you create engaging alt text every time.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Even well-meaning ecommerce teams can make errors with alt text, such as:

• Leaving Alt Text Blank: Every meaningful image requires context
• Copy-Pasting Across Multiple Images: Each image should have a unique description
• Overloading Keywords: Alt text should sound natural, not crammed with extra keywords 
• Forgetting Functional Elements: Navigation icons and CTAs need descriptions too 

If any of these mistakes are hindering your ability to climb the rankings or connect with audiences who need accessible content, it’s time to get to the bottom of them with a comprehensive site audit. 

SEO Benefits of Alt Text

When incorporated successfully, alt text can do the following for your ecommerce site:

• Improve visibility in Google and Bing image searches
• Reinforce topical relevance on category and product pages
• Provide context when images fail to load
• Strengthen accessibility signals that Google’s algorithms increasingly factor into rankings 

Ultimately, writing thoughtful descriptions helps users and sends stronger signals to search engines. 

Building Accessible, Search-Friendly Stores

Alt text is one of the easiest means of making your ecommerce store more inclusive and visible. It ensures that every customer can interact with your products, while also giving search engines the context they need to rank your images and pages effectively.

If you need help with alt text and sticking to your ecommerce JavaScript budget, contact Net Profit Marketing today to book a consultation.