Google Images has indexed billions of images. If your image can be found for the right keyword, then you will get targeted visitors to your website.

Why images can help you to get more visitors

Depending on the search query, Google displays several images above the regular search results. For example, try this search for German Shepherd Dog:

The images can be found at the top of the search results and they are linked with web pages. If someone clicks on the image, the person will be taken to the web page that shows the image.

How to optimize your images so that they can be found

If you have a website about German Shepherd dogs, then wouldn’t it be great if an image from your website was listed above the regular results? You’d get many additional website visitors then.

There are several things that you can do to improve the position of your images in Google Image Search:

1. Use a file name that contains the keywords for which you want to be found. In this example, the file name german-shepherd-dog.jpg would be a good idea. Separate the words with a hyphen.
2. Use a descriptive Image Alt attribute text. It usually makes sense to use the same keywords that have been used for the file name. In this example, the Image Alt Attribute would be “German Shepherd Dog”:
   <img src=”german-shepherd-dog.jpg” alt=”German Shepherd Dog”>
3. In the same way, you should use the Image Title attribute:
   <img src=”german-shepherd-dog.jpg” alt=”German Shepherd Dog” title=”German Shepherd Dog”>
4. The textual content on the web page before and after the image also impacts the position of your image in Google’s Image Search. In this example, the text “German Shepherd Dog” should appear close to the image.
5. Bigger images seem to get featured more often on Google’s first result page. The bigger your image, the easier it is to get at the top of Google’s regular result page. Include the Width and Height attributes in your image tag to show search engines the size of the image:
   <img src=”german-shepherd-dog.jpg” alt=”German Shepherd Dog” title=”German Shepherd Dog” width=”600″ height=”400″>
6. Optimize the rest of your web page for the chosen search term. If the complete web page has been optimized for a keyword then it is easier to get good listings for images that are on the page.

Make sure that the image that you optimize for your keyword also looks attractive. If no-one wants to click on the image then it won’t help your website if the image can be found on Google’s first result page.

Getting listed on Google’s first result page is the goal of many webmasters. Unfortunately, many webmasters still do the wrong things to improve their rankings.

It’s not possible to get top 10 rankings on Google by focusing on a single strategy. Getting listed on Google requires you to work on all elements of your website. Here are the top 5 factors that influence the position of your website in Google’s search results:

Ranking factor 1: website accessibility

It doesn’t make sense to optimize your web pages if search engines cannot access your web pages:

• Your robots.txt file should allow search engines to visit your web pages. If your robots.txt file contains errors then many search engines won’t list your website.
• The HTML code of your web pages should be error-free and your web server should return the correct response code. The contents of your web pages should be readable to search engine spiders.

Ranking factor 2: site architecture

Google wants to show relevant websites in the search results. Your website shouldn’t be a collection of random web pages. If you want to get top 10 rankings on Google, the pages of your website should be related.

Your web pages should show Google that your website is relevant to a certain topic. All pages of your website should be linked. If possible, web surfers should reach any page of your website with a maximum of three clicks.

The links and the directory structure of your website should make it easy to search engines to categorize the contents of your website.

Ranking factor 3: keywords

Choosing the right keywords is one of the most important steps. If you choose the wrong keywords, you won’t succeed with your campaign.

• Optimize different pages of your website for different keyphrases. The more pages of your website you optimize, the better.
• Start with very targeted keyphrases that consists of many words, for example “find inexpensive hotels in brussels“.
• When you have top rankings for these targeted keyphrases, proceed with more general keywords such as “hotels in brussels“.
• When you have top rankings for these keyphrases, you can proceed with very general keywords such as “hotels“.

In general, targeted keywords have a much higher conversion rate than general keywords, i.e. you will get more sales per visitor with “find inexpensive hotels in brussels” than with “hotels“.

Also think about the type of visitor that you attract with a keyword. Are these people interested in information or do they want to buy?

Ranking factor 4: content

Your website won’t get high rankings on Google if it only offers articles and affiliate links that can be found on dozens of other websites.

Separate your website from the rest by creating unique and trustworthy content. Write your own articles about the topic of your website, publish them on your own website and make your website a useful resource.

Ranking factor 5: links from other websites

It is not possible to get high rankings on Google without having links from other websites.

The more links point to your website, the more likely it is that your website gets good positions in Google’s search results. The links to your website should be from trusted websites.

If a web page that links to you is related to your own website then the effect of that link on the search engine rankings of your website is higher than the effect of an unrelated link.

It also helps if social bookmark websites link to your website. If many people bookmark your website on social bookmark sites, then this is a sign that your website might deserve high rankings.

A small error in one element can destroy your effects in all other ranking elements. For that reason, it is important to use the right strategy when optimizing your website.

The titles that you use for your web pages are very important. They are an important factor for the ranking algorithms of search engines and they are the first thing that web surfers see when they find your website in the search results.

Depending on which kind of traffic you want to attract, you should use different title formats on your web pages:

1. News titles (not so good for SEO)

This kind of title is often used by bloggers and news websites. Here are some examples:

• Beat the ‘overqualified’ tag
• Parking fees spark meter madness
• Nominate your hero
• Karl Malden died

The problem with these titles is that they are not good for search engine optimization. These titles usually don’t contain relevant keywords and they don’t look very attractive in the search results.

There won’t be many people who will type “Parking fees spark meter madness” in Google’s search box so it’s not likely that the page will get many visitors through search engines.

2. Shopping titles (good for SEO)

Shopping titles usually contain a product name that is used by web surfers. If they also contain a call to action, you can get targeted visitors with these titles. Here are some examples:

• ASUS Eee PC 1000HE 10-Inch Black Netbook – 9.5 Hour Battery Life
• ASUS Eee PC 1000 – Buy it now for only $249.95
• Buy an ASUS Eee PC 1000 with extended guarantee
• Free shipping: ASUS Eee PC 1000 – $249.95

The first shopping title is rather descriptive because it only lists the features. The other titles contain a call to action (buy now), prices and additional benefits (free shipping).

People who want to buy an ASUS Eee PC probably will click on the title with the call to action while people who are looking for product information might choose the first title.

3. Information seeker titles (good for SEO)

Information seeker titles won’t attract buyers but people who are looking for information about a special topic. Here are some examples:

• How to lose weight as fast as possible
• How to repair a broken chair
• 12 mistakes most parents make when choosing a school
• How to find the perfect golf club
• 5 ways to find the perfect partner

These web page titles are good because they will attract visitors over a long time period. People are always looking for “how to” articles and solutions to their problems and you will get long term, constant traffic with these pages.

Action plan: how to change your current web page titles

Good web page titles can make a huge difference in the number of visitors that your website gets. For that reason, you should check the titles of all web pages of your website now:

• Make sure that the titles of your web pages are descriptive. It should be clear what to expect on the pages.
• If possible, add a call to action and benefits in your web page title.
• Put the most important information at the beginning of the title. Search engines might shorten the title in the search result pages and people might not see the complete text.
• If you’re not a major brand name, avoid your company name in your web page titles.
• Do not use the same title for all of your web pages. This is a mistake that many beginners make.

People judge books by their covers and search results by web page titles. If you want to get as many website visitors as possible, you should develop engaging titles for all pages of your site.

In addition to the title of your web pages, many other elements influence the position of your pages in Google’s search results. You can get a full analysis of all elements of your web pages here.