Not every page in a book includes a photo, but in the online world, photos do help increase reader engagement. They also may gain you a few readers from other sites, such as Facebook, Pinterest and Google Plus, which rely heavily on images to attract attention.
Additionally, when you add a photo to your WordPress blog, you can actually increase the search engine optimization of that post in the “edit image function.” Once you have dropped in your photo or clip art, if you click on the image, you will see these two icons:
The icon on the left that looks like a photo in a frame is for editing the image. Click on it. You will then see a tab at the top of the popup for “Advanced Settings.” Click on this. Then you will see two places to input type: title and alternate text. Give your photo a title. Then give it alternate text that explains the photo–or the post–further. You can also just describe the photo in the Alternate Text box. Use keywords or search terms that would drive someone to your post. Here’s what I wrote for the photo in this post:
Save this entry, and you are good to go. (You an also add a caption if you like. This increases your SEO as well.)
Including photos means you need to have some sort of eye for or thought about what type of artwork would suit your blog post. Some people just find cool art and include it even if it doesn’t totally apply to the post content. Most bloggers, however, find art that does, indeed, relate to the subject of the post.
To accomplish this, you can take your own photos. Iphones and other similar devices are quite handy for this. I’ve occasionally met my need for a particular photo by taking one myself right on the spot and uploading it to my blog. However, there are lots of place to get photos. Some of the best, however, require that you pay, such as Istockphoto.com. That said, below you will find a list of free sites. Keep in mind, however, that most sites require that you offer attribution. Make sure you do your research and attribute the site or the photographer correctly, if required.
- www.microsoftclipart.com
- www.flickr.com/creativecommons
- www.freedigitalphotos.net
- www.morguefile.com
- www.dreamstime.com
- www.commons.wikimedia.org
- www.stockfreeimages.com
- www.unprofound.com
- www.freemediagoo.com
- www.stockvault.net
(Thanks to www.amberrisme.com for the last four sites on the list.)
By the way, under the advanced settings tab in photo editing you can add a border around your photo or create space around the photo so it isn’t so close to the type. In the “horizontal” and veritical spacing” boxes just at the number 5 or 10 (I usually use 10). Viola! You can make the photo smaller here as well.
Happy photo hunting and search engine optimizing with your photos and art. You’ll actually be amazed at how much better your blogs look once you add a visual image, even though, I admit, it does take longer to make this effort.
Photo courtesy of Michal Marcol.
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Great post! I personally am attracted to good photos online and sometimes encouraged to read an article based on the photo I see. If this is the effect on me, it will also be the same with my readers.
Thanks for your comment, Judith. I think that’s the general idea…visuals attract us into the post. And in so many places where we share our blog posts, like Google+ and Facebook, the visuals are the main attraction these days. Even on our blogs, this can be the case.