The absence of alternative text (alt text) for an image in the HTML code of a webpage. Alt text is a descriptive text attribute that provides a textual description of the content and purpose of an image. It serves several important purposes:
Accessibility: Alt text is crucial for users who rely on screen readers or other assistive technologies to navigate the web. It enables them to understand the content and context of images that they cannot see.
SEO: Search engines use alt text to understand the content of images and index them appropriately in image search results. Including descriptive alt text can improve the visibility of images in search engine results pages (SERPs) and drive organic traffic to the webpage.
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User Experience: Alt text enhances the overall user experience by providing additional context for images, especially in scenarios where images fail to load or are disabled.
How to fix?
To fix the issue, follow these steps:
Identify Missing Alt Text: Review the HTML code of the webpage to identify images that are missing alt text. Look for <img> tags without the alt attribute or with empty alt attributes.
Write Descriptive Alt Text: Write concise and descriptive alt text for each image that accurately describes the content and purpose of the image. Alt text should be meaningful, relevant, and informative. Avoid using generic phrases like "image" or "image of" and instead focus on describing the content or function of the image.
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Insert Alt Attribute: Insert the alt attribute within the <img> tag of each image and specify the descriptive alt text. For example:
<img src="example.jpg" alt="Description of the image">