Visual Search and SEO – Looking beyond

Visual Search and SEO – Looking beyond

Visual search is something we all partake every day. Every time we need to find something like our mobile phone or keys, our brain is engaged in a visual search. Humans can recognize objects with increasing ease over time.
With the advent of technology, Visual Search is revolutionizing the way we search products online. Google Goggles app was launched in 2010 that allows captured images to be used as search query. Leading Search Engine Marketing companies in San Francisco are of the opinion that a war for visual search engine supremacy has started with the arrival of the Pinterest Lens and Google Lens. Visual search has the potential to influence purchasing decisions and consumer habits.
In the age of instant gratification, visual search will surely usher in the era of “snap and surf” purchasing. This would help online stores with online catalogs and product listing ads (PLAs) in leaps and bounds.
Despite the fact that optimization for visual search significantly improves the website’s user experience, traffic and conversion rate yet images get the least attention from SEO experts.
If we are to go by Search Engine Marketing giants in San Francisco -the technology heartland of the world, visual search will not dethrone text-based query and keywords but it will surely disrupt the SEM and SEO industry.
At present, there are three different types of visual search methods employed by companies:

• Conventional image search that is dependent on text-based queries
• Reverse image search that depends on structural data
• Pixel-by-pixel image search that supports “snap and search” by utilizing an image or parts of an image

When it comes to visual search optimization, some of the fundamental SEO practices will still apply. Many visual search algorithms still rely on structured data to match the characteristics. Thus, Structured data remains extremely important.
In order to ensure that visual applications can easily process images, it is important that these are clutter free and displayed clearly. Some other checkpoints are below mentioned:

• For image indexation add descriptive alt-text to images
• Images should be submitted to image sitemap
• Image titles and alternative attributes should be optimized with targeted keywords
• Create image badges and carry out a structured data test
• Optimization should be done as per the ideal image size and file type
• Images should be optimized so that they render on mobile and desktop displays

Visual search is emerging as an instrumental expanse of technological development for consumers and businesses alike. There is no doubt that the SEO landscape will witness changes. It will surely bring back the focus on image optimization, which has been a forgotten story for a long period of time. The new search method will only reinforce existing SEO strategies and also create the need to make visual web presence more prophetic.