DSIM’s Guide- How You can Add Alt Text to Instagram Posts

Do you want a wider audience to access your Instagram posts?

But, don’t have the idea to do this?

In this article, you’ll discover how to write and add alt text to your posts on Instagram.

What is an Alt Text Tag?

Alt text is a short phrase that helps in identifying images on the internet, but with the growth of social media, it is now also added to images uploaded to social channels as well.

An alt text is added to an image while uploading, editing or adding to the site at a later date. There are some sites including social media ones that offer automated text for images driven by artificial intelligence. AI helps in scanning the image for unique characteristics.

Currently, most of Instagram posts even having alt text aren’t appearing in Google results. There could be various reasons for this. Although if Instagram keeps entertaining its users with more high-performing posts having the alt text. Therefore, we can see more posts with alt text in search queries.

Apart from the traditional reasons, alt text for Instagram could play a major role in the future for post rankings in the feed placements and searches of Instagram. The platform has been using AI for a little while in order to show what content should show up in Instagram Explore pages.

Steps to Add Alt Text to Instagram Posts

Now, how to write and add alt text to your Instagram posts. Learn the w

Add Alt Text to New Instagram Posts

You can add the alt text to your Instagram posts through caption writing option and also add other tags to the post if you have.

Next, tap on the option of Advanced Settings on this upload screen.

Next, to that, click on the option of the Write Alt Text in order to add your text by accessing to the screen.

You can view the image you’re tagging and also a text box to write your alt text description. After writing the alt text in that box and Save to return to the post-upload screen.

Add Alt Text to Old Instagram Posts

If you have to add alt text to your formerly published Instagram posts, you’ll have to choose each post and edit it manually.

You can edit the post by tapping on the three-dot button shown in the top-right corner of the post.

Tap the Edit button from the pop-up screen in order to open the editing screen for the post.

Once you’re ready to edit your post, you’ll find Aa icon and Edit Alt Text appearing in the bottom-right corner of the image. Click on this button to go to alt text screen.

Alike adding the text description to new Instagram post, the text box will be available on the next screen so that you can type your descriptive alt text. Click on Save or checkmark to save your edit works and return to the earlier edit screen.

Once you’re on the main edit screen for the post, click on the checkmark appearing in the top-right corner so that you can save your changes and the new alt text for your post.

Compose Your Alt Text for Instagram

You know writing alt text effectively can help you maximize your results, but in between, there are lots of important factors. It would be like to keep your text in between 30- 125 characters.

Instagram allows 100 characters to create its bios description for the post.

Screen readers or users may also be able to read emojis, so you need to add emojis to your alt text. They may save you a required character space.

Your alt text should have relevant keywords, but shouldn’t be stuffed with them.

Try to bring a sentence structure in your alt text description as you’re preparing it for human readers and even search engines do like the same format. You need to create value in your content for your readers.

Alt text is meant to describe the content and goal of the image.

The alt text written by you should have branding and relevant search elements for your services or products.

See the following example-

Adding company’s or your own name to the description is a good idea of writing alt text.

It won’t be a good idea to add quotes like “photo of …” or “image of ….”

It’s obvious that it’s an image and those characters would go wasted as well as their space.

When to Add Alt Text to Instagram Images

Currently, alt text is automatically added to Instagram images to make them widely accessible to people.

This automatically generated description to use object recognition technology and AI tools to find the content of the photo and give a generic description of the post.

As you know, these descriptions are short in length and lack of context, you need to make the text customized.

Ideally, adding alt text should be done manually for effective and long-lasting results. Update your older posts with relevant alt text descriptions and enhance your visibility across Instagram.

Conclusion

Adding alt text descriptions to the image is a necessary and vital digital marketing activity.

For Instagram, the relevancy goes to the next level as the platform is image-centric.

In the above-mentioned article, there is the detail procedure of adding alt text to Instagram photos.

Hope you add alt text to new and update your old photos as well!!