Latest / The Modern Etsy Seller Podcast / 58. Do I Need to Add Alt Text to My Etsy Listing Photos? | Etsy Tips for Sellers

Transcript

58. Do I Need to Add Alt Text to My Etsy Listing Photos? | Etsy Tips for Sellers · The Modern Etsy Seller Podcast

• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Hey there, welcome to the Modern Etsy Seller Podcast and What You're Wondering, the segment where I answer one specific Etsy question in under five minutes.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Melissa, a busyworking mom with two profitable Etsy shops, and I help other busy women make money with Etsy and print on demand.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: Today's question is do I need to fill out the alt text on my Etsy listing photos?
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so first of all, let's talk about what alt text is.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: It stands for alternative text and it's a written description of an image that helps people who are blind or have low vision understand what's being shown in a photo.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: These descriptions can then be read aloud by screen readers, giving shoppers important information about your products.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's important that we're making our products as accessible as possible so that everyone who visits our shops has the opportunity to understand what we're selling.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: AltHax can also benefit your SEO because search engines like Google use it to better understand images.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: And Etsy specifically mentions that it may help your listings appear in Google search.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Etsy doesn't indicate, however, that it improves your rankings within Etsy's own search.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: So that's something to think about.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: Now, here's something you might not know.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: If you haven't added alt text to your listings yourself, your listing images yourself, then Etsy will automatically generate descriptions using AI.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: So if you've never filled out that field before, Etsy most likely has already taken care of it for you.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: You can check by going into one of your listings, clicking on a photo, and then opening the alt text field.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: You might see a description there that's labeled pre-filled with AI.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: And when you look at it, it seems like it's just a suggestion and that you need to click apply in order to use it.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: But I was able to confirm on some of my own listings that the alt text was already applied to the public images without me having to do anything.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: Etsy does specifically mention US sellers when they are discussing this feature.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: So if you're listening from outside of the United States, I would check whether alt text has been generated for your images.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: Don't just assume that it's there.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: Now I think this AI feature is an incredible time saver, especially for sellers who already have a lot of listings and has never added any alt text before.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: But it's still important to make sure that the descriptions are accurate and include the details that matter to someone shopping for your products.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: For example, if you're selling a t-shirt with a funny saying on it, you want that saying included in the alt text.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: If the AI describes the person wearing the shirt and the background but leaves out the wording, then someone using a screen reader could miss one of the most important parts of the product.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: So here's what I recommend moving forward.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: If you are just getting started, make checking the alt text part of your regular listing process.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: If Etsy has generated a good description, you can leave it alone.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: And if something is missing or incorrect, you can add or edit it.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: Ideally, you'll check all of your images, but I know that that can be time consuming.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: So really the ones you need to pay the most attention to are your main listing photo and then any images that contain important product information.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: If you are someone who already has hundreds of listings and you've never filled out the alt text, I wouldn't suggest going back and looking over everything right now all at once.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Start by checking what Etsy has generated on your bestsellers and your most popular products.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: Then you can go back and look at some of the rest of them as you have time.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think Etsy's AI generated alt text is a great feature because it helps make our listing images more accessible without requiring us to write every description from scratch.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: And by taking a little time to review those descriptions, we can make sure shoppers who rely on them have the information they need to understand our products.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, that's it for today.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for listening, and I will see you next time.