Flickr tip - Add TITLE and Description to every image
Digging through my Flickr stats for yesterday, I found that my pictures of Cantigny golf course had already been spidered, and were ranking. I also noticed something else which was much more interesting.
Specifically, someone had typed in the term “cantigny golf course in illinois“, and my Flickr account was appearing in the 2nd and 3rd position. Here’s a shot of the 2nd result.
The important thing to note is that there is a TITLE to the image above it (Cantigny Golf Course, Wheaton, Illinois) and a description beneath it (Picture of the 4th tee sign on the Lakeside Nine, Cantigny Golf in Wheaton, Illinois.)
Here’s the interesting part. In the Google SERP, it displayed BOTH of these. Here’s a screenshot of the listing:
As you can see, the TITLE of the image is showing in the TITLE of the result, and the Description of the image appears underneath it.
Taking this one step further, I could maximize my Description, so it was more keyword-rich, and more “clickable”.
So get out there and start maximizing your images on Flickr! You know you want to.
June 11th, 2008 at 8:11 pm
I usually title and describe my photos, but mine are usually more “story” like rather then keyword heavy. I don’t even have a Flickr pro account, but I would suspect in the next week or two I will upgrade and be able to see stats then. Good info though, I will have to try a little more detail with my stories.
Jim
June 11th, 2008 at 8:26 pm
I normally add a strong TITLE, then leave the rest blank. That’s going to change, post haste!
June 12th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
Many of my photos are of pets, animals, nature, etc. How important do you think it is with those kind of photos? For instance, this one:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimbl/2573026948/
Just curious, title isn’t really indicative of the photo, but putting exactly what the photo is seems boring. Thoughts?
Jim
June 12th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
@Jim L I don’t think it’s very important in cases liek this. Remember that a good percentage of my pics (and yours) have nothing to do with anything in particular, and wouldn’t benefit from ranking for anything in the SERP’s.
I do write reviews of most of the golf courses I play, so the value of ranking for the golf course name is apparent. Although there’s no money involved (I don’t monetize this blog; more interested in sharing my opinion), there is value to me in ranking.
As for your question, it is and it isn’t. I think it depends on the goal. Is there value in having the image ranked? If there isn’t, no biggie (here’s an example: http://www.flickr.com/photos/golf_pictures/2569749823/). If there is, it’s worth considering.