Large corporations with huge budgets have the same problem as you – a lack of original photos for their websites.  

If you’re writing needs a photo for embellishment or to make what you’re writing stronger and you don’t have an original image, simply use a stock photo.

Canva.com (free version) offers precise images of almost anything you can think up. In fact, you can often find a photo that looks like you hired someone to take the picture just for you.

Here’s a search I did on Canva.com (free!):

Your own photos DON’T have to be perfect. “good enough” is just fine!

Most of us have professional cameras built into our smartphones.

And since most readers want authentic-looking photos from a small or local business, readers are very forgiving if the pictures you have are less than perfect. 

If you need a photo of a person, consider using “Portrait Mode” on your phone to blur the background. 

People read captions:

Add Alternative Text to your photos:

I know this sounds like you’d need to know to code, but Alt-Text is simply a description of your photo for someone who has trouble seeing.

You’re able to add Alt-Text at the time you upload a photo to your site.

When describing the photo, be detailed so that if someone was visually impaired their computer could read aloud the Alt-Text to allow them to understand exactly what the photo is about.

What if I STILL don’t have a photo that works?

If you can’t find a photo you like, simply publish the article without a photo. You’ll still get Google “credit,” and you can always go back in and add an image later on.

If photos are holding you back from publishing to your small business website, don’t let them. Publish posts with less-than-ideal photos or with none at all.

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This is the fourth post in my series, “Simplifying SEO for Small Businesses.”

Read my other “SEO for Rookies” posts here.

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