By optimizing your images for search engines, you can make sure that your website stands out from the competition and gets the attention it deserves.

On this page, we’ll go over some of my tips for optimizing your images and improving your overall search engine rankings.

A picture is worth a thousand words and
is mentally processed over a thousand times faster than text.

Why Use Images and Videos on Your Website?

Some experts say you should use images because humans have a short attention span. I believe it’s because viewers want more information quickly and the right image can say more than what a viewer is willing to read. Like they say, an image is worth 1000 words.

Remember an image on your page can also be seen on social networks and in search engines.

Also, posts with videos and images earn more than three times the number of backlinks, an important search ranking factor.

Images and Visual content lead to more page views. And more views mean more leads.

Make sure your images and videos relate to your content and are designed to work with different devices and platforms.

Different Ideas for Photos or Images

1. Photos of interiors, exteriors, and products or services can be very helpful for those making decisions.
2. Maps can be used in several ways, to show how to get around a ship, town, or resort. And dynamically can give directions.
3. Infographics can not only offer a menu of items but also provide images if you have viewers from different countries and languages.

Who Should Optimize Images

Today more and more viewers are attracted to well-crafted images even to the point of making purchasing decisions based on what they see.

The uses of images on the web are endless.
Here are some of my favorites.

Profile Images and Pages
Your profile image is the first impression viewers will see and have of you. So your profile picture needs to be friendly and professional whether you are a doctor, student, or travel agent.

eCommerce sites
The major search engines are using their image search as a listing and advertising area for products. Also, studies show that about 75% of retail business sales are influenced by attractive visuals (images).

Tourist Boards CVBs Convention and Visitors Bureau
A well-planned visual presentations of types of vacations, meetings, and convention areas with descriptions invite contact and improves conversion rates.

Food Recipes, Restaurants & Chefs
Food blogs have come a long way in the last 5 years and quality photos have been a big part of that. Well-Designed food images stir our digestive juices and emotions.

Hospitality, Hotels and B&Bs
An impressive image of a room, pool, or dining area will motivate a potential traveler to make an informed decision.

Home Products and Designers
Whether you install pools, kitchens, or plumbing, images can convey a beautiful expectation of someone’s home upgrade.

Anyone using Social Networks
More and more people are using social networks like Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter for sharing images and looking for common interests.

Why you should Optimize images for Search

Website visitors comprehend information better through visuals. And more people are starting to use image search to make decisions.

Search Chart

Some SEO experts say voice is the next big thing, but right now image search is growing and the search engines are taking full advantage of it.

If a homeowner is going to replace a sink or cabinets they’re going to want to see the options.

If a vacationer is going on a cruise, they are going to want to see the cabin options, not read about the dimensions, or hear about the scenic view. They want to make an informed decision based on what they see. The same with a hotel or B & B as well.

For homeowners to find their next sink or kitchen cabinets, or for a vacationer to find the next hotel room they will compare shops, and the best place to do that is in an image search.

Just do an image search for watches or the next item you’re thinking of purchasing, and you’ll see what looks like an eCommerce site. That’s because the search engines want to be the place to shop.

Image Optimization in SEO needs some effort. Part of the success of a web page depends heavily on images that are carefully planned to enhance the page topic.

Why is SEO services important?

Building traffic is the most important job of the website owner.

Having a strong SEO program will give your website a wide reach across many listing services and intern bring many viewers to your site.

Being listed in the search engines not only gives your website visibility but also integrity.

After all the more traffic you can attract will turn into more money. There is a wide range of promotional activities that can drive new and existing viewers to the site, and bring back past users.

SEO Services

Let us show you how to
Create a Global presence with a Local Focus.

Web Marketing is more than getting viewers to your site, it’s a trend that aims to facilitate creativity, information sharing, and collaboration among your viewers.

Customers can now help build relationships on your site(s) and you can interact with the viewers on social networks sites like YouTube, FaceBook and MySpace.

Travel companies can now leverage social networking sites and apply Web app services to their own sites.

Social Networks

There are:

• Large social networks like Google+, YouTube and FaceBook.
• Specialty sites like Flickr, Instagram, and Trover that specialize in photography
• Travel-related networks like TravelTube, TripAdvisor, or Cruise Critic

These offer an array of networking services for the viewer to interact with friends and ways to connect.

Some Examples:

• Sandos Resorts
  
• Club Med here is a group on Flickr started by 1 customer that blossomed into other visitors, ( of different languages) sharing what they like, photography and Club Med.

Using Social Networks

Travel Companies now have the power to own and control their own content instead of relying on large social networks for offering interactions with their customers and viewers.

A good example is Nesbit They have a good email service and a photo contest for their customers to keep customers coming back again and again.

Other examples:

• Photo Gallery
• Blog
• Contests
• RSVP & group registration
• Wedding plans & album blog
• Updates to services, property or product
• Special deals

Using a combination of social networking sites and marketing services should be part of every travel marketing plan.

Connect with your Clients and Future Clients

Websites are now an intricate part of a company\’s interaction with customers, showing professionalism, and introducing new customers to products and services.

For a travel agency, it is also about introducing new destinations and of course the travel agents.

A smart website layout will let the agents not only have a strong agent profile but let the agents have their own section to talk about what they love, their travels and favorite suppliers.

What A Travel Agency Website Should Include

• Front Page the most important page. This leads to other pages, features promotions, and contact information.
• A Contact Page ~ This page should include phone numbers and a form that takes requests from viewers.
• Location Page(s) ~ If you have more than one location, each office should have its own page.
• Agent Profile Pages ~ Each agent, manager, and the owner should have their own page. Most importantly, are the pages for the agents, this is where they can show their skills
• A form to gather email addresses for a newsletter and updates.

Web Design For Vacation Leisure Websites

Who are your Viewers?

Whether you are redesigning your site or creating a new site, keep your viewers in mind. The design for business travelers, weddings-romantic getaways, retired travelers will be very different from a younger demographic.

Retired travelers will want to know how easy their time will be and how many different experiences they will have.

If you plan travel weddings you will need to show how well you are at logistics and making last-minute changes.

Business travelers don\’t like to travel for vacation but if it\’s for the family or wife then this will be the time to use those air miles.

On Your Website

No matter who your main clients are there are several things you will want your website to include.

Large images that promote emotions. You remember the old saying that an image is worth a thousand words. Well, it also produces emotions and stimulates the imagination in a fraction of a second that will affect the viewer when it comes time to make a decision.

More and more people are using their smartphone for purchases and managing emails so make sure your site and emails are mobile-friendly.

Your website should load fast. Speed is very important today and there are many caching services. Currently, I am using a caching service that works on the server that looks to be faster than ones on the website.

As you are planning your new site contact your favorite suppliers and vendors and ask how the can help. You will be surprised ar how many suggestions and products including images and plugins they will have available.
As helpful as many will be, make sure you will not be losing clients or sales.

Make Your Front Page Stands Out

This is your most important page.
Your front-page should be well planned out mixing together
your products and services with the needs of your viewers.

This site is custom designed with the Lifestyle Pro theme by Genesis. It\’s over 11 years old, and still works well on mobile devices.

This is a magazine-style WordPress theme by Genesis, Lifestyle Pro. The front page is set up to link deep into the site with images and text introductions to their corresponding pages.

This website was built for Williamsburg Travel Leaders with the Lifestyle Pro Theme by Genesis-Studiopress around 2005 and the theme was upgraded to a responsive framework several years later and more than 2 years before Google required it. This is a Newspaper Style Theme and custom-designed to be more attractive and easy on the eyes by changing the colors and styling with curves.

Above the Fold

The Top or Header
This is an important area where you announce who you are with your logo, Cruise and Vacation Experts and what you want the viewers to do with a call to action; Let Us Design your next vacation.

Navigation
Here we have 2 navigation menus, one over the logo and the other under the logo and under the call to action.

The one over the logo, or brand, pertains to the company including the about, offices, and contact pages.

The second menu bar, located under the brand logo and call to action, is highlighted in a friendly dark aqua color with curved corners that meets accessibility standards. These links are to a combination of the viewer\’s interests and company products.

Featured Image
This is the large image under the secondary navigation menu bar.

This area and image were originally set up to be a rotating or slider gallery that would change images and links every few seconds. Currently, this presentation is out of favor with the general public.

I\’ve customized this area using Genesis approved plugins to give viewers an 80% chance to see a different image linking to its page.

This lets the viewer see something which has changed since the last time they visited and also entices the viewer to research further.

Right Sidebar
On the front page, we have all the Best Vacation Deals Of The Week. These are a list of promotions provided by our favorite suppliers and what the travel agents like to sell.

As we go into the website you will see the list focusing on its own category or the supplier\’s specific promotions.

Major Topics
In the middle area I\’m using the main reasons our clients like to travel, family vacations and romantic getaways. Williamsburg Travel Leaders business is about an 88% business travel so our travelers are younger and not retired yet.

The front page is set up so the viewers can see right off the bat

• Who we are, Cruise and Vacation Experts and Travel Leaders branding
• How to contact us by phone for a call to action or a contact page with a form to start planing a vacation
• Links to our offices
• About Us page
• Navigation menu to viewers interest and company products

Beautiful images are very important and should enhance emotions.

Main Body of the Website

The 2 columns will list our favorite suppliers in their category

1. Cruises
2. River Cruises in Europe
3. Luxury Cruises
4. Alaska Cruise and Land Tours

In the image above Luxury Cruises and River Cruises are at the top because during this season the website is focusing on retired and vacationers with our children.

As the Holidays roll around, Thanksgiving through New Years the focus is on family vacations because this is usually the time when families plan their vacations.

The Sidebar is showing a drop down menu of all the offices and phone numbers and under that are travel videos by our favorite travel suppliers.

Note: Sometimes the supplier videos are also shown on their featured pages.

The Footer

This is the bottom area at the end of each page so you want to give your viewers an option to contact you, find more information or ways to stay connected.

This footer offers the headquarters contact information including phone numbers and address, Latest additions or updates, and a simple easy form to receive email updates.

Also, there is a list linking to our major social networks, RSS feed, and sitemap so visitors can follow updates to the website.

What Each Footer Should Contain

• Contact Information and if possible all the information should include Schema information for online databases.
• Social Icons to the companies pages. If a viewer has a favorite social network they can follow you.
• Email Sign Up Form or an automatic email update form when pages are available like Special Deals.
• Copy Rights should be included at the bottom of each page.

Also consider in the Footer Area

A navigation bar to include links to the home and about pages, privacy policy, and the sitemap or archives page that includes a list and links to all the other pages.

For a Small Company

This is a great place for a small company to increase its brand awareness by including

• A company\’s abbreviated mission statement or elevator pitch.
• A company video.
• Travel photos or, mini gallery with links to corresponding pages.
• Above the footer consider adding a list of travel associations, awards, and certifications.

The footer, or the end of the page, is a unique opportunity to give your viewers an understanding of who you are and several different ways to stay connected.

For a small to medium size travel company, the front page is an excellent way to show your personality and how you stand out from the mega agencies.

Main Features

• The brand logo is clear & direct.
• At the top right there is a call to action with a phone number.
• The top navigation bar above the brand logo connects the viewer with the company.
• The Navigation bar below the logo, highlights, and links to the company and viewers favorite products.
• The Main large image set up to rotate every time the page is visited. That way when a viewer comes back there is only a 20% chance they will see the same image so it will appear the website has changed.
• High-quality images must be included.
• All the images have been enhanced so they pop off the page, travel is very visual.
• And don\’t forget the site should work seamlessly with handheld devices like smartphones and iPads.

How to write your travel agent profile

You\’re not the only travel agent who cringes at the task of filling out their travel profile. It looks like the form is asking for more information than you know what to give.

Don\’t worry, after reading this tutorial, you\’ll be asking for more space to connect with your viewers.

Your travel agency or hosting company now provides a travel agent profile page for each agent. This is a great opportunity to insert your self into the company roster and show off your expertise.

Let\’s keep it simple and take it one step at a time.

Before Starting Understand

1. Where and how you will be listed
2. Examine where you will be:

Having your own web page will be different than your vendors or consortium\’s profile page. By taking your time and taking full advantage of all these pages have to offer will pay off many times in the future.

Go to travelleader.com and click on \”find a Travel Agent\”, at the top.

See how others are listed: What do you like? What do you dislike?

Now click on \”Travel Specials\” and what\’s listed, cruises.

Optimizing your profile for Humans

Imagine meeting a stranger on the street, How do you explain your passion and what do you want them to walk away with?

Think about who is going to read your profile and what professional points you want them to walk away with.

1. Connect with viewers who wants to fix a problem
2. Understand the form fields and how to make the most of them

Create Your Best Profile Image

Viewers will be
Attracted to your smile
and connect with your eyes.

Remember this is the first place the viewer\’s eye will land. It\’s a good idea to wear solid colors and have the background out of focus or not sharp.

Men should always show full shoulders, women either way. Women can include dogs or family as long as you still connect with viewers with your eyes.

If you really want your profile photo to stand out have it professionally done or go to your photography store and ask for someone to take a profile photo for you, you\’ll be surprised how eager photographers will be to help out.

Introduction Elevator Pitch

The first sentence should connect with the viewers\’ problem and include a feel-good solution.

Example: Relax while I create a memorable cruise vacation for your family and friends.

This is the first line of text and should compliment your Specialties and Destinations. So if you include European River Cruises in your title (and Specialties) then include European countries in your destinations.

Full Bio

Keep the content easy on the eyes; keep your paragraphs to 3 sentences or less.

Include \”problems and your solutions\”.

There is already \”a Call to Action\” \”Contact me\” so include some support like Let me show you how to…\”

Talk about your best problem-solving experience.

Everyone knows you wrote this piece so don\’t talk about yourself in the third person.

Remember the first 3 positions in your Specialties and Destinations are the most important.

Website Display Title

I\’ve saved the best for last:
Once you have the bio and teaser text, the information for the title will fall right into place.

Certifications & Specializations

Some travel company websites offer a place to list your certifications and specialties and sometimes linking them together.

When viewers already have a destination or type of travel in mind your profile will show up on a list in their search. This is a chance to show off your certifications for countries and suppliers. Try not to list more than 5 in each category.

Be specific. As an example, if your passion is river cruises, you, of course, will list river cruises, but not Europe it\’s too general and that search list will be very long. Include your certifications for those countries you want to sell.

If you hone your Specialties and Destinations to cruises (or the specials) you will be chosen in the TravelLeaders search engine. When you use these Specialties and Destinations in your Website Display Title you will connect with your viewers.

Adding Extra Travel Photos

This is a great place to show where you have been and the type of travel you do.

Do not add generic or someone else\’s photos. This is where you can shine. Even if they are not the best quality images, viewers are not expecting you to be a travel photographer, they want to know your expertise and familiarization.

Testimonals

Do not make these up. I can\’t stress this enough, the last thing you want is being known for making up your own testimonials. I think it would OK to ask a friend who has used you before or your favorite client.

Your Travel Profile or Social Network About Page

Each profile page or social network about page will be a little different and some listing services will have several pages requesting information, and it is important to fill out every field or at least as much as possible.

A note: If you try to be a do everything travel specialist make sure it does not sound generic.

Write about your passion!

Conclusion

Every area of the website has its own important way to interact and connect with your clients and viewers.

The front page leads with your special promotions, links deep into the site, and provides contact information that works seamlessly with handheld devices.

Office location(s) can work with business and social media.

Travel agents can build their own profile page as well as use the blog section of the website to show off their last trip, travel specialties, and skills.

Contact and form pages can be used by business and leisure departments.

Viewers are coming to your site looking for information like they are running through an airport trying to catch a flight. This is the page visitors will go to find the information they want and decide if they need to go somewhere else to find the travel information they are looking for.

About This Website Design

This website was built for Williamsburg Travel Leaders with the Lifestyle Pro Theme by Genesis-Studiopress around 2005 and the theme was upgraded to a responsive framework several years later and more than 2 years before Google required it. This is a Newspaper Style Theme and custom-designed to be more attractive and easy on the eyes by changing the colors and styling with curves.

Above the Fold

The Top or Header
This is an important area where you announce who you are with your logo, Cruise and Vacation Experts and what you want the viewers to do with a call to action; Let Us Design your next vacation.

Navigation
Here we have 2 navigation menus, one over the logo and the other under the logo and under the call to action.

The one over the logo, or brand, pertains to the company including the about, offices, and contact pages.

The second menu bar, located under the brand logo and call to action, is highlighted in a friendly dark aqua color with curved corners that meets accessibility standards. These links are to a combination of the viewer\’s interests and company products.

Featured Image
This is the large image under the secondary navigation menu bar.

This area and image were originally set up to be a rotating or slider gallery that would change images and links every few seconds. Currently, this presentation is out of favor with the general public.

I\’ve customized this area using Genesis-approved plugins to give viewers an 80% chance to see a different image linking to its page.

This lets the viewer see something which has changed since the last time they visited and also entices the viewer to research further.

Right Sidebar
On the front page, we have all the Best Vacation Deals Of The Week. These are a list of promotions provided by our favorite suppliers and what the travel agents like to sell.

As we go into the website you will see the list focusing on its own category or the supplier\’s specific promotions.

Major Topics
In the middle area I\’m using the main reasons our clients like to travel, family vacations, and romantic getaways. Williamsburg Travel Leaders business is about an 88% business travel so our travelers are younger and not retired yet.

The front page is set up so the viewers can see right off the bat

• Who we are, Cruise and Vacation Experts and Travel Leaders branding
• How to contact us by phone for a call to action or a contact page with a form to start planing a vacation
• Links to our offices
• About Us page
• Navigation menu to viewers interest and company products

Beautiful images are very important and should enhance emotions.

Main Body of the Website

The 2 columns will list our favorite suppliers in their category

1. Cruises
2. River Cruises in Europe
3. Luxury Cruises
4. Alaska Cruise and Land Tours

In the image above Luxury Cruises and River Cruises are at the top because during this season the website is focusing on retired and vacationers with our children.

As the Holidays roll around, from Thanksgiving through New Year the focus is on family vacations because this is usually the time when families plan their vacations.

The Sidebar is showing a drop-down menu of all the offices and phone numbers and under that are travel videos by our favorite travel suppliers.

Note: Sometimes the supplier videos are also shown on their featured pages.

The Footer

This is the bottom area at the end of each page so you want to give your viewers an option to contact you, find more information or ways to stay connected.

This footer offers the headquarters contact information including phone numbers and address, Latest additions or updates, and a simple easy form to receive email updates.

Also, there is a list linking to our major social networks, RSS feed and sitemap so visitors can follow updates to the website.

What Each Footer Should Contain

• Contact Information and if possible all the information should include Schema information for online databases.
• Social Icons to the companies pages. If a viewer has a favorite social network they can follow you.
• Email Sign Up Form or an automatic email update form when pages are available like Special Deals.
• Copy Rights should be included at the bottom of each page.

Also consider in the Footer Area

A navigation bar to include links to the home and about pages, privacy policy, and the sitemap or archives page that includes a list and links to all the other pages.

For a Small Company

This is a great place for a small company to increase its brand awareness by including

• A company\’s abbreviated mission statement or elevator pitch.
• A company video.
• Travel photos or, mini gallery with links to corresponding pages.
• Above the footer consider adding a list of travel associations, awards, and certifications.

The footer, or the end of the page, is a unique opportunity to give your viewers an understanding of who you are and several different ways to stay connected.

For a small to medium size travel company, the front page is an excellent way to show your personality and how you stand out from the mega agencies.

Your business-website plan should include:

• What are the services and products the business is providing?
• Who is the client or prospect the website is for?
• What do future clients want?
• How will the website support and interact with current clients?

Why Use a Website Plan?

Sometimes going on a road trip without a map can be fun, but this is not a joy ride with no direction in mind. We do have a goal and the website business plan gives us a map or a path to take.

Answering some questions will help us figure out what the website will need.

• Will the website be more than a brochure?
  1. Will it include an eCommerce store?
  2. What client services will it provide?
  3. Are there multiple offices with different contact information?
  4. Will you Introduce new products?
  5. Are there other ways your site will make money?
  6. Will clients use the site to interact with different divisions of your company?
• Who will be the key contributors to the website?
• Will there be other marketing programs funneling interested parties to the website?
• Will there be a blog? An RSS fed?
• Will there be an email newsletter?
• Will you be more concerned with sales or creating relationships?

How to set your website goals

Your website goals will set priorities and focus. And they will be measurable so simple adjustments can be made quickly.

Some standard goals will include:

• More page views.
• Increase your email subscribers.
• Better search engine positioning.

Here are some goals based on an increase in sales.

• Customer conversions.
• Current clients purchasing new products or services.
• Brand awareness by being a leader in your industry.
• More calls or one on one sales contacts.

all of these items can be easily trackable and should start before you start making any changes.

Depending on the size of your company there may be several divisions or maybe several products or services that will require their specific attention. So part of the plan will include a roadmap or a set of goals for each division.

When setting your goal expectations make sure they are achievable so your team can see their impact on the company’s growth.

Know Your Website Viewers

Are you selling to:

• Inovators want to know they are using cutting-edge technology.
• Mid or lower management doesn’t want to shake the boat but wants to be associated with products and services other larger companies are using with success.
• Family members want to bring info to the table for collaboration and agreement. Like decisions on the next vacation, many companies will put a bulk of their advertising budget around Thanksgiving because this is when families will be together and next year’s vacation will usually come up.

Content Is King

Build your content around your clients and make it easy for your viewers to turn into clients.

What you should understand about your viewers and clients and be able to show how you stand out from your competition.

• What is their problem and how you will fix it.
• Who are the initial contacts?
• Who are the decision-makers?
• Write to your demographic.

Know you can explain your products and services like you’re talking directly to the client and prospect.

Content Plan & Strategy

Will you be providing:

• A blog or adding content over time
• Documents to support products or services
• Images of products and image galleries
• Videos of services or how to use products

Planning for specific items can help when designing, navigating, and growth changes over time.

Website Assets

You may not use all of these:

• Customer testimonials
• Photography for people that directly meet with clients
• Photos of products
• Illustrations, blueprints or diagrams of products or past projects.
• Videos of products or services in action, directions, or how-to.
• Videos to introduce your company.
• Brand-specific logo, fonts, or colors.

These will help your company stand out from your competition.

Once these topics are well defined then the design, navigation, and content will fall into place. Design a client and new customer flow pattern.

Now you decide on contact forms, email sign-up forms how your site will work with social networks.

I still do not recommend using your social networks to interact with customers, but just a way to guide them to the website for more personal contact and interaction.

So now it’s time to look at design and navigation.

Web Design Ideas

So at this point, you should have already finished or at least started planning your website so you know what type of site it will be and the services-applications you will be using. These will help determine the best web design ideas for your viewers and for those managing your website.

Website WireFrames

Also, content layouts can be established at this time. that would include title or header placement and image size and placement.

Exceptions could be for secondary elements that can change for certain categories or page types that will help the viewer.

Elements will include

• Logo or Brand
• Primary Navigation
• Secondary Navigation
• Content
• Sidebar Area
• Footer Area
• Footer Credits
• Ad Placements
• Similar Topics
• Email Signup Form
• and the list goes on

Images and Photos

We all have heard the phrase: An image is worth a thousand words, except for web design. Not only should your image reflect what the page is about, but the typical viewer’s eyes will go to the image first and process more information & experience emotions hundreds of times faster than what they could read. This is why images are so important in the travel industry.

Website Usability

What is Usability?
Some websites have gone to great expenses to create beautiful websites and some are very artful. But today in 2020, viewer-friendly sites will be king. Currently, viewers have to dodge popups and jump over ads to find what they are looking for. Sure you want the visitors to sign up for your email list or even contact you, but to request that before someone even sees the first page they request, I don’t think so.

Friendly Usable sites will guide the visitor to the information or product they want to the point the visitor does not even have to think about it or hopefully doe not even have to use the search function, it’s very seamless.

The usability of a website including content, navigation, and services is validated by the user experience.

Navigation Bars

Navigation is the first way a viewer will interact with your site. That first click is determined by the viewer thinking they will find the information they are looking for.

The friendliness of the site will be determined by how easy it is to find the link, how fast the page comes up, and did they get the information they wanted.

Remember viewers are racing through the web looking for information like OJ Simson running down an airport terminal to get to the last gate. They are dodging popups, jumping over ads, and maybe on a deadline. How can you make this simple and easy?

Over the last several years photo Gallery Plugins have taken on new ways to make it easier to manage your images as well as new ways to create unique presentations.

Who Should Have A Photo Gallery?

Now that Google, Bing, and other search engines use images in their ranking algorithm, everyone should be using a photo gallery plugin especially

• Photographers who need to showcase or sell their photographs
• Real Estate Sites that list houses and employees.
• Travel Destinations like resorts, B&Bs, and activities. Photos are the preferred way to engage views and emotions.
• Custom Jewelry photos
• Business products or services
• Company Team-employees
• Home services or products are one of the strongest examples of why you should use images. Over 60% of sales come from an image link.
• eCommerce Sites

These are a few of the industries or services that can take advantage of an online photo gallery. If you’re not sure search Google Images for your product or services.

Preparing Images for The Web

Optimizing Your Images
There are 3 ways to optimize your photos or images.

1. Make sure the image is crystal clear and will stand out when alongside its peers (like in Google Images)
2. Use the right size image for its space.
3. Optimize the photo or image so it’s lightweight and can be downloaded or uploaded to the browser as fast as possible.

Lazy Loading
One of the standard plugins I use on almost every site is Jetpack and it comes with a Lazy Loading for images. This lets the images above the fold load first and then the images under the fold load afterward.

I do not like to use off-site services that Speedup Image load time because this limits ratings in the search engines. That’s just my preference and please feel free to use these if you wish.

Envira Gallery Addons

Currently, there are 30 add-ons that you can access right from the plugin on your website.

it’s very easy to add an Addon with just 2 clicks, the same as adding a plugin from the WordPress Plugin Directory. One click to install and another click to activate. Add of course you can download the plugin and all the add-ons from the Envira Gallery Website and then upload them, but for me, it’s easier just to add while on the site.

Some of the Standard Addons I Always Use on my sites and clients.

• Albums let you group photos and galleries together.
• CSS Addon Create a different different design for each gallery
• Deeplinking helps with SEO.
• Defaults This Addon helps save time by customizing the settings.
• Gallery Themes includes 5 beautiful gallery layouts.
• Protection stops viewers from down loading your images.
• Social Sharing lets you share your photos on your social networks
• Tags allows you to add tags to each photo and in the future, you can create a gallery by the tags.

Conclusion

Images on the website are a very valuable asset. Its true images are worth 1000 words and evoke emotions and ideas in a fraction of a second.

Envira Gallery can take your images to a whole new level in search engines and present products and locations in a whole new light.

Different Types Of Forms

• Offer to Receive email Updates ~ This should be
  predominate on the home page as well as other pages. 
• Offer to receive Website Updates and Emails ~ The viewers on this list will receive website updates as well as email updates.
• A Contact Form ~ Every website should have one. This is the first step to going from a brochure to an interactive website.
• A Free Offer ~ Everyone likes a free offer. 
  This is a friendly way to engage viewers. Whether it\’s for a free evaluation, year-end industry update  or just a 20-minute conversation, this gives the viewer and you a way to interact and create a relationship. 
• An Offer to Do Business ~ 

Keep Your Forms Simple & Unique 

There is an old saying,
Keep your forms to as few fields as possible. 

With topics of interest you can offer some conditional logic and have the email sent to specific divisions or person who specializes in that topic. 

This is true for an initial introduction like an email offer but for an offer to do business or contact if you are a large or medium size company or just have several different services you may want more information or offer topics of interest.

Business Addons

List Additions

Lets the viewer add additional items while keeping the form clean and neat. 

Conditional Logic

Add a Signature

Example of a Signature Field

Additional Lists

Gravity Forms can manage your simple contact forms with unique distributions and can also provide advanced add-ons you only see with professional form builders.

Web forms give your business site a way for your viewers to easily connect, ask questions, join email lists and provide client profile information.