Optimising Squarespace Images for Better SEO

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you'll be able to:

1. Understand how image optimisation affects your Squarespace site's SEO performance
2. Resize and compress images to improve page loading speeds
3. Write effective filenames and alt text that boost search rankings
4. Use Squarespace's built-in tools alongside external resources for better results

Introduction

Your website's images do more than look pretty – they directly impact how fast your pages load and how well you rank in search results. Heavy, poorly optimised images can drag down your site's performance, while properly optimised ones help you climb the search rankings.

Here's what makes the difference: search engines favour fast-loading websites that provide a good user experience. When your images are bloated or poorly named, you're making it harder for both visitors and search engines to engage with your content.

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This chapter shows you exactly how to get your Squarespace images working for your SEO, not against it.

Lessons

Lesson 1: Why Image Optimisation Matters for SEO

Large, unoptimised images are one of the biggest culprits behind slow-loading websites. When your pages take too long to load, visitors leave, and search engines notice.

The SEO impact:

• Page speed is a confirmed Google ranking factor
• Slow sites get lower search rankings
• Visitors bounce when pages don't load within 3 seconds
• Mobile users are especially impatient with slow images

Check your current situation:

1. Open your Squarespace site on your phone
2. Note which pages feel slow to load
3. Look for large images that might be the problem
4. Use Squarespace Analytics to check your bounce rates

The pages with the highest bounce rates often have image problems you can fix.

Lesson 2: Getting Your Image Sizes Right

Squarespace automatically resizes images, but uploading huge files still slows things down. Here's how to get it right from the start.

Before you upload:

1. Resize images to no more than 2048px on the longest side
2. For hero images, 1920px wide is plenty
3. For blog images, 800-1200px wide works well
4. Keep file sizes under 500KB where possible

Using Squarespace's tools:

1. Click on any image in your site
2. Select 'Edit' from the toolbar
3. Use the crop and resize options to adjust dimensions
4. Choose 'Fit' or 'Fill' based on your layout needs

External compression tools that work well:

• TinyPNG for PNG files
• JPEGmini for JPEG files
• Squoosh (Google's free tool)

This is the bit most people miss – compressing before upload saves more loading time than relying on Squarespace's automatic processing alone.

Lesson 3: Filenames and Alt Text That Boost SEO

Your image filename and alt text are direct SEO opportunities. Search engines can't see your images, but they read these text elements.

Writing SEO-friendly filenames:

1. Use descriptive words instead of IMG_1234.jpg
2. Include your main keyword naturally
3. Separate words with hyphens
4. Keep it under 5-6 words

Examples:

• Bad: DSC_0089.jpg
• Good: modern-kitchen-renovation-london.jpg

Writing effective alt text:

1. Describe what you actually see in the image
2. Include relevant keywords naturally
3. Keep it under 125 characters
4. Skip "image of" or "picture of" – screen readers know it's an image

In Squarespace:

1. Click on your image
2. Select 'Edit'
3. Click the 'Alt Text' field
4. Write your description

Remember – if the image doesn't load, your alt text should help visitors understand what they're missing.

Lesson 4: Using Squarespace's SEO Features

Squarespace gives you several tools to help with image SEO beyond basic editing.

Auto-generated image sizes:

• Squarespace creates multiple sizes of each image automatically
• This helps with responsive design and loading speed
• You don't need to upload different sizes manually

Image focal points:

1. Edit your image
2. Click 'Focal Point'
3. Set where the image should centre when cropped
4. This ensures important parts stay visible on all devices

Page speed insights:

• Check your site speed with Google PageSpeed Insights
• Look specifically for image-related suggestions
• Focus on the "Opportunities" section for quick wins

Practice

Pick one page on your Squarespace site that feels slow to load. Now work through this checklist:

1. Identify the largest images on that page
2. Download and compress them using TinyPNG or similar
3. Re-upload the compressed versions
4. Update the filenames to be more descriptive
5. Add or improve alt text for each image
6. Test the page loading speed before and after

Time yourself – this process should take about 15 minutes per page once you get the hang of it.

FAQs

Does Squarespace automatically optimise images?
Squarespace does resize images and create responsive versions, but it doesn't compress file sizes aggressively. You'll get better results by compressing images before upload.

What's the ideal image format for SEO?
JPEG works best for photos, PNG for graphics with transparent backgrounds, and WebP for the smallest file sizes (though not all browsers support WebP yet).

How many images can slow down my page?
It's more about total file size than number of images. A page with 10 well-optimised images often loads faster than one with 3 huge, uncompressed photos.

Should I use Squarespace's built-in editing tools?
Use them for basic adjustments and cropping, but do your main resizing and compression before upload for best results.

Jargon Buster

Alt Text – Text description of an image that screen readers use and search engines read for context

Compression – Reducing file size while maintaining acceptable image quality

Focal Point – The most important part of an image that should remain visible when cropped

Page Speed – How quickly a web page loads completely in a browser

Responsive Images – Images that automatically adjust size based on the device viewing them

Wrap-up

Your images should work as hard as your content to improve your SEO. The key steps – compress before upload, use descriptive filenames, write helpful alt text, and leverage Squarespace's responsive features – will make a noticeable difference to your site's performance.

Start with your most important pages and work through them systematically. Most site owners see improvements in loading speed within a week of implementing these changes.

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Next, you might want to explore how other Squarespace SEO features can complement your newly optimised images.

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