Why Product Photos Without Alt Text Hurt Accessibility Compliance

We use product photos every day to show what we offer. A jacket, a phone case, a coffee mug on a shelf, these images tell the story faster than words. But what are we forgetting when we post them online? If those product images don’t have alt text, we’re missing more than just helpful labels. We’re leaving out customers who rely on screen readers to understand visual content.

Alt text fills in the blanks for users who can’t see images. It describes what’s in the photo so everyone gets the same information, no matter how they access our site. When we skip this step, our content gets harder to use, and it can also cause compliance issues with web accessibility rules. That’s one reason tools like an alt text generator for images matter now more than ever, especially during busy seasons when hundreds of new photos may be going live at once. MetadataAI is an AI-powered platform from Mainstream Data that automatically generates professional headlines, captions, descriptions, and keywords for any image in seconds, which makes it easier to keep up with alt text for growing product catalogs.

What Is Alt Text and Why It Matters

When we talk about alt text, we’re talking about the short descriptions that live behind an image. These descriptions don’t normally show up on the page. Instead, they work quietly in the background, getting read out loud by screen readers to give users a sense of what the image includes.

Think of a simple product photo. For someone using a screen reader, a good alt text might be “red wool scarf folded on a wooden table.” Without that text, the user might just hear “image” with no other clues. That’s frustrating. And it can lead someone to leave the page.

Examples help shape the difference:

• Good alt text: “blue ceramic coffee mug on white marble counter”

• Bad alt text: “image123.jpg”

• Missing alt text: nothing at all

When used right, alt text helps make digital spaces feel welcoming instead of frustrating. Everyone gets what they need to understand the product, whether they see the photo or hear about it.

How Missing Alt Text Can Create Accessibility Issues

When product photos don’t include alt text, we shut the door on part of our audience. People who are blind, have low vision, or use assistive tools can’t understand what a product photo shows. That makes everyday tasks, like browsing jackets, books, or home décor, much harder than they should be.

Even for people who aren’t relying on a screen reader full-time, poor or missing alt text gets in the way. Sometimes images don’t load because of slow connections. Sometimes people use tools that block images altogether. If a photo has no alt text, those users get left guessing.

This hurts more than just the user experience:

• It makes our website harder to use

• It limits who feels invited to shop with us

• It sends the message that accessibility isn’t a priority

Being more mindful with image descriptions helps welcome everyone, and that’s better for both usability and long-term trust.

What Accessibility Compliance Actually Requires

There are rules that guide how websites should be built so that more people can use them. One of the most common sets of rules is called the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, or WCAG. These include standards about how text, navigation, video, and images should work.

When it comes to product photos, WCAG specifies that meaningful images should always have text alternatives. That means if a product image helps sell an item or showcase important information, there needs to be something that explains it for screen readers.

Skipping alt text doesn’t just create confusion. It can create risk. Public websites that ignore accessibility guidelines sometimes face complaints or pressure to meet basic requirements. And whether it’s a large business or a small shop, ignoring the rules for too long can lead to problems that take much more time to fix down the road.

Why E-Commerce and Product Photos Are Often the Problem

Out of all website sections, product galleries tend to have the most images, and usually the least descriptive text. It’s common during content updates to prioritize layout, color, and image tags but skip writing unique alt text for every photo.

Seasonal updates only make the problem bigger. In January, many e-commerce sites refresh inventory to highlight winter gear or promote end-of-year clearances. That means new jackets, boots, gloves, and sale signs all go live at once. Every new item brings another set of photos that need descriptions.

Large volumes of images often lead to shortcuts:

• Teams rely on generic labels

• Descriptions get copied across products

• Alt text fields are left blank

It may not show right away, but over time, this makes sites harder to navigate and products more difficult to find in search.

Making Alt Text Easier with Automation

If writing a unique description for every product photo sounds time-consuming, that’s because it is. When content moves fast and product collections grow by the week, we need something that helps carry the weight. That’s where tools like an alt text generator for images can make a difference. MetadataAI is built for marketers, content creators, social media managers, e-commerce businesses, and other teams that need to create accurate image descriptions quickly.

These tools scan product photos and generate short, readable descriptions based on what’s shown in the picture. Instead of writing every line from scratch, the software can take on the bulk of the work, leaving us with time to review and polish where needed. With MetadataAI, you can process JPEG images up to 8MB directly in the browser, and uploaded images are not stored, which helps teams handle large batches of product photos without adding extra long-term storage concerns.

Here’s how automation helps:

• Speeds up alt text for dozens (or hundreds) of products

• Keeps copy consistent while staying accurate

• Helps teams stay on track during seasonal highs

Automated tools aren’t meant to replace thoughtful edits, but they do keep our baseline high, especially in months like January when inventory turnover and content demand are both up.

Better Product Visibility Starts with Accessibility

The more people who can navigate our product pages and understand the images we share, the better. Adding alt text isn’t just ticking a box or meeting a rule. It's about thinking of every shopper who depends on that extra bit of care.

As we move deeper into winter and prep for spring lines, now’s a smart time to refresh our photos and make sure they speak to everyone. Screen reader users, search engines, mobile browsers, they all benefit from better image descriptions.

Making these updates isn’t about doing something big. It’s about making small, meaningful improvements that invite more people in and make the digital space easier to use.

Writing effective alt text doesn’t have to be overwhelming, even during your busiest content cycles. With the right tools, your team can move faster while keeping accessibility top of mind. Try using an alt text generator for images to bring clarity and consistency to your photo descriptions at scale. MetadataAI helps ensure your visuals are both compliant and user-friendly, all while saving you valuable time.