Email alt text explains what an image contributes when it cannot be seen or is read through assistive technology. A product photo, a linked button image, and a decorative divider need different treatment. Describe the information or action the reader would otherwise miss. Filenames, repeated promotional claims, and added keywords do not make that explanation more useful.
Describe the decision-relevant detail
For a product image, mention the feature that matters in context. “Linen tote with two inside pockets” can be more useful than “Beautiful product image.” If the surrounding text already explains the same detail, avoid unnecessarily repeating the whole paragraph.
For an image that acts as a link, make the purpose understandable. The reader should know whether it opens a product, a guide, or a collection. Do not describe decorative styling while leaving the action unclear.
Decide the image's role before writing
Ask what would be lost if the image disappeared. If it shows a product detail not described nearby, that detail needs a useful alternative. If it only adds decoration beside an already complete explanation, announcing it may create noise. If the image is the link's only content, the alternative needs to identify the action or destination.
For a close-up showing two inside pockets, “Interior of the linen tote showing two open pockets” can communicate the useful detail. For a decorative leaf beside a complete care heading, an empty alternative may be appropriate. For an image-only link to a size guide, describing the destination is more useful than describing the background colour.
The same photograph can have different roles. In a product comparison it may explain a feature; in a repeated decorative banner it may add nothing new. Do not assign alternative text once in an asset folder and assume it will fit every future use without review.
Let decoration stay quiet
Purely decorative images should not interrupt the reading experience with irrelevant descriptions. Use the editor's appropriate alternative-text behavior and test the resulting message rather than assuming every image needs a long sentence.
Keep essential offer information in live text as well. Alternative text is not a reliable substitute for making the main message readable. A complete promotion baked into one image remains difficult to adapt, even if its description is carefully written.
Keep the information concise and contextual
Avoid filenames, generic phrases such as “image of,” and promotional claims that the image does not establish. Describe the relevant content rather than using the field as another advertising headline. If the adjacent text already names the product, the alternative can focus on the detail that is not otherwise explained.
For a complex comparison or diagram, a short alternative may identify its purpose while a nearby live-text explanation carries the full information. Do not place a long, essential set of offer terms only in the alternative field. Readers using different email environments need access to the same practical meaning.
Review in the finished template
In Sendvio, inspect the image settings and preview the email without relying on the artwork. Read the subject, heading, body, image alternatives, and action in order. The story should still make sense.
Update descriptions when images or language versions change. A copied template can retain an old description that now refers to a different product. Add this check to creative review so accessibility remains connected to the actual campaign, rather than becoming a one-time task completed when the template was first built.
Read the finished message in order with the alternatives included. Repeated product names, duplicate button labels, and descriptions of purely decorative elements can make the experience unnecessarily verbose. Also check that an image-only link still has an understandable accessible name when the artwork is unavailable.
Inspect the generated or sent result using appropriate accessibility tools, because an editor field alone does not prove how the final markup behaves. Repeat the check when a template image changes or a campaign is translated. The goal is equivalent useful information: the customer should understand the product, the message, and the available actions without needing the image itself to load or be seen.