How to push down outdated images in Google image search

[jimmartin_zoho.com]

When you do a Google image search for one of my client's products, you see a lot of first-generation hardware (the product is now in its third generation). The client wants to know what they can do to push those images down so that current product images rise to the top. FYI: the client's own image files on their site aren't very well optimized with keywords.

My thinking is to have the client optimize their own images and the ones they give to the media with relevant keywords in file names, alt text, etc. Eventually, this should help push down the outdated images is my thinking. Any other suggestions? Thanks so much.

[john4math]

I think your plan is sound.  Having quality content pages with the newer images with appropriate alt and title text is a good start.  Then you'll just have outrank the other images like you said.

You could also try contacting some the webmasters of other sites whose images are ranking well, and ask them to update their image with the new third generation image, if that image is just as appropriate to their content as the first generation one.  For example, if their post or article is about the product in general, they could update their image of the product for you.  If their post or article is about the first generation product, it wouldn't make sense to update it.  This is the same as when you're link building, and you ask the author of a post or article to change the anchor text of the link they're using to your site.

Also, if your client is very interested in having people see the new images when searching for them in Google Image search now, you can run ads in Google image search.  These ads use a slightly different format than both display or search ads, in that they include an image along with text alongside it.  It's still pretty new, and I think a lot of advertisers haven't tried it yet, so the clicks are relatively cheap for search advertising.

[jimmartin_zoho.com]

You are the man, John. I really, really appreciate your thoughtful reply. -- Jim