Dynamic image serving SEO

[ozgeekmum]

We often use images from a dynamic image server, to cater for image asset management, multiple sizes etc.  Similar to Adobe's Scene7, although that came out after we chose our product.

So widgets.com may have all its images with a URL like  myimageserver.com?src=widgets/catalogue/productname.jpg;width=100;height=100;angle=90,  instead of widgets.com/images/productname.jpg.

A potential client wants to capitalise on traffic from Google image search.

We could build an image sitemap, listing the images on each page.

What should we place in the image:loc field? The code: myimageserver.com?src=widgets/catalogue/productname.jpg;width=100;height=100;angle=90

Apparently we have to verify the hosting site in Webmaster Tools, but I can't see where.

I have a single Webmaster Tools account, where most of our sites are defined. Would I have to verify it for each site using the dynamic imaging program?

Love to hear from anyone with solutions for getting images indexed when they are hosted at third-party dynamic imaging programs.

[ShaMenz]

Hi Chris,

Do you own the site which generates the images?

In order to verify a site you need to create a separate Webmaster Tools account for it and then go through the normal WMT verification process. This requires you to have sufficient control of the site to upload a file or add a meta tag to the index page.

If you cannot do this then you will not be able to verify the site.

Sha

[ozgeekmum]

We do also own the image generating site, so we could add it to our central Webmaster Tools account.

It's used by a large number of other client sites.

My usual preference is to verify by uploading a file.

Do you know if we would have to reverify the imagesite for every other client site that uses it?

The main issue is that we want the images to be indexed, and for the resulting traffic to be sent to the client site - not to the image site.

Has anyone got experience in using image indexing this way with xml files, and proved that traffic does come through?

cheers