20%

Last updated: March 2026
Source: Rank4AI observational research — rank4ai.co.uk

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TL;DR

An observational review of hundreds of UK SME websites found that around one in five had stock photography indicators visible in their HTML source. The larger issue is not that businesses use stock photos — that is a perfectly normal, practical choice — but that stock images frequently carry generic alt text copied directly from the stock library. For AI systems that process image alt text as part of entity understanding, this creates what we call a "double noise" problem: a generic image paired with a generic description produces no useful entity signal at all. The fix is straightforward and takes a few minutes per image.

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What We Found

Reviewing hundreds of UK SME websites in March 2026, we looked for stock photography indicators in HTML source code. Stock photo indicators were defined as references to Shutterstock, iStock, Getty Images, Unsplash or Pexels appearing in image URLs, alt text attributes, or filenames.

Key findings:

• Approximately 20% of sites had at least one stock photo indicator present in the HTML source
• Overall, only 61% of images across all reviewed sites had any alt text at all
• Alt text coverage varied considerably by industry, ranging from around 23% to 77%
• The combination of stock photography and generic alt text was the most common pattern — and the one most likely to create noise for AI entity signals

None of these findings should be read as establishing cause and effect. They are observational patterns from a sample of UK SME sites, intended to highlight a practical issue that is worth addressing.

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The Double Noise Problem

Stock photography is everywhere on the web, and for good reason. A small business that does not have professional photography, or that needs to fill space on a new site quickly, will often reach for a stock image. That is a reasonable decision.

The problem arises at the intersection of two common behaviours:

1. A generic image is used — a stock photo of "happy business people in a meeting room" or "smiling woman at a laptop"
2. Generic alt text is applied — typically either no alt text at all, or alt text copied verbatim from the stock library description

The result is what we call a double noise signal. AI systems that process image alt text as part of building an understanding of what a business is, where it is, and who runs it, receive no entity-specific information at all.

Consider the difference:

Approach	Alt text	AI signal
Stock photo, library alt text	"happy team meeting in modern office"	Generic — could apply to any business anywhere
Stock photo, contextualised alt text	"Our approach to client consultation at [Business Name]"	Specific — tied to this business and its practice
Original photography, specific alt text	"Jane Smith, founder of [Business Name], at their Birmingham office"	Strong — named entity, location, role

The third option is ideal. But even the second option — a stock photo with rewritten, contextualised alt text — is substantially more useful than the first.

For AI systems attempting to understand a business as a distinct entity (its name, its people, its location, its services), generic image descriptions add noise rather than clarity. They do not directly harm a site, but they represent a missed opportunity to reinforce entity signals at a point where the effort required is very low.

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Industry Breakdown

Alt text coverage and stock photo indicator rates varied considerably across industry categories in our sample.

Alt Text Coverage by Industry (approximate)

Industry	Approximate alt text coverage
Restaurants	~77%
Accountancy	~70%
Marketing agencies	~65%
Plumbers	~60%
Personal trainers	~55%
Estate agents	~23%

Estate agents had notably low alt text coverage overall, which may reflect a reliance on property listing images that are not routinely alt-tagged in CMS platforms.

Stock Photo Indicator Rate by Industry

Industry	Stock photo indicators observed
Dentists	Present in all sites reviewed
Marketing agencies	Present in approximately half of sites reviewed
Accountancy	Present in roughly one in five sites reviewed
Estate agents	Not observed
Plumbers	Not observed
Personal trainers	Not observed
Restaurants	Not observed

Dentist websites showed the highest concentration of stock photo indicators. This is consistent with the observation that dental practices frequently use professional stock photography of smiling patients, dental chairs, and clinical settings — categories for which original photography may feel unnecessary or costly.

Marketing agencies showing a moderate rate of stock photo indicators is notable, given that these businesses are often most aware of web best practices. It may suggest that stock imagery is sometimes used deliberately for stylistic reasons in this sector, without corresponding attention to alt text.

Industries with zero observed stock photo indicators — estate agents, plumbers, personal trainers, restaurants — tend to use either property listing photos, job-site images, food photography, or personal photos, all of which are more likely to be original and locally specific.

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The Fix

The practical solution here is not to remove stock photography from your site. It is to rewrite the alt text so that it reflects your business context rather than a generic image description.

This takes a few minutes per image and requires no technical changes to the site.

Instead of:

• "business meeting stock photo"
• "happy team in modern office"
• "smiling professional at desk"
• "handshake between two businesspeople"

Write something like:

• "Our approach to client onboarding at [Business Name]"
• "The [Business Name] team in discussion at our [City] office"
• "A consultation with one of our [service] specialists"
• "How we work with clients at [Business Name]"

Where you have original photography — real team members, real locations, real clients (with permission) — the alt text opportunity is even stronger:

• "Sarah Jones, senior consultant at [Business Name], at our Leeds office"
• "The [Business Name] installation team on a recent job in [Town]"

These descriptions are honest, contextually specific, and give AI systems something to work with when building an understanding of your business as an entity.

A reasonable priority order:

1. Hero images and team photos — these carry the most potential entity signal
2. Service or product images — tie these to your specific offering
3. Background or decorative stock images — these can remain generic or use an empty alt attribute (alt="") to signal to assistive technology that they are decorative

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Why This Matters for AI Signals

Search and AI systems have increasingly moved toward entity-based understanding — trying to determine not just what keywords appear on a page, but what business is being described, where it operates, who is involved, and what it does.

Image alt text is one of many signals that can contribute to this understanding. It is not the most important signal, and improving it alone is unlikely to produce dramatic changes in visibility. But it is an easy, low-cost improvement that addresses a gap that many sites — particularly those relying on stock photography — currently have.

The pattern observed in our research suggests that alt text is frequently either absent or generic across UK SME websites, and that the combination of stock photography and generic descriptions is widespread. Addressing this is a straightforward hygiene task that sits alongside other entity-reinforcing practices: consistent NAP (name, address, phone) data, an accurate Google Business Profile, structured data markup, and clear authorship signals.

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Methodology

This article draws on observational findings from a manual and automated review of hundreds of UK SME websites conducted in March 2026. Sites were sampled across multiple industry categories. Stock photo indicators were identified by checking HTML source code for references to major stock photography platforms (Shutterstock, iStock, Getty Images, Unsplash, Pexels) in image src attributes, alt text strings, and filenames. Alt text coverage was calculated as the proportion of <img> elements with a non-empty alt attribute.

The sample is not claimed to be statistically representative of all UK SME websites. Findings are observational and no causal claims are made. Industry sample sizes varied and some categories had small samples; findings for those categories should be treated as indicative rather than conclusive.

All site-level data was collected for research purposes only. No individual businesses are identified.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Will using stock photos hurt my search or AI visibility?

There is no evidence that using stock photography directly harms search visibility. Stock photos are a normal, widespread choice. The issue is specifically with generic alt text — when image descriptions contain no entity-specific information, they contribute noise rather than signal. A stock photo with well-written, contextualised alt text is substantially better than one with no alt text or a generic library description.

What counts as a "stock photo indicator" in your research?

For the purposes of this research, a stock photo indicator was any reference in the HTML source to Shutterstock, iStock, Getty Images, Unsplash or Pexels — appearing in an image URL, an alt text string, or a filename. Some sites host stock images locally after download, in which case the original source would not be visible in the HTML. Our figures are therefore likely an undercount of actual stock photo usage.

Does alt text really influence how AI systems understand my business?

Alt text is one of many signals available to AI systems that attempt to build entity models of businesses. It is not the dominant signal — structured data, consistent name/address/phone information, and content quality are all likely more significant. But alt text is easy to improve, is frequently neglected, and represents a straightforward opportunity to reinforce entity-specific information. It is particularly valuable on pages that have limited text content, where images make up a larger proportion of the available signal.

Why do dentist websites have such high rates of stock photo indicators?

This is an observational finding and we can only speculate on the reasons. Dental practices may be more likely to use professionally designed website templates that come pre-loaded with stock imagery, or to work with web agencies that use stock photos as default content. Clinical photography — of actual procedures or equipment — may also feel less appropriate to some practices, making stock imagery a default choice. Whatever the reason, the practical implication is the same: the alt text on those images should be rewritten to reflect the specific practice.

How do I check whether my site has stock photo indicators?

The simplest approach is to view the HTML source of your pages (right-click, View Page Source in most browsers) and search for the names of major stock platforms. Alternatively, open your browser's developer tools, navigate to the Network tab, and filter for image requests — the URLs will often reveal the source. A web developer or agency can also audit this for you quickly.

Does this apply to images hosted on my own server?

Yes — the issue with generic alt text applies regardless of where the image is hosted. If you downloaded a stock photo and uploaded it to your own server, the stock platform name will not appear in the URL, but the alt text may still be generic. The source hosting is less important than the alt text content itself.

What is an appropriate alt text for a purely decorative image?

For images that serve no informational purpose — background textures, dividers, purely stylistic elements — the correct approach is to use an empty alt attribute: alt="". This tells screen readers and other systems that the image is decorative and carries no content meaning. It is preferable to leaving the alt attribute out entirely, and better than writing generic filler text.

Is this only relevant for small businesses?

The research specifically covered UK SME websites, but the principles apply at any scale. Larger businesses with dedicated SEO or content teams may have processes in place to review alt text systematically. Small businesses, which often build their sites quickly with limited resources, are more likely to overlook this step. The good news is that the fix requires no special tools or technical expertise — it is a content task that any business owner or their team can complete.

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Disclaimer: The findings in this article are based on an observational review of a sample of UK SME websites conducted in March 2026. They are not statistically representative of all UK businesses or all industries. No causal claims are made. Individual businesses are not identified. The purpose of this research is to highlight practical patterns that may be worth addressing, not to make authoritative claims about ranking or visibility outcomes. Rank4AI is an AI search visibility service based in the UK — rank4ai.co.uk.

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