#Featured images

Images for automated posts: what a featured image is for, what size to produce, and why every post needs one. We cover the difference between an image that decorates and one that carries the headline into a social card, and the sizes that survive being cropped by each destination. You will find why alt text matters for readers using assistive technology and for search, and what to write in it. We also cover what to avoid entirely: stock photos that say nothing, fabricated screenshots and anything carrying a generator’s watermark. We also cover why one image per post, produced to a single size, is easier to maintain than a library of hand-picked photographs. The practical test is whether the image still makes sense when it appears next to the headline with no article around it.