Digital accessibility

What is digital accessibility

What do you think of when it comes to digital accessibility? I also have that in our effect-makers asked. Some of the reactions: sufficient readability, making sure that people who are blind or deaf can also receive your content, subtitles, my mother has all the letters on her iPhone very large, and also “euhh...” regularly. That's okay, because digital accessibility is a broad concept. Our short definition: Ensuring that people with disabilities are able to use and understand (digital) files in the best possible way.

Why is it relevant now?

Of course, we've always been concerned with accessibility. We provide sufficient contrast between the letters and the background in a brochure, use fonts that are easy to read and provide a ring loop for hearing aids when we're hosting a major event. But there is something special about digital files.

Code as key to accessibility

After all, digital files consist of code, and you can interpret that code in many ways. A printed book can't just be read by someone who can't see. But when we code text and images properly, we make them accessible. Then a computer can read text aloud or translate it into Braille. This way, people who have difficulty seeing or reading can still understand your text.

Example: head or fat?

For people with disabilities, it is really necessary that we (format) (digital) files in the right way. For example, did you know that there is a difference between a headline and a bold text in your story? On the site, a header and bold text look the same.

This is bold text.
And this is a header

<strong>This is bold text.</strong>
<h2>And this is a header</h2>

A header and bold text therefore look the same for most readers, but for a reader with a disability, it is very important that you use headers. This is because this is how you make the structure of the text clear, even for people who cannot see the text.

Many different media

So what kind of media can we all make accessible? Let's give a few examples:

1. Text

Make sure the structure is good, so that the text can be read aloud by the computer or read with a braille line. Oh, and when you post a link, don't use “click here”, describe what you're linking to. Finally, you can also make the text itself easier. Short sentences and simple words make it easier for everyone.

2. Pictures

Give images an alt text (yes, you can also enter Facebook, Instagram and Twitter). In it, we describe what is in the image, so that visually impaired people can also read it. The old rules also remain in force, so make sure there is sufficient contrast!

3. Video

Make the subtitles for a video a separate file. It contains the text that is spoken, and, if necessary, also what happens in the video. Also, make a transcript, and if it's a long video, a separate text summary.

4. PDF

A digital PDF can be made fully accessible, but this must be properly prepared in advance when formatting. The PDF also often has to be edited afterwards to make the file suitable for use by people with disabilities. For example, specifying the language or the reading order of text frames and tables. Otherwise, reading aloud will go in the wrong order. The layout for all relevant images or infographics must also include a description of what to see.
Making a PDF accessible is therefore a big job. That's why you should always consider whether that is the right tool. Perhaps it's better to offer the information as a webpage, so that you benefit from the (hopefully) accessible structure of your website.

5. Website

Use text where possible, not a “picture of text” because it looks nicer. With CSS, you can create beautiful designs that are still accessible. Our designers and designers will help you out. In addition, you can have your site read aloud with a plugin.

Not just for people with disabilities

Secretly, we all enjoy accessible media. Do you ever use reader mode on your phone? This shows you a version of a website with only the text and images. You can decide the color of the background, the size of the letters and the font yourself.
And have you ever turned the subtitles on or off on Netflix or YouTube? Or changed languages? This is only possible because the video file is smartly structured. With a videotape (who remembers them?) or after all, you can't turn off the subtitles on television. The subtitles are also important for people who watch social media in public transport. Almost all of them have their phone sound off. So friendly to the fellow travelers. And I turn on subtitles when I watch TV late at night, so the sound doesn't have to be so loud and I still know what's being said.

Search Engines

Accessible files have another major advantage. Search engines like Google can actually only read. Understanding images, video, and audio is getting better, but it remains a challenge. So if we provide subtitles or alt text, Google (and YouTube, the second most popular search engine after Google) can better understand our story! So: More accessible content = more discoverable content = more visits for the company.

Conclusion: get to work!

Whatever you think about it, digital accessibility will be mandatory for government communication. Aren't you a government? So there are three main reasons for making your documents accessible:

1. Helping people with disabilities
2. Making content accessible to the rest of the world
3. Rank higher in Google

How do you approach accessibility?

It's not hard to get started with digital accessibility. In fact, these are five steps that follow each other over and over again. We call it the effect group* Accessibility Cycle.

1. What is the status?

Of course, you have to know where you stand first. Fortunately, there are a lot of tools out there.
- Check the accessibility of your website
- Control the contrast in your design
- Learn more about the guidelines for a barrier-free web (WCAG 2.1)

2. What can we improve?

3. What are we going to improve?

This question seems difficult to answer, but in fact, it is the sum of the following two questions:
a. Which improvements have the biggest impact?
b. Which improvements require the least effort? Is an improvement easy to implement and does it have a major impact (providing subtitles separately instead of “burning into the video”)? Do it!

4. Get started!

5. Ready?

Time for the next round! Evaluate and then back to step 1...

As you can see, improving accessibility is an ongoing process. You can therefore get on well with sprints. This way, you can make big strides in a short period of time.
Convinced? Beautiful! We would love to work with you. We'll help you with your Accessibility Cycle, by doing an audit, proposing improvements, and helping you execute. Hopefully, accessibility will become as obvious as dealing well with privacy. Our designers, developers and copywriters are happy to help you!