Creating Accessible Digital Content: Best Practices for Inclusive Communication

In today’s digitally driven world, we must create inclusive communication. Accessible digital content empowers everyone, including individuals with disabilities, to access, understand, and engage with the information we share. As businesses, organizations, and content creators, we are responsible for implementing best practices that foster accessibility and inclusivity. We recognize that ensuring accessibility to digital content is a legal obligation and moral imperative in many countries. By creating inclusive digital communication, we enable every individual to engage fully with our content regardless of ability. When we prioritize effective communication, we enhance user experience, foster understanding, and expand our audience. In this article, we explore the importance of accessible digital content and provide practical best practices to help you create inclusive communication.

Why Accessible Digital Content Matters

In today’s digitally driven world, we must ensure that our online content is accessible to everyone. According to the World Health Organization, over one billion people globally experience some form of disability, yet many still encounter barriers when accessing online content. We design our digital spaces to include everyone, ensuring that critical information, services, and opportunities are available. This effort meets ethical imperatives and aligns with legal standards like the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

Accessible digital content plays a crucial role in promoting equality and inclusion. It ensures that people with disabilities can access essential information and opportunities equally. By making our content accessible, we expand our reach to a broader audience, including older adults and those with temporary disabilities. Furthermore, accessible content enhances user experience by making our websites and applications more usable and enjoyable.

Best Practices for Creating Accessible Digital Content

Ensuring accessible digital content allows individuals of all abilities to engage with information effectively. Adopting inclusive design practices broadens your audience, follows legal standards, and promotes equality. The following are key best practices to help you create accessible digital content:

1. Use Alt Text for Images

Alternative text (alt text) provides textual descriptions for images, enabling screen readers to convey visual information to individuals with vision loss. This practice enhances accessibility and ensures all users can understand the content and function of images.

Best Practices:

• Be Descriptive: Clearly describe the image's content and context. For example, instead of "image of a cat," use "a fluffy orange tabby cat sitting on a windowsill."
• Keep It Concise: Aim for 125 characters or fewer to ensure screen readers convey the information efficiently.
• Include Function: If the image serves a functional purpose (like a button), describe its action, e.g., "Submit application button."
• Avoid Redundancy: Do not repeat information already presented in the surrounding text. Alt text should add value without duplicating nearby content.
• Skip Decorative Images: For purely decorative images that don't convey meaningful information, use an empty alt attribute (alt="") to help screen readers ignore them, reducing unnecessary distractions for users.

Adhering to these guidelines enhances the accessibility of your digital content, ensuring that all users, regardless of visual ability, can engage with and understand your material.

 2. Incorporate Closed Captions and Transcripts

Incorporating closed captions and transcripts into your multimedia content ensures accessibility for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing and enhances comprehension for all users, especially in noisy environments. You create an inclusive experience that benefits a diverse audience by providing textual representations of audio content.

Best Practices:

• Provide Accurate Captions: Include closed captions for all video content, ensuring they accurately reflect spoken dialogue and relevant sound effects. Synchronize captions to the corresponding audio to maintain coherence.
• Offer Comprehensive Transcripts: For audio-only content, provide transcripts that detail the spoken content, identify speakers, and describe significant sounds. Ensure transcripts are accessible and located near the original content for easy access.
• Review and Edit for Accuracy: Whether you use manual or automated transcription methods, meticulously review captions and transcripts to correct errors and ensure they match the spoken words. High accuracy is vital for effective communication.
• Design Readable Captions: Use a sans-serif font, such as Arial or Verdana, in a minimum 18-point size, with high contrast between text and background (e.g., white text on a black background) to enhance readability. Limit captions to two lines with no more than 45 characters per line.
• Ensure Proper Placement: Position captions to avoid obstructing important visual elements. Typically, place them in the lower third of the screen, but adjust as needed to maintain clarity and context.

Implementing these practices enhances the accessibility and usability of your digital content, fostering a more inclusive experience for all users

 3. Use Clear and Simple Language

Using clear and straightforward language in digital content enhances accessibility and comprehension for a diverse audience, including individuals with cognitive disabilities and non-native speakers. By prioritizing clarity, you ensure your message reaches and resonates with a broader range of users.

Best Practices:

• Avoid Jargon and Technical Terms: Use plain language and avoid specialized terminology that may confuse readers. If you must include technical terms, provide clear explanations to aid understanding.
• Use Short Sentences and Paragraphs: Break down complex ideas into concise sentences and limit paragraphs to a single idea. This approach makes content more digestible and improves readability.
• Organize Content with Headings and Lists: Structure your content using informative headings and utilize bullet points or numbered lists to present information. This organization helps users navigate and scan your content effectively.
• Write in Active Voice: Construct sentences where the subject acts, making your writing more direct and engaging. For example, instead of writing "The guidelines were reviewed by the team," write "The team reviewed the guidelines."
• Use Pronouns to Engage Readers: Address your audience directly by using pronouns like "you" and "we." This approach makes your content more relatable and easier to understand.
• Provide Context Before Details: Begin with the main point or conclusion before delving into specifics. This structure helps readers grasp the essential information upfront.

By implementing these practices, you create digital content that is accessible, user-friendly, and inclusive, ensuring your message effectively reaches all members of your audience.

4. Navigate Colour and Contrast Carefully

Colour plays a significant role in how users perceive and engage with digital content. Ensuring sufficient contrast between text and background colours enhances readability for everyone, including individuals with colour vision loss.

Best Practices:

• Ensure High Contrast: Use tools like WebAIM's Contrast Checker to verify that text stands out against its background. For Level AA compliance, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) recommend a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for standard text and 3:1 for large text. Large text is typically defined as 14 point (approximately 18.66 pixels) and bold, or 18 point (approximately 24 pixels) or larger. For enhanced readability, Level AAA compliance requires a contrast ratio of at least 7:1 for normal text and 4.5:1 for large text.
• Avoid Relying Solely on Colour: Do not use colour as the only means to convey important information. Incorporate text labels, patterns, or symbols to ensure all users can understand the content, regardless of their ability to perceive colour differences. This approach benefits individuals with colour blindness and those using monochromatic displays.

Carefully considering colour choices and contrast ratios, you create digital content that is accessible and user-friendly for a diverse audience.

Conclusion

Creating accessible digital content is vital for inclusive communication. By implementing these best practices, using alt text effectively, incorporating closed captions and transcripts, simplifying language, and ensuring colour contrast, you help paint a more inclusive digital landscape. 

As we strive for disability inclusion, remember that accessibility benefits everyone. Whether you’re a business owner, educator, or content creator, prioritizing accessibility enriches user experiences and fosters community involvement. Let’s work together to create digital environments where everyone can thrive!

Share your thoughts and experiences creating accessible digital content in the comments below.

If you have any questions or would like to share your thoughts and experiences with disability inclusion, please feel free to schedule some time with me at BookTrish.com

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Until Next time, take self-care seriously, and God bless (whoever your god is).

Trish:-)

www.trishrobichaud.com

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