IS YOUR WEBSITE REALLY THAT ACCESSIBLE?

I talk about accessibility all the time. With my colleagues and with my clients I talk about the importance of adding alt text to images, making sure your contrast levels are high, capitalizing each word in your hashtags, adding closed captions to your videos, etc. 

In general, I’ve taken the position that accessibility isn’t hard.

But a recent LinkedIn post from Steve Allman about accessibility and social media made me pause. He started his post with: “I was today years old when I realised blind and partially-sighted people were unable to read my posts, or that I'm making it hard to do so.” And guess what friends? I, too, didn’t realize that some of the things on his list were a problem!

It turns out that there are a number of simple yet significant mistakes that many of us make when posting online that can make it difficult for people with visual impairments to engage with our content.

What I Learned:

1. Fancy fonts and formatting are pretty, but potentially missed by screen readers.
   I love to make certain parts of my website designs, blog posts, or social media posts stand out with bold or italic fonts, thinking it helps emphasize important points. However, most accessibility tools, like screen readers, can’t interpret these fancy fonts properly. For people using text-to-speech software, this means that they may not even hear the bolded or italicized sections of your post, which can make it harder for them to follow your message.
   
   Tip: Test your posts by selecting the text and using a screen reader to see if any key information is missing. Alternatively, pull out important information and add a prefix to indicate importance such as “Note:” or “See:”.
   

2. Emojis at the start of posts or lists can bury important information.
   Emojis are a fun way to add personality to posts, but they can be problematic for accessibility. When you place emojis at the start of lists or at the beginning of sentences, screen readers will sometimes read out the entire emoji code (like “U+1F385 FATHER CHRISTMAS”) before reading your actual message. This makes it harder for people to quickly scan and digest your content.
   
   Tip: Use emojis sparingly and place them at the end of sentences or posts. Avoid clustering multiple emojis together.
   

3. Emojis used as text can cause confusion.
   Another mistake I’ve made is using emojis in place of actual text, thinking they can communicate meaning. However, when screen readers encounter an emoji in this context, they don’t describe the emoji as we see it. Instead, they read out the code. For example, "Merry 🎅" becomes "Merry U+1F385 FATHER CHRISTMAS," which is less than helpful.
   
   Tip: Always use text for important messages and save emojis for decorative purposes.
   

4. Alt-text on images involves more than a witty description.
   Alt-text is a vital tool for making your images accessible. Alt-text is a brief description of the image that can be read by screen readers, enabling visually impaired users to understand what the image conveys. Unfortunately, many people use alt-text to make jokes about images instead of providing meaningful descriptions.
   
   Tip: When writing alt-text, describe the image in detail, so that someone who can’t see it can still understand its content. For example, instead of saying, "Steve is wearing an ugly Christmas sweater," say something like: "A middle-aged caucasian man with greying stubble is wearing a red wooly sweater with an image of Rudolph, a reindeer with brown antlers and a big, shiny red nose."

Using Squarespace to Create Accessible Websites 
As I’ve learned more about accessibility, I’ve become even more mindful of the platforms I use, especially when building websites. One platform that has made this journey easier is Squarespace. Squarespace offers a number of built-in tools and features designed to help users create websites that are both visually appealing and accessible.

From customizable templates with color and font options that meet accessibility standards, to the ability to add alt-text to images, Squarespace prioritizes accessibility. In fact, according to a study by SquareStylist, websites built on Squarespace adhere to WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) standards, which means they offer features like high contrast modes and text resizing options, among other accessibility-friendly tools. By choosing Squarespace, we can ensure that our content reaches as many people as possible, including those with disabilities.

Why Accessibility Matters 
Accessibility isn’t just about compliance with standards — it’s about being considerate and thoughtful toward everyone who wants to engage with our content. According to the World Health Organization, over 1 billion people globally experience some form of disability. By making small adjustments to how we write, design, and format our content, we can make a huge difference in making the digital world a more inclusive place.

So, I may have been "today years old" when I realized the mistakes I was making, but now that I’ve learned better, I’m committed to doing better. I encourage you to take a moment to evaluate your own posts and see how you can make them more accessible.

And, if you have any other helpful tips or resources on accessibility, please share them! I’m still learning, and I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Together, we can ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, can access and enjoy the content we share.