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Day 5: Making social media content accessible

Social media platforms are used by millions of people all around the world, including people with disabilities. It is a powerful tool for communication but it can present barriers to users with disabilities if accessibility isn't considered. Ensuring your social media content is accessible means more people can engage with it, no matter their abilities or the technology they use.

Tips for creating accessible social media content

Avoid using text in images

If you must include text in an image, ensure the information is also included in the post itself or as alt text. Text in images is often inaccessible to screen readers and difficult to read on small screens.

Use alt text for images

Expanding on what was covered on alt text in day 4 of the advent calendar, most platforms (like X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky and LinkedIn) allow you to add alt text to images. Use this feature to describe the essential information in your images.

With short character limits, it can be difficult to convey messages in social media posts and often images are used to supplement the information or grab attention. Keep alt text short but meaningful and assess how much detail is needed depending on the message to be conveyed.

Add captions to videos

Captions ensure your videos are accessible to people who are deaf, hearing impaired, or prefer watching videos without sound. Most social media platforms offer auto-captioning tools, but review them for accuracy as they aren't always correct.

Closed captions (can be turned on and off and used to generate transcripts or translations) are generally thought of as more accessible than open captions (that are burned into the content and can't be turned off) as some users including neurodivergent people can find them distracting and the text can't be resized to support people with visual impairments.

Use camel case for hashtags

When writing hashtags, capitalise the first letter of each word. This makes them easier to read for everyone and more accessible for screen readers, and also helps make sure the text is understood correctly (need we mention Susan Boyle's Album launch party?).

It's called Camel Case as it makes the words resemble the shape of the curves of a camel's humps.

Use #ChristmasCheer rather than #christmascheer

Ensure color contrast is sufficient

When sharing images or creating graphics, use high-contrast color combinations to ensure text is readable. Tools like WebAIM’s Contrast Checker can help.

Be mindful of emojis

Emojis can add personality and fun to your posts, but they can also pose challenges for screen reader users. Screen readers will read out every emoji as a description, which can disrupt the flow of the content. For example:

A screen reader might interpret "✨I can't wait to put the 🎄Christmas tree🎄 up and get ready for 🎅Santa🎅 coming ✨", as: "Sparkles I can't wait to put the Christmas tree Christmas tree Christmas tree up and get ready for, Santa Claus Santa Santa Claus coming sparkles.”

To make your use of emojis more accessible:

  • keep them to a minimum and use them sparingly to avoid overwhelming screen reader users.
  • include them at the end of your post, rather than in the middle of sentences, to ensure smoother reading for users of assistive technologies.
  • make sure the emojis you use align with the message you’re trying to convey. For example, 🎄 for Christmas tree but popular smiling emoji 🙂 actually reads 'slightly smiling face". Check Emojipedia if you aren't sure.
  • avoid long strings of emojis (like "🎄🎅✨❄️🎁⛄") as this can take a long time for a screen reader to process and may frustrate users.

When in doubt, test your post using a screen reader to hear how the emojis are read aloud.

Learn more about creating accessible social media

Watch the video from Accessible Social on creating accessible social media.

Before posting, ask yourself:
  • “Does this post include alt text for all images?”
  • “Have I ensured the video has captions or a transcript?”
  • “Is my content readable and understandable for all users?”