Creating presentations that everyone can access and understand is essential in today’s diverse and inclusive world. Microsoft PowerPoint offers a range of accessibility features that help you make your slides more inclusive. Whether you’re presenting to colleagues with disabilities or reaching a broad audience, these tools ensure everyone can engage with your content.
Here are some key features and tips for making your PowerPoint presentations more accessible.
Use the Accessibility Checker
PowerPoint includes a built-in Accessibility Checker that helps you identify and fix accessibility issues in your presentation. This tool is easy to use and provides recommendations to improve your slides.
How to Use It: Go to the “Review” tab and click on “Check Accessibility.” Review the list of issues and follow the suggested actions to resolve them.
Add Alt Text to Images
Alt text (alternative text) provides a text description of images for people who use screen readers. Adding alt text to your images ensures that visually impaired audience members understand the content of your slides.
How to Add Alt Text: Right-click on an image, select “Edit Alt Text,” and enter a brief description of the image.
Use Meaningful Slide Titles
Meaningful slide titles help screen reader users navigate through your presentation. Each slide should have a unique and descriptive title that summarises the content.
Tip: Avoid generic titles like “Slide 1” or “Introduction.” Instead, use specific titles like “Key Benefits of Our Product” or “Quarterly Sales Figures.”
Ensure Sufficient Color Contrast
Good color contrast between text and background is crucial for readability, especially for people with visual impairments. PowerPoint’s Accessibility Checker can help you identify color contrast issues.
Tip: Use high-contrast color combinations, such as dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background.
Use Accessible Templates
Microsoft provides accessible templates that are designed with accessibility in mind. These templates use appropriate colour contrast, font sizes, and slide layouts to ensure readability.
Where to Find Them: When creating a new presentation, search for accessible templates in the template gallery.
Provide Closed Captions for Audio/Video Content
If your presentation includes audio or video content, providing closed captions ensures that people with hearing impairments can follow along. PowerPoint allows you to add captions to your media files.
How to Add Captions: Select the video or audio file, go to the “Playback” tab, and click on “Add Captions.”
Use Simple and Clear Language
Using simple, clear language makes your content more understandable for everyone, including people with cognitive disabilities. Avoid jargon and complex sentences.
Tip: Break down complex information into bullet points or short sentences.
Structure Content with Headings and Lists
Organising your content with headings and lists helps all audience members, including those using screen readers, follow the structure of your presentation.
How to Format Headings and Lists: Use the built-in slide layouts and bullet point options in PowerPoint to ensure proper formatting.
Test Your Presentation with a Screen Reader
Testing your presentation with a screen reader can help you understand how it will be experienced by visually impaired users. This step allows you to catch and fix any issues before presenting.
Screen Readers to Use: NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access) and JAWS (Job Access With Speech) are popular screen readers you can use for testing.
Include a Table of Contents
Including a table of contents at the beginning of your presentation helps all users, especially those with disabilities, navigate through your slides more easily.
How to Create a Table of Contents: Use PowerPoint’s “Table of Contents” feature or create a manual slide with hyperlinks to each section of your presentation.
Conclusion
By incorporating these accessibility features into your PowerPoint presentations, you ensure that your content is inclusive and can be appreciated by a wider audience. Remember, accessibility is not just about meeting requirements; it’s about making your message accessible to everyone.
At AHB Training and Consultancy, we are committed to helping you create presentations that are not only engaging but also inclusive. Come back for more tips and tutorials on mastering PowerPoint and other essential tools.
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