{"id":5772,"date":"2020-11-23T14:03:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-23T14:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/generic.wordpress.soton.ac.uk\/digital-learning\/?p=5772"},"modified":"2023-08-23T15:00:39","modified_gmt":"2023-08-23T14:00:39","slug":"how-can-i-improve-accessibility-of-my-emails","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/generic.wordpress.soton.ac.uk\/digital-learning\/2020\/11\/23\/how-can-i-improve-accessibility-of-my-emails\/","title":{"rendered":"How can I improve the accessibility of my emails?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I recently attended AbilityNet’s TechShare Pro 2020<\/a> conference. In this post, I’m going to share a top tip I learned from Microsoft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When creating an email in Outlook 365 you can check for any accessibility issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Checking Email Accessibility<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Once you have composed an email, open the Review <\/strong>tab and select Check Accessibility<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This opens the accessibility inspector that identifies any issues and will help you to fix them.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Telling colleagues you prefer accessible content<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A further tip is to state that you prefer accessible content in emails you receive. This can help to promote the use of accessibility features and makes colleagues more aware of the importance of accessibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To do this, enter the settings area of your web-based Outlook email<\/a>. It’s a cog icon<\/strong> appearing at the top right of the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Search <\/strong>for the word access <\/strong>in the search box<\/strong> and select Accessible Content<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tick the box next to Ask senders to send content that’s accessible.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When a colleague in your organisation using Outlook 365 writes you an email they see this on-screen warning if they used any inaccessible content. Helpfully for the sender, selecting Review accessibility issues<\/strong> opens Outlook’s accessibility inspector to advise how to resolve issues it finds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Spread the word<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The speaker at TechShare Pro even advised adding a phrase like “This email has been checked for accessibility” in email signatures. To help me to remember to run the Check Accessibility tool, I changed my Outlook ribbon<\/a> to include a new tab with only the Check Accessibility button.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"In<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Find out more<\/h2>\n\n\n\n