Such fab info, thank you for sharing Jeff :) It's so refreshing to have someone else share this info, we need more like this. Hey, if there was one tip you'd give someone out of all those, which would you choose?
Thanks, Cynthia. I would say if you could only do one, to do colors. I get so many newsletters from creatives that have colors that are difficult to read. But hopefully these 7 items are simple enough that they can all be integrated into the content creation process quickly and become essentially muscle memory.
One of the key drivers to get people to fix things in my experience, including my day job where accessibility is all I do, is to help them understand the friction that might be introduced to the audience because of the content choices creators are making. That friction can translate directly to lost sales and possibly missing out on someone who could be your biggest fan.
This is very informative, thank you! For someone who's been creating websites for more than a decade now, I've missed some of the points you mentioned here! I have always been too focus on the content and forgot about making the content accessible. Now I got to go check my Substack settings ...
This is a great read on why accessibility compliance is important on your Substack. I'm a UX designer and it's always at the forefront of my mind as I'm pretty much trained to obsessively check ADA compliance, but for most people, how would they know this?
Exactly! It’s why my co-author and I decided to write “Content for Everyone” because most people have never heard of this topic before. It’s great to hear you’ve been trained on it, so many are not even when they’re in school for UX design.
Very true. The US is very litigious about accessibility. Plus in the EU there’s a law going into affect in June 2025 that covers everything from websites to ebooks. I’m working with some contacts I have to understand what authors need to do for their ebooks to be prepared.
Yes. Well said. As a disabled entity, I find some of the UI here quite frustrating, as an early adopter and promoter of all things digital. Especially adaptive technology. Substack’s UI logic defies my sense of visual order, especially as an artist when the manipulation of the visual media is part of how I understand and communicate my creativity. Old now, I can only watch this current confusing emergence from the sidelines with amazement.
I 100% agree about Substack's UI. As Russell noted, I don't publish on Substack, so coming in to write this article and getting used to the options took a bit for me to find my bearings and understand how it all worked. Things like being able to have color on links OR having an underline rather than both really surprised me. Usually the more ways you can identify important, actionable content the better.
I love that you have the language to describe the details. As a non neurotypical generalist I rely on others to define those gaps in communication, as I can only note my frustration. Simply being able to correct and edit a post would be a start. My thumbs are terrible at spelling and grammar.
Brilliant, sounds like it works great 💪 Am soo excited to find a fellow colleague in accessibility :)
I also find sharing the why works, tweaked for different audiences...
Supporting staff to create accessible content online at work in a hospital, it's not about sales or fans - inaccessible info to medical staff means surgery or other treatments get delayed.
Accessible info means patients and families feel less anxious, less afraid about what's about to happen.
Knowing the impact makes it much easier and a must do rather than a nice to do...
Such fab info, thank you for sharing Jeff :) It's so refreshing to have someone else share this info, we need more like this. Hey, if there was one tip you'd give someone out of all those, which would you choose?
Thanks, Cynthia. I would say if you could only do one, to do colors. I get so many newsletters from creatives that have colors that are difficult to read. But hopefully these 7 items are simple enough that they can all be integrated into the content creation process quickly and become essentially muscle memory.
Awesome, thanks heaps Jeff. Good to hear your one, though all are good to do. So understandable if you notice that in newsletters.
I ask out of curiosity because at work I often have to choose a few things to get ppl to fix online.
If i had to choose one, the main prob isn't contrast for the authors I work with. It's breaking up walls of text :)
Love the sharing, hope you're having a fab week. Cheers!
One of the key drivers to get people to fix things in my experience, including my day job where accessibility is all I do, is to help them understand the friction that might be introduced to the audience because of the content choices creators are making. That friction can translate directly to lost sales and possibly missing out on someone who could be your biggest fan.
This is incredibly helpful, both for my Substack publications and elsewhere. Thanks so much.
You’re very welcome! So glad that you found this useful.
This is very informative, thank you! For someone who's been creating websites for more than a decade now, I've missed some of the points you mentioned here! I have always been too focus on the content and forgot about making the content accessible. Now I got to go check my Substack settings ...
You’re welcome! I’m glad to know you’re going to check your settings and make some updates.
This is a great read on why accessibility compliance is important on your Substack. I'm a UX designer and it's always at the forefront of my mind as I'm pretty much trained to obsessively check ADA compliance, but for most people, how would they know this?
Exactly! It’s why my co-author and I decided to write “Content for Everyone” because most people have never heard of this topic before. It’s great to hear you’ve been trained on it, so many are not even when they’re in school for UX design.
Thanks for writing this! And it's a liability! I know brands and companies who have been sued over not being compliant.
Very true. The US is very litigious about accessibility. Plus in the EU there’s a law going into affect in June 2025 that covers everything from websites to ebooks. I’m working with some contacts I have to understand what authors need to do for their ebooks to be prepared.
Sometimes I wonder " what is he talking/writing about" but then suddenly something clicks and I think " oh that's what he means"
Thank you! I adjusted my colors, thanks to your link. I also double checked my alt text on photos.
Very helpful. I've adjusted my colors and its much better. I didn't know 4:5:1 was a thing.
Yes. Well said. As a disabled entity, I find some of the UI here quite frustrating, as an early adopter and promoter of all things digital. Especially adaptive technology. Substack’s UI logic defies my sense of visual order, especially as an artist when the manipulation of the visual media is part of how I understand and communicate my creativity. Old now, I can only watch this current confusing emergence from the sidelines with amazement.
I 100% agree about Substack's UI. As Russell noted, I don't publish on Substack, so coming in to write this article and getting used to the options took a bit for me to find my bearings and understand how it all worked. Things like being able to have color on links OR having an underline rather than both really surprised me. Usually the more ways you can identify important, actionable content the better.
I love that you have the language to describe the details. As a non neurotypical generalist I rely on others to define those gaps in communication, as I can only note my frustration. Simply being able to correct and edit a post would be a start. My thumbs are terrible at spelling and grammar.
This is exactly what I'm freaking out about. I'm 4 weeks from a book launch on a subdomain.
Hopefully this gave you some guidance to help reduce the freak out.
Brilliant, sounds like it works great 💪 Am soo excited to find a fellow colleague in accessibility :)
I also find sharing the why works, tweaked for different audiences...
Supporting staff to create accessible content online at work in a hospital, it's not about sales or fans - inaccessible info to medical staff means surgery or other treatments get delayed.
Accessible info means patients and families feel less anxious, less afraid about what's about to happen.
Knowing the impact makes it much easier and a must do rather than a nice to do...
Cheers mate, have a fab day :)