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As podcasting continues to grow in popularity, it’s crucial for creators to consider accessibility. That ensures all listeners/viewers/content consumers can enjoy it. But what exactly goes into podcast accessibility?
Dominique Dunlop, an accessibility advocate and consultant, shared key insights on this topic on Episode 672 of “The Business Storytelling Podcast.” Let’s explore the main elements that contribute to an accessible podcast experience.
First things first, audio quality matters
While often overlooked, audio quality plays a significant role in accessibility. Clear, high-quality audio makes it easier for all listeners to understand the content, especially those with hearing impairments. Good audio quality also includes speaking clearly and at an appropriate pace.
Get a good mic and if the podcast is also video, a good eye-level camera and perhaps some Ring lights.
Transcripts: A must-have for accessibility
One of the most important aspects of podcast accessibility is providing transcripts, which I create with Otter AI.
“What accessibility and podcasting really comes down to is making sure that everybody can access that content and has an equitable experience,” Dominique explained. “So making sure that even if somebody can’t actually hear your content, they have a way of accessing that so a lot of times that’s going to be transcripts.”
Transcripts allow those who are deaf or hard of hearing to engage with podcast content. They’re also helpful for listeners who prefer reading or want to quickly review key points.
However, it’s not enough to simply generate an automated transcript. Dominique emphasized the importance of cleaning up transcripts.
“We want to make sure that we have cleaned up those transcripts, removed any filler words, your ums, your ahs, your repetitive context, because if they’re relying solely on the transcript, they’re not doing it in conjunction, necessarily, with your video or your audio, so it should read on its own as a clean document.”
Consider running it through Claude to do just that.
Captions for video podcasts
For podcasts that include video components, captions are essential. Captions provide real-time text of the audio, allowing viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing to follow along. They’re also useful when people can’t turn the sound on or simply prefer to read along. When live-streaming via Restream, you can turn on captions on the networks where it’s streaming.
Dominique noted that captions should ideally be enabled by default on video platforms. Unfortunately, many platforms still require users to manually turn on captions, creating an extra barrier to accessibility.
Blog posts: An alternative format
Another way to make podcast content more accessible is by creating accompanying blog posts, one of my favorite strategy and basically what I’m doing right here.
This approach allows listeners to consume the content in their preferred format, whether that’s audio, video, or text – so remember to add all those elements.
Read next: Accessibility in Marketing: Why Your Business Needs to Be ‘Ridiculously Easy to See’
Website accessibility
For many podcasters, their website serves as a hub for their content and it might even make sense to create a separate site for your podcast. Podpage, for example, makes that easy.
“Starting at your home base and making sure your website is accessible as possible to people that are accessing via screen reader, people that are accessing with keyboard only, not everybody has the ability to use their mouse, so they may be tabbing through your site and using proper like HTML structure, using your headings appropriately.”
This includes using proper heading structures, providing alternative text in images and make sure people using just a keyboard can navigate it.
Choosing accessible platforms
When selecting platforms to host and distribute your podcast, consider their accessibility features.
“If I know that a certain platform just is not accessible, that’s probably not where I want to invest my money, as my hosting platform.”
Look for platforms that support features like transcripts, captions, and screen reader compatibility.
The future of podcast accessibility
As technology evolves, new possibilities for podcast accessibility are emerging. For example, AI tools are making it easier to generate accurate transcripts and captions. While these tools can be helpful, Dominique cautioned that human oversight is still necessary to ensure quality and accuracy. Who knows, maybe at some point, American Sign Language interpreters ca
Creating an accessible podcast doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Start by implementing these key elements:
- Provide clean, accurate transcripts
- Use captions for video content
- Create accompanying blog posts
- Ensure high-quality audio
- Make your website accessible
- Choose platforms with strong accessibility features
By prioritizing accessibility, podcasters can reach a wider audience and create a more inclusive listening experience for all.
“Accessibility should always be the default when we are creating, when we’re sharing, when we’re marketing. It really should be the default, not an afterthought,” said Dominique.