How To Use the Venngage Accessibility Checker

Today’s post explores how to use the Venngage accessibility checker. Venngage is a powerful tool for easily creating accessible PDFs that meet compliance standards like PDF/UA and WCAG.

Video Guide

Introduction to the Venngage Accessibility Checker

Venngage is a popular platform for creating infographics, presentations, and other visual content. With its integrated PDF accessibility checker, Venngage makes it straightforward for you to ensure your documents are accessible to all users, including those with disabilities. This guide covers the key features of this tool and how to use it effectively to produce fully accessible PDFs.

Key Features of the Accessibility Checker

The Venngage accessibility checker offers various tools to help you make your documents compliant with accessibility standards. Here are the main features:

1. Check Accessibility

The primary function of the tool is to automatically scan your document for accessibility issues. This provides a comprehensive overview of any problems that need to be addressed.

2. Edit Tag Order

The tag order editor allows you to manually adjust the sequence in which elements are presented. This ensures all elements are logical and easy to follow.

3. Set Document Language

Specifying the language of the document is vital for screen readers to accurately interpret and pronounce the content. The tool allows you to set the document language, enhancing its accessibility for non-native speakers and those using screen readers.

4. Visual Simulator

The visual simulator provides a preview of how your document will appear to users with various types of visual impairments, such as color blindness. This feature helps you identify potential issues with color contrast and design elements.

5. Show Alt Text on Canvas

This feature overlays alternative text directly on the canvas, making it easier to verify that all images have appropriate alt text. Alt text is essential for users who rely on screen readers to understand the content of images.

Running the Accessibility Checker

Once you prepare the document, the next step is to run the accessibility checker. The following uses the example from our Video Guide above.

Step 1: Initiate the Check

First, select the “Check Accessibility” option. The tool identifies the issues you need to address. Methodically go through each one to ensure you meet all accessibility standards.

Step 2: Color Contrast

The first item on the checklist is color contrast. It’s important to ensure that the colors used in the document provide sufficient contrast for users with visual impairments. In this case, all colors pass the contrast check.

Step 3: Text Size, Links, and Tables

Next, the tool confirms that the document’s text size, links, and tables are all appropriately formatted and accessible.

Step 4: Alternative Text

Check for appropriate alternative text for images. The tool highlights that the Venngage logo has appropriate alt text and confirms that other images are marked as decorative. Since decorative images do not convey important information, they do not require alt text.

Step 5: Logical Reading Order

The logical reading order of the document is crucial for screen reader users. Review the reading order using the “Set Reading Order” tool to make sure that the content flows logically from one element to the next.

Step 6: Headings

Proper use of headings is essential for accessibility. The tool identifies that some headings may need adjustment. Manually update the headings to ensure they are correctly structured.

Step 7: Use of Color

It’s crucial not to rely on color alone to convey information. Venngage checks to ensure that color is not the sole method of distinguishing elements or conveying information.

Step 8: Images of Text

Next, check for instances where images are used in place of text, which can be problematic for accessibility. No such issues are found in this case.

Step 9: Document Title

The title of the document should be meaningful and reflective of its content. The checker confirms that the title meets these criteria.

Step 10: Document Language

Finally, the document’s language is verified. Setting the correct language is important for screen readers, and in this case, the document is correctly set to English.

Final Verification and Export

After addressing all the issues identified by the checker, double-check your work by revisiting each section. Once satisfied that everything is correct, download the document in a format optimized for accessibility, hyperlinks, and printing.

External Validation

To ensure the document is fully compliant, use Adobe Acrobat’s accessibility checker and PAC 2024, external tools that verify compliance with PDF/UA and WCAG standards. The document passes all checks, confirming it is fully accessible.

Conclusion

Creating accessible PDFs is not just about compliance; it’s about ensuring that all users, regardless of ability, can access and benefit from your content. Venngage’s built-in accessibility checker provides a powerful and user-friendly tool for achieving this goal. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can create documents that are not only visually appealing but also accessible to everyone.

Let me be your champion for inclusion. I offer tailored solutions (and self-paced courses!) to ensure your documents meet and exceed compliance expectations. For more detailed insights, tutorials, and in-depth discussions on accessibility and related topics, don’t forget to check out my YouTube channel: The Accessibility Guy on YouTube. Subscribe for regular updates!