Make Your Podcast Accessible for All: Simple Tips to Reach a Wider Audience

Podcasting has exploded in popularity over the last few years. According to Edison Research, there are now over 100 million monthly podcast listeners in the U.S. alone. With this tremendous growth, podcast creators have an opportunity and responsibility to make their content as accessible as possible.

While the audio nature of podcasts presents some unique accessibility challenges, creators should strive to make their shows enjoyable by all listeners, regardless of ability. With a few simple steps, you can help ensure your podcast is accessible to people with disabilities.

Making your podcast accessible benefits more than just listeners with disabilities. Transcripts, captions, and clear audio help people who are not fluent in the language of the podcast, who are listening in noisy environments, or who simply prefer reading over listening.

Overall, improving accessibility leads to a better experience for all of your listeners. It demonstrates care for your audience and helps spread your content to more people. This guide covers some tips to make your podcast more accessible.

Transcripts

Providing written transcripts is one of the most impactful ways to make your podcast more accessible. Transcripts allow those who are deaf or hard of hearing to read along as they listen. They also make it possible for search engines to index your audio content, increasing discoverability.

Aim to release transcripts either simultaneously with or soon after an episode airs. The transcript should match the audio word-for-word, with proper spelling, punctuation, and formatting. This requires transcribing the podcast yourself or using a professional transcription service for accuracy. Rushed or poorly transcribed episodes can be frustrating for readers.

Some podcast hosting platforms like Buzzsprout offer automated transcription, but these AI-generated transcripts often contain errors. Review auto-transcripts carefully before publishing or use them as a starting point to edit.

When formatting transcripts, include the podcast name, episode number, hosts, and chapter markers. Add speaker names before each line to help readers follow the conversation. Publish transcripts on your website alongside the audio file. Offer them as a downloadable document or embed them on the episode page.

Investing time and effort into accurate, properly formatted transcripts removes a major barrier to enjoying your podcast for many listeners.

Audio Quality

Having clear audio in your podcast is crucial for an accessible listening experience. Here are some tips:

• Speak clearly and at a moderate pace. Enunciate your words and avoid mumbling. This will make you easier to understand for all listeners.
• Balance volume levels. Make sure voices are not too loud or too quiet compared to background music/sounds. Strive for even volume so listeners don't have to adjust their device.
• Minimize background noise. Record in a quiet space without echo or excessive ambient sounds. Use noise-cancelling mics or noise reduction processing to optimize the signal.
• Avoid peaking and clipping. Leave plenty of headroom in your recording so the audio does not distort at loud moments. Compress dynamic range for an even level.
• EQ voices for clarity. Boost midrange frequencies around 1-5kHz for enhanced speech intelligibility. Cut lower and higher frequencies that can muddy the sound.
• Use stereo positioning. Place voices mainly in the center and ambient sounds in the sides for clearer voice focus.
• Check on multiple devices. Audio issues may only occur on certain gear. Test your mix on headphones, speakers, car stereo, etc.

By mastering these audio techniques, your podcast will sound professional and be easily understood by all listeners. It shows respect for accessibility and improves the experience for everyone.

Descriptive Episode Titles

Giving your podcast episodes descriptive titles is an important accessibility consideration. Titles like "Episode 1" or "My Latest Episode" don't actually describe what the episode is about. Someone who relies on a screen reader to choose podcasts won't get any useful information from vague titles like these.

Instead, craft episode titles that clearly and concisely communicate the main topic and contents of that episode. For example, if you have an episode interviewing an author about their latest book, the title could be "Interview with [Author Name] about their new book [Book Title]."

Descriptive titles allow all listeners, especially those using assistive technology like screen readers, to immediately understand what each episode covers. They can quickly choose episodes that interest them without having to listen to much of the audio or read through shownotes just to figure out the topic.

Chapter Markers

Adding chapter markers at logical breaks can make your podcast more accessible. These act like an interactive table of contents, allowing listeners to jump to certain sections.

To implement chapter markers:

• Break your podcast into logical sections and take note of the time when each section starts. Sections might be the intro, a case study, expert interview, Q&A, etc.  
• Add timestamps in your podcast audio file to mark the beginning of each section. There are apps that can help add chapter markers as you edit the audio.
• Provide a list of the chapter markers, timestamps, and section names in your podcast shownotes. For example:

0:00 - Intro

4:30 - Chapter 1: Progress in 2022

12:45 - Chapter 2: Case Study

28:00 - Chapter 3: Tips for the Future

• On platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Overcast, the chapter timestamps will be clickable in the show notes so listeners can easily jump around.

Adding chapter markers creates a better experience for all listeners. They can use the chapters to skip to the sections they care about most.

Alt Text

Adding alt text to images, charts, graphs, and other visual elements is crucial for making podcasts accessible to those using screen readers. Alt text provides a textual description of the visual content, allowing blind and low vision users to understand what is being conveyed.

When including images or charts in your shownotes, be sure to use descriptive alt text that focuses on the key information being presented rather than just saying "chart" or "diagram." For complex charts and graphs, summarize the main takeaways.

Some tips for effective alt text:

• Keep descriptions concise but informative. Stick to key details.
• Don't start with "image of..." or "picture of...". Screen readers announce it's an image.
• Describe what the visual adds to the content, not just the literal contents.
• Don't overwhelm with minute details. Convey the essence.
• Use natural language - full sentences can work better than short phrases or fragments.
• If an image is purely decorative, use blank alt text so screen readers skip over it.

Taking the time to thoughtfully describe your visual content in alt text ensures podcasters don't exclude an important segment of their audience. It's a simple yet meaningful way to increase accessibility.

Avoid Relying on Visuals

Podcasts are an audio medium, so hosts should avoid relying too heavily on visual elements that listeners cannot see. For example, if you're referencing a chart or graph during your podcast episode, make sure to also describe it thoroughly in words so listeners who cannot view the image still understand the information you are conveying.

Similarly, if you put up a slide with key points from your discussion, read through the bullet points out loud rather than saying something vague like "Here's a slide with the key takeaways."

Do not use language like "As you can see here..." or "In this chart..." since vision-impaired listeners cannot actually see your visuals. Instead, describe exactly what is shown - "In this bar graph, the blue bar representing X is twice as large as the orange bar representing Y."

Providing listeners with a robust audio description of any presented visuals ensures your content is accessible and enjoyable for all audiences, not just those who can see your charts, photos, slides, or other graphics.

Readable Shownotes

Your show notes are accessible when they are formatted with full paragraphs instead of bullet points or single fragmented sentences. Format your shownotes similar to a blog post with full paragraphs, proper headings, and thought out formatting.  

This makes it easier for screen readers to interpret and for all readers to comprehend. Break sections into logical paragraphs, and avoid using excessive line breaks.

In your show notes, be sure to include:

• A full transcript - Having the transcript published with your show notes makes it easy for people to read the content if they are unable to listen. Format the transcript in an easily readable way separate from your other show notes.
• Clickable links - Hyperlink any references to websites, resources or publications mentioned so readers can easily access them.
• Contact information - Include your website, social media handles, email, or other methods of contacting you so readers can follow up if needed.
• Timestamps - Timestamp links that jump to the corresponding parts of the audio make it easy to navigate the transcript.

Proper formatting and inclusion of key details in your shownotes improves the accessibility and readability for all users. Putting thought into your show notes makes the content more usable and shareable.

Keyboard Accessibility

To ensure your site and audio player are usable and navigable by keyboard, follow these tips:

• Make sure all interactive elements like play/pause buttons, menus, and transcripts can be reached and activated with the Tab key. Don't rely solely on hover effects from the mouse.
• Allow shortcuts like Spacebar to play/pause and arrow keys to control audio position.
• Ensure visible focus states as users tab through elements. Utilize outlines, color changes, or underlines to indicate focused elements.
• Avoid keyboard traps where users cannot navigate away from certain components without a mouse.
• Include skip links that allow bypassing repetitive navigation and jumping to main content areas.
• Allow keyboard-only access without requiring mouse input at any point. Disable click-only interactions.
• Test your site's keyboard accessibility with screen readers, the Tab key, and without relying on hover or mouse clicks. Strive for a fully functional experience.
• Provide accessible alternatives for non-keyboard friendly content like drag-and-drop interfaces or complex visual interactions.
• Consult web accessibility standards and include ARIA roles and attributes as needed.

By optimizing keyboard usability, you allow access for users with disabilities while improving experience for all. Ensure your podcast platform and listening interface are navigable for the keyboard alone.

Promote Accessibility

Making accessibility a core part of your podcast benefits everyone. While some accommodations specifically aid those with disabilities, most improve the overall listening experience.  

When promoting your podcast, highlight accessible features that set you apart. For example, tout professional transcripts available for all episodes. Share your commitment to writing detailed alt text descriptions. Explicitly invite feedback to continue improving accessibility over time.  

Listing accessibility as a key feature tells listeners you care about including everyone. It also spreads awareness to other podcasters about integrating inclusive practices. Promoting accessibility keeps the focus on enabling full participation. Though extra effort is required, the rewards of reaching a wider audience make it worthwhile.

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