Social media and hashtags
There are some useful tips to make social media more accessible for everyone, such as using captions, voice overs and adding alt text descriptions to images.
People who are blind, have reading impairments or learning disabilities may also struggle to understand words that crash together, like they do when we use hashtags.
For many who use text to speech tools or screen readers, hashtags often won't read properly unless they are written using CamelCase.
CamelCase helps hashtags make sense
CamelCase (or PascalCase) is simply making sure the first letter of each word in a hashtag has a capital letter.
For example, #iloveusinghashtags is easier to read when written like this using CamelCase #ILoveUsingHashtags.
This is because the capital letters make it clearer to see where each word starts.
CamelCase hashtags can also ensure your hashtag is not badly misinterpreted, such as #puppyslaughter, is it:
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puppy's laughter?
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puppy slaughter?
Social media accessibility
Social media tools have features to make your content more accessible. And you can do the following to make your posts work for everyone:
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write CamelCase hashtags
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add alt text to images
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add voiceovers and captions to videos to ensure everyone can engage
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don't use too many emojis and don't swap emojis for words or bullet points
Here is some further advice on making your social media content accessible
A great great website with guidance and help with all accessible principles on social media is Accessible Social
Video guidance
Check out this great two minute video from the RNIB that demonstrates some simple things you can do to make accessible content on social media.