5.2Accessibility of presentations
The essentials in 30 seconds
- The Accessibility Checker guides everything: always launch it before distribution.
- Each meaningful visual has its alt-text; the decorative is marked “decorative”.
- Never information carried by color alone: double (icon, wording, pattern).
Spun mini-case — Accessibility of presentations
Amel makes the presentation accessible: contrast, alternative texts, reading order, subtitles and readability. She wants all audiences to be able to follow, including remotely.
Continuation of the common theme: the Blida agri-food SME is preparing its market launch.
1. Why: a quarter of the public benefits
Visually impaired, color blind, hard of hearing, dyslexic — and all the faint projectors: accessibility helps everyone. Check → Check Accessibility: PowerPoint lists errors and warnings, slide by slide. Zero errors = goal.
2. The 5 gestures that count
Alt text on each visual (right click → Show alt text: describe the function, not the appearance), contrast ≥ 4.5:1, never color alone (double by icon/label), logical reading order (Selection pane → order), subtitles of media.
3. The big day: present for everyone
Describe the visuals orally (“this graph shows…”), read the key figures, font ≥ 24 pt, calm flow, microphone. The accessibility of the file + that of the oral version = a presentation that nobody has to endure.
🔎 Concrete example — Real world example — Zero errors in 15 minutes
1. Verification → Check accessibility: 6 errors
2. Alt-text on 3 visuals (“Bars: satisfaction 6.9→7.8”)
3. “Urgent” red with an icon ⚠ + label
4. Reading order: title → graphic → source
5. Recheck: 0 errors, test with screen readerReading: each correction also helps the pale projectors.
Lesson: color only lies to colorblind people: always double.
Section vocabulary
- Accessibility Checker
- Review → Check accessibility: continuous audit of the presentation, with guided corrections.
Simple example: Amel mobilizes “Accessibility Checker” in preparation for the launch.
What it is not: treat “Accessibility Checker” as a detail unrelated to the message.
Reflex: Does this choice make the presentation clearer for the audience?
- Alternative text
- Description of a visual for screen readers: right click → Show replacement text (or mark “decorative”).
Simple example: Amel mobilizes “Alternative Text” in preparing for the launch.
What it is not: treat “alt text” as a detail unrelated to the message.
Reflex: Does this choice make the presentation clearer for the audience?
- Reading order
- The order in which a screen reader speaks the objects on a slide: to be checked in the dedicated pane (via the Checker).
Simple example: Amel mobilizes “Reading Order” in preparing for the launch.
What it is not: treat “Reading order” as a detail unrelated to the message.
Reflex: Does this choice make the presentation clearer for the audience?
- Live subtitles
- Slideshow → Always use subtitles: your voice is subtitled in real time (language of your choice, including translated!).
Simple example: Amel mobilizes “Live subtitles” in preparation for the launch.
What it is not: Treat “Live Captions” as a detail unrelated to the message.
Reflex: Does this choice make the presentation clearer for the audience?
- Color + shape
- Never code information by color alone (red/green): add an icon, a pattern or a wording.
Simple example: Amel mobilizes “Color + form” in preparing for the launch.
What it is not: treat “Color + shape” as a detail unrelated to the message.
Reflex: Does this choice make the presentation clearer for the audience?
In practice — Accessibility audit + stunning subtitles
- On an existing presentation: Review → Check accessibility — address missing alt-text and reported contrasts.
- Spot a red/green graphic: add labels or icons to double the color.
- Check the reading order of a loaded slide (title should come first).
- Activate Slideshow → Always use subtitles → set “Spoken: French / Subtitles: French” → launch F5 and speak: your words are displayed live.
Script Ready to Say — Presentation Accessibility (25 sec)
“Make a presentation accessible (alternative text, reading order, contrasts, subtitles). Concretely, I check this point before projecting: the accessibility checker guides everything: systematically launch it before broadcast. »
Short wording, to be adapted to the audience and the context of the meeting.
Copy and paste template — “Presentation Accessibility” checklist
CHECKLIST — Accessibility of presentations
1. The Accessibility Checker guides everything: always launch it before broadcast.
2. Each meaningful visual has its alt-text; the decorative is marked “decorative”.
3. Never information carried by color alone: double (icon, wording, pattern).
4. Live subtitles (even translated!) are integrated: an asset for all audiences, not just the hearing impaired.
EXPECTED RESULT: A compliant presentation — and a live captioning demonstration that will impress your audience.Express version
Apply only the essentials and the first key point, then check the rendering in projection.
Remote
Share the file and check fonts, contrasts and text size before the video conference.
As a team
Lock in the common model and document choices to keep colleagues consistent.
Printed version
Keep the message titles and the text outline; remove animations that are no longer needed.
✓ Best practices
- Verifier for each version.
- Alt-text = function, not appearance.
- Color always doubled.
✗ Common pitfalls
- “It’s okay, we can see clearly” (on your screen).
- Alt-text “image1”.
- Red/green alone for good/bad.
Key takeaways
- The Accessibility Checker guides everything: always launch it before distribution.
- Each meaningful visual has its alt-text; the decorative is marked “decorative”.
- Never information carried by color alone: double (icon, wording, pattern).
- Live subtitles (even translated!) are integrated: an asset for all audiences, not just the hearing impaired.
48 hour challenge — apply tomorrow
Resume audit accessibility + stunning subtitles on Amel's launch presentation: On an existing presentation: Review → Check accessibility — address missing alt-text and reported contrasts.. Time 20 minutes and note what has changed for the audience.
- I can explain and apply: The Accessibility Checker guides everything: always launch it before broadcast.
- I can explain and apply: Each meaningful visual has its alt-text; the decorative is marked “decorative”.
- I can explain and apply: Never information carried by color alone: double (icon, wording, pattern).
Frequently asked questions
Do live captions work offline?
No: voice recognition goes through the Microsoft cloud – plan for a room connection. The quality is excellent in French with a good microphone.
How do I check my contrasts precisely?
The Verifier flags problematic cases. To go further, WCAG rules recommend a 4.5:1 ratio for text — online contrast checker tools measure this based on color codes.
What reflex improves accessibility?