Cater to all of your subscribers by designing emails easily understood by all. With these tips, you can get closer to making emails user-friendly by using clear, readable text, good contrast, and alt text for your images.
Live text vs Images with text
There are limitations to using text in an image vs. writing out text in your emails. For example:
- The image may not load.
- The recipient may be using a screen reader that can only read the Alt text of an image.
- The recipient may rely on a translator that cannot be reached in an image.
Rather than being dependent on an image to relay information, it is better to rely on live text for your important messages. If you have to use an image with text, be sure the main message of your email remains clear even if the image fails to load.
Use Heading & Paragraph Styles
Organized headings can be important for recipients who utilize screen readers or voice assistants to read your emails. To better understand how your content is organized, you’ll want to follow a logical downward hierarchy for subheadings: h2, h3, h4, etc., and limit your email to one h1 heading.
ALT Text for Images
ALT text (alternative text) is a description added to an image to ensure that when people use a screen reader or when an image fails, the content is still understandable. It is a tiny detail that serves a big purpose in accessibility. The descriptions you give images help visually impaired users who rely on screen readers understand the content of images. Therefore, all images should contain ALT text. ALT text can be applied to images in your Drip emails using the Visual Email Builder:
Here are some tips when it comes to writing ALT text:
- Accuracy: The purpose of ALT text is to describe the content of the image
- Keep it brief: In addition to accuracy, it’s best practice to keep the ALT text concise. Normally a few words or a couple of short sentences is enough to get the point across.
- Redundancy: Avoid repeating information that is already near the image. You would basically be saying the same thing twice!
- Phrases to avoid: Screen readers already handle identifying images, there is no need to add phrases like “images of…” or “graphic of…” unless it is important to note that it is a photo or illustration, etc.
- Language: Though not terribly critical, the language in ALT text should match the language in your email. This keeps consistency with read by a screen reader or when an image fails to load.
Styling for Readability
- Larger font sizes: Ideally, keep sizes 14px or higher. Anything smaller may require effort to read.
- Space out your copy: Not spacing your text can create clutter making it easy to overlook important details. Adding whitespace to your text creates a visual hierarchy to improve readability.
- Left-Align: It is easier to read large bodies of text that are left-aligned.
- Contrast: Make sure your text has enough contrast against the background colors.
Reduce Ambiguity in Links/Buttons
The goal is to ensure the elements of your email are clear to all of your recipients. One major way to achieve this is to reduce the ambiguity in text for your links and buttons.
For example, instead of using “Click here” you can deliver the purpose of the link by using “Shop men’s shirts” instead. When people know where a link is leading them to, they are more inclined to click it as well.