Three questions to ask yourself to boost video inclusivity
Often when we think about producing inclusive content, our minds go straight to video – and for good reason. Videos are the easiest way to blend multiple communication methods into one succinct asset. However, not all videos were created equal, and their ability to be inclusive may be a big contributing factor.
In this article, I will outline three important questions we should be asking ourselves when creating videos for a broad audience — whether that's for marketing, education, internal company videos or more.
1. "How does the dialogue read aloud?"
The best way to test if your dialogue is accessible is to simply read it out loud. This tried and tested method should be applied to *all* copy, written and spoken – not just the words that will end up in the voiceover.
Listening to sentences ensures we pick up on any jarring differences between how the copywriter might have intended the words to come across, versus how people actually speak. You’ll soon notice any words that are wrong for the context. Are they exclusionary towards people with different levels of education? Or, maybe a word choice is a bit cringeworthy because it’s trying too hard to fit into a certain subculture — alienating the groups you are trying to connect with.
Our use of spoken language is at least 150,000 years old, meanwhile the first signs of the written word are thought to have emerged around 5,800 years ago. It makes sense then, that today our audible communication still tends to be far more sophisticated and nuanced.
Given this long history of verbal communication, it’s no wonder that reading written words out loud is a more helpful test of writing quality than writing spoken words down will be for speaking.
2. "Can I still follow with my eyes closed?"
The beauty of video is that it can account for people with almost a full range of abilities. If someone is hard of hearing, they can still interpret information through subtitles and visual depictions. If someone’s vision is in impaired in any way, it may be more useful for them to rely predominantly on sound. Video can employ techniques to help neurodivergent people concentrate, it can provide a less “click” heavy alternative for those with physical difficulties such as motor neurone disease, and of course, it can help people with low reading literacy levels.
This is great. But only if these core accessibility components: visuals, sounds, colours, written copy, subtitles, and voiceover all align.
It’s no use providing a tutorial with on-screen text instructions and no voiceover. Similarly, we can’t expect people who are deaf to learn from audio instruction alone. On top of this, if we want audiences to have a shared experience of the same content, video components need to complement each other and minimise gaps. Subtitles need to be accurate. Audio should acknowledge non-verbal visual cues where possible. Play the video with your eyes closed. What context is missing? Now play the video on mute. Can it still make sense?
While companies and brands consistently cut corners in this realm, they may be missing a trick, given the line between ability and restricted ability is not black and white.
The VARK model, for instance, theorised that we are all one of four main types of learners: visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinaesthetic. Therefore, even among those with no perceived disabilities, a soundless video tutorial will provide various degrees of accessibility for different individuals.
Accordingly, if we make our videos appeal to more of these options we will be able to lower barriers to access and in turn, increase audience engagement.
3. “Are the options customisable for all needs?”
While I recognise that I am the one advocating for more accessible videos in this article – a video with the bottom part of the screen being allocated to subtitles, a sign language interpreter hanging out on the right, a voiceover explaining every expression and a close up clip of each little thing may be *slightly* overkill for most viewers.
This is why it’s so important to make options customisable for viewers who – let’s face it – will probably just be watching alone on their own iPhone.
Ideally, each video would enable users to adjust speed settings to cater to slower cognitive abilities or non-native speakers. The audio would be good quality: recorded on the appropriate mics, as clear as possible and processed with the right audio software to remove unnecessary artefacts. Visually, all copy should use suitable colour combinations for those with colour blindness to comprehend, and any flashing images should come with a warning for users with photo-sensitive epilepsy — maybe you could even include a ‘skip’ button.
Providing these options empowers users to tailor their experience based on specific needs and preferences, contributing to a more inclusive and user-friendly environment.
“Check box” to Box Office
Ultimately, regardless of budget or audience size, viewers will increasingly expect the videos they watch to be accessible in a multitude of ways. This is simply because it has never been easier to achieve. With most of us owning a smart phone capable of cinematic level photography and apps like TikTok auto-dubbing content for us, very little extra remains to ensure videos are useful for everyone.
While some may complain that this all feels like too much of a “check box activity”, the reality is that when content-makers go unchecked, many miss out — especially you. By consistently asking these three questions during the video creation process, you'll not only enhance inclusivity but also create content that resonates with a broader and more diverse audience.
