Alt text for graphic heavy images

We have a similar issue as we share a lot of charts and graphs that can be completely overwhelming to have read out loud with a screenreader. What we usually do is share the most important takeaways and summarize where possible so it feels like a cohesive narrative instead of a giant list of numbers. 

A calendar is a little more challenging (especially since I don’t know what’s on it), but would be curious if there is a way to simplify repeating events, or in the caption you could provide a link to a screen reader accessible version and have it clearly spelled out that folks should go there. 

Oh, I love the idea of linking to an accessible version--great thinking!

Is there anywhere on your school’s website that the events information could live? I’m more than a little ruthless when it comes to my college’s social media and refuse to post anything resembling a flyer due to accessibility. I prefer to link to a page where the information is available in an accessible format (like Kate suggested earlier). 

You’re on the right track with adding all the event information from the calendar to the alt text for the graphic. Just keep in mind that while this will allow a screen reader user to hear all the information, I don’t believe they’ll able to copy/paste any of the information from the alt text field. This can hinder their experience because they’d need to listen to the alt text repeatedly if they’re trying to write/record any of the event info to refer to later.

This page on the Accessible Social website might be helpful to you, Rainer. And thank you for prioritizing accessibility!

Just here to second what ​@AlexaHeinrich said, as always, and to ask how successful those posts are performing in general? If they’re not strong performers, maybe it’s time to find a creative way to present the info without the heavy text that could make the situation better for everyone. And if they are doing well, I think you’ve got a ton of great insight from Alexa to work with.

Thanks for the replies, everyone! I’m feeling empowered to get creative with how I’m presenting the events calendar on social. ​@Laura Porcincula what’s the name of that Chrome extension?

​​Also, ​@AlexaHeinrich I think our paths have crossed indirectly via webinar! I remember you as a presenter at Government Social Media Con :) I really admire your work with Accessible Social.

I think the screen reader extension that ​@Laura Porcincula mentioned is a great idea! With graphics that are text heavy I think it would be so helpful to test the users experience 😊