Email accessibility requirements

Just thinking through the requirements for accessibility for email template design.

Although there are plenty of guidelines for web accessibility, there are relatively few for email. The main only reference i have seen are the TEN Guidelines for email accessibility. Any others?

This is the issues I think that Email template designers should consider.

From an email design perspective, the main features I believe are more important for visually impaired email users are:

1. Text-only version emails to be available (through multipart email format or selection of text-only version)
2. Text-only versions to be repurposed to contain less content, e.g. main offers only.
3. Mixed design style for HTML emails combining images and text.
4. Images to include alternative text describing image and offer contained in image
5. Use of default font-sizes which can be read by those with moderate visual impairment.
6. Capability to manually resize text (using View, Text Size option in Outlook or View, Text size options in browser for web mail readers) in email designs without the design failing.
7. Use of high contrast between text and background colours.

Dave Chaffey http://www.davechaffey.com/Total-E-mail-Marketing

Thanks Roger,

That's useful - thought there had to something more out there. That's a good initiative, but it seems there's only a few involved.

I heard also that some ESPs were going to be working with the W3C on HTML standards - does anyone have  any info  on this?

I thought the Email Experience Council should be doing something here, but they don't seem to be.

I'm well thanks - hope your business is progressing well.

Dr Dave Chaffey
Marketing Insights Ltd. www.marketing-insights.co.uk
 

This is great advice. On the same subject I've also found these articles from the Email Marketing Manual a  good source of reference:

Email marketing tips - design

Email design pit falls

Beating spam filters

On 11:49:25 22 July 2008 DaveChaffey wrote:

 

Just thinking through the requirements for accessibility for email template design.

Although there are plenty of guidelines for web accessibility, there are relatively few for email. The main only reference i have seen are the TEN Guidelines for email accessibility. Any others?

This is the issues I think that Email template designers should consider.

How do these sound - what am i missing?

From an email design perspective, the main features I believe are more important for visually impaired email users are:

1. Text-only version emails to be available (through multipart email format or selection of text-only version)
2. Text-only versions to be repurposed to contain less content, e.g. main offers only.
3. Mixed design style for HTML emails combining images and text.
4. Images to include alternative text describing image and offer contained in image
5. Use of default font-sizes which can be read by those with moderate visual impairment.
6. Capability to manually resize text (using View, Text Size option in Outlook or View, Text size options in browser for web mail readers) in email designs without the design failing.
7. Use of high contrast between text and background colours.

I have more background on email accessibility requirements
if you're interested.

Dave Chaffey http://www.davechaffey.com/Total-E-mail-Marketing