Social Media Accessibility Guidelines

At the University of Houston, digital accessibility is not optional. It is a required part of managing official University social media profiles.

In accordance with the UH System’s Social Media Policy, all content on official University social media profiles must be accessible and usable by people with the widest range of capabilities possible. Accessibility requirements apply to the content we create and publish, not to the built-in features of the social media platform itself. It is the responsibility of the profile administrator to ensure that content is fully accessible.

For practical purposes, UH social media content should be created to align with WCAG 2.1 Level AA. That means people should be able to understand the essential information in a post even if they cannot see an image, hear a video or distinguish colors.

The following practices are required to help make University social media content accessible.

Alt Text

Alt text, short for alternative text, is a written description of an image. Screen readers read alt text aloud to users who cannot see the image clearly or at all.

When posting an image, add alt text whenever the platform allows it. Alt text should describe the important information in the image, not just list objects. Focus on what matters most in the context of the post.

Good alt text is specific, concise, focused on meaning and written in plain language.

If an image includes text that is important to understanding the post, that information should also be included in the alt text or the post copy.

Example:
A large group of students in Fertitta Center jump in excitement as they cheer for UH’s men’s basketball team.

Do Not Put Critical Information Only in a Graphic

Important information should not live only inside an image or graphic. If a user cannot access the graphic visually, they should still be able to get the key message from the post copy, alt text or a linked accessible webpage.

Avoid using social graphics as digital flyers packed with details. Instead, create a visually simple graphic that draws attention, then place the full information in the caption or on an accessible webpage.

This is especially important for event details, deadlines, application instructions, rankings, statistics, quotes, award announcements, statements and schedules.

Instead of this:
A graphic contains the event title, date, time, location, RSVP instructions and parking information, while the caption only says, “Join us.”

Do this instead:
Use a cleaner graphic with the event title and place the date, time, location and RSVP details in the post copy. If more information is needed, link to an accessible webpage.

Captioning for Video

Videos with spoken audio must include captions. Captions are essential for people who are deaf or hard of hearing and also help anyone watching with the sound off, which is common on social media.

There are two main types of captions:

Closed Captions

Closed captions can be turned on or off by the viewer and are styled by the platform.

Open Captions

Open captions are burned into the video itself and cannot be turned off.

Both can support accessibility if they are accurate. Captions should match the spoken words as closely as possible and should not contain obvious errors.

Example:
If a student says, “Coming to UH changed my life,” the caption should say exactly that, not a shortened paraphrase.

Before publishing, review auto-generated captions carefully. Do not assume automated captions are accurate enough on their own.

Creating Video Captions

There are many ways to create captions for videos. Editing software such as Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro have captioning tools built in and allow you to write and export caption files.

Learn how to add captions to your videos

Audio-Only Content Needs a Transcript

If you publish audio-only content, such as a voice recording or podcast clip, provide a transcript so users can access the same information in text form.

Example:
If a post includes a short audio clip of a faculty expert explaining new research findings, include a transcript on the linked page or in the post copy if the clip is short enough.

Use Readable Text in Graphics and Video

Any text that appears inside a graphic, Instagram Story slide or video should be easy to read on a mobile device. Keep text brief, large enough to read and visually clear against the background.

Avoid small paragraphs of text, thin fonts, low contrast text, text over busy photos, excessive all caps and text that appears too briefly to read.

Instead of this:
An Instagram Story graphic has five short paragraphs in white text over a detailed photo.

Do this instead:
Use one short headline on the graphic and place the rest of the information in the next frame, the caption or a linked webpage.

Color Contrast

Text must have enough contrast against its background to be readable. A common problem is placing light text over a light image or dark text over a dark background.

High contrast improves readability for everyone and is especially important for users with low vision or color vision deficiencies.

Better examples:
White text on a red background
Black text on a white background
Dark text on a light gray box placed over a photo

Poor examples:
Light gray text on white
Red text on black if the red is too dark
White text directly on a bright sky or busy crowd photo

When in doubt, increase contrast rather than trying to make the design more subtle.

Do Not Rely on Color Alone

Color should not be the only way users can understand meaning.

If a graphic uses green to mean “approved” and red to mean “denied,” some users may not be able to distinguish those categories. Add text, icons or labels so the message is clear without relying only on color.

Instead of this:
A chart shows one department in red and another in green with no labels beyond a legend.

Do this instead:
Label the bars directly and include text that explains what each category represents.

Capitalization for Hashtags and Usernames

When multiple words are combined with no spaces, capitalize the first letter of each word when the platform allows it. This improves readability for many users, including people using screen readers.

Examples:
#GoCoogs instead of #gocoogs
#ForTheCity instead of #forthecity
@UHouston instead of @uhouston

Some platforms may force lowercase in certain fields. When that happens, use the platform as designed, but capitalize where you do have control.

Learn more about using hashtags

Learn more about username best practices

Avoid Stylized or Decorative Unicode Text

Do not replace normal letters with non-standard, decorative characters to imitate bold, italic or fancy fonts. Screen readers may not read these correctly, which makes the content inaccessible.

Inaccessible example:
𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩.

Accessible example:
This is standard text and will be read correctly by assistive technology.

If you need emphasis, rewrite the sentence so the importance is clear through wording, not decorative characters.

Make Linked Content Accessible Too

Accessibility does not stop with the social post itself. If a social post links to a UH webpage, PDF, form, flyer or video, that linked content must also be accessible.

Before sharing a link, make sure the destination content is usable and readable.

This is especially important for PDFs, registration forms, event pages, applications, reports, downloadable flyers and videos hosted on other platforms.

Example:
Do not post a link to a scanned flyer PDF if the text in the PDF is not selectable, readable or properly structured.

Accessibility Checklist Before You Post

Before publishing to an official UH social media profile, review the post and confirm the following:

• The key message is available in text, not only in a graphic
• Alt text has been added when available
• Important text in the image is reflected in the post copy or alt text
• Video captions are available and accurate
• Text in graphics is readable on mobile
• Contrast is strong enough
• Color is not the only way meaning is communicated
• Hashtags use capitalization when possible
• Decorative Unicode text has not been used
• Any linked page, PDF or form is accessible

Bottom Line

Accessible social media content allows people to understand the same essential information regardless of disability, device settings or the way they access a post. That is the standard University staff should use when creating content for official University profiles.

If a user cannot fully understand the post without seeing the image, hearing the audio, distinguishing colors or decoding decorative text, the content likely needs to be revised before publication.