by Connor Courtien, RDPFS Intern
Complying with the legal standards for accessibility in digital documents can be daunting if it’s something you haven’t had to consider before, and still difficult even if you have. However, it’s extremely important to do so for anyone who is part of an organization or trying to run a business. If you are in this position, there’s a free service from BrailleWorks, one of the nation’s leading providers of reading materials for those who are visually impaired, that has you covered. You can send them a PDF document, along with some information about your project and organization, and they’ll offer an accessibility review of the document, typically providing the results within two business days. It’s important to comply with these standards not just because they’re the law, but also because customers are becoming more and more socially conscious and want to give their business to companies that reflect their values of inclusivity and accessibility. In this sense, an organization that invests in making their documents accessible is investing just as much in their own ability to connect with customers, whether or not they have visual impairments. You can follow the link above to check out the service. For more information on the upsides of compliance, look at this BrailleWorks article: Accessible Documents, the Positive Approach to Compliance.
