What does accessible marketing actually look like in practice? As Tania Gerard, brilliant neurodiversity trainer and accessible marketing consultant, reminded Fab in their chat, inclusion is a mindset, a conversation, and (brace yourself) a never-ending practice.
Throughout their conversation, Tania tore down myths like a wrecking ball (Miley-style), shared practical strategies, spotlighted brands doing it right, and basically handed marketers a giant neon sign: inclusion should be baked into your campaigns, not sprinkled on top.
This conversation is part of our Ethical & Sustainable Marketing Accelerator. Get a free taster class at: amschool.click/accelerator
About Tania Gerard
Tania Gerard is an accessible marketing consultant, neurodiversity trainer, and founder of Tania Gerard Digital UK. With her approach to accessible marketing, a concept she created, Tania is transforming how companies and communities connect with diverse audiences. By integrating inclusivity into marketing strategies, she educates businesses to build bridges, not barriers, through their communications.
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“If you embrace accessibility and incorporate accessible marketing into campaigns, you are creating campaigns and workplaces that work better for everyone involved.”
Tania Gerard
Unpack the Inclusion Mindset
First up, mindset. As Tania puts it: “Everyone is equal but has different brains, everyone deserves inclusivity, everyone is [a] diverse thinker.” Translation? Your audience isn’t a monolith. They’re more like a bag of pick ’n’ mix, different shapes, colours, flavours, all worth savouring.
Challenge your assumptions and myths about neurodiverse audiences. Actively look for gaps in your understanding, ask questions, and be ready to unlearn outdated beliefs.
A few practical ways to shift your mindset:
- Practice self-reflection: Ask yourself, “Who am I forgetting here?” If the answer is anyone, fix that.
- Seek understanding: Don’t play mind reader. Ask questions. Listen. Adjust.
- Choose curiosity over perfection: You will mess up. But if your intent is to learn and improve, you’re on the right path.
Move From Assumption to Action
One of the biggest myths? That neurodiverse folks aren’t in your audience. Spoiler: they are. Everywhere. Always. Ignoring them is like leaving 30% of your potential sales on the table (yes, thirty).
Ask for honest feedback on your campaigns from neurodiverse audiences and learn from what doesn’t work.
When in doubt, offer customisation and alternative communication options – Give people choices: email, text, phone, video, or written formats, to meet various comfort and access needs.
- Ask and listen: Market research isn’t a dusty report. It’s conversation. Surveys, polls, chats, just do them.
- Prioritise clarity: Ditch jargon. Use clear fonts. Tell people what you’re offering straight away.
- Embrace creativity and flexibility: Multiple formats. Flexible deadlines. Alternative comms. Neurodiverse folks love creativity (don’t we all?).
- Repeat and iterate: You won’t nail it first time. Test, tweak, repeat. Always.
A Reminder on Why the Effort Pays Off
Here’s the proof in the pudding (or the email campaign): Tania simplified a client’s copy, used dyslexia-friendly fonts, added alt text, and bam: open rates up 56%, click-throughs up 34%.
Big brands are at it too. Microsoft’s Autism Hiring Programme? Led to product innovations for everyone. Lego’s braille bricks? Designed with neurodiverse creators, loved universally.
So here’s a few implementations to take home with you:
- Include accessibility from the ideation stage, not as an afterthought: Bake inclusivity into everything, rather than tacking it on at the end as a checklist item.
- Keep communication clear and jargon-free: Make sure your briefs, emails, and campaigns are written in simple, direct language (think: explain it so everyone gets it).
- Make accessibility improvements measurable: Track open rates, click-throughs, and other metrics before and after accessible changes to show impact (like dyslexia-friendly fonts or alt text).