Pass Accessibility Requirements from Writer to Publisher

TL;DR

• Decide that the accessibility handoff's purpose is to tell the publisher how structure and assets communicate meaning so the publisher can preserve the writer's intent during import and editing.
• Use concrete documentation: mark heading hierarchy, state each image's communicative purpose and provide meaningful link text so publishers can reproduce information rather than rely on visual cues alone.
• Treat the handoff as necessary but not sufficient: verify rendered output across sizes with an accessibility review and route template or CMS faults to the right owner.

Preserve meaning through the publishing handoff

A content accessibility handoff should tell the publisher how the article's structure and assets communicate meaning. A well-prepared draft can lose that structure when it is pasted or imported into a CMS.

Record the writer's intended heading hierarchy, the purpose of important links and the information carried by each image. The publisher then has concrete decisions to preserve and inspect.

This handoff is one part of accessibility work. It does not by itself establish that the site, template or complete reading experience meets every applicable requirement.

Explain the article structure

Use headings to organize the reader's task and make the hierarchy clear in the source. Do not rely only on bold text or larger font sizes to communicate which sections belong together.

Tell the publisher which heading is the article title and how the main sections and subsections relate. If the CMS supplies a title heading automatically, account for that behavior during import.

Check the rendered output rather than assuming the source formatting survived unchanged.

Describe image purpose in context

For each visual, explain what the reader should learn from it. A workflow diagram may communicate a sequence, while a decorative illustration may add no information needed to complete the task.

Provide an appropriate text alternative or surrounding explanation based on that purpose. Do not use a filename as the only description of a meaningful diagram.

For a complex visual, ensure the essential reasoning also exists in readable article text. The publisher should not have to infer the entire explanation from the image alone.

Keep links understandable

Write link text that helps readers understand where it leads. Review repeated generic phrases when the destinations differ and make the distinction clear in context.

Our content brief template can identify the reader's intended next step. Use that task to decide whether a link description is informative enough.

If an action has a meaningful consequence, explain it near the link. Avoid making the reader discover only after activation that they are downloading a file or leaving the relevant workflow.

Assign checks to the right owner

The writer can supply structure and meaning, while the publisher checks how the CMS renders them. Template-level issues may require a developer or accessibility specialist.

Record problems at the appropriate level. Rewriting one article will not fix a template that consistently discards table labels or renders the heading hierarchy incorrectly.

The content approval workflow should identify who can resolve those issues and whether they block the release.

Verify the delivered article

Inspect the public or preview output with the team's established accessibility review process. Confirm that the intended structure, descriptions and link purposes remain available after import.

Include a smaller-screen check for tables and images, and route any interaction or assistive-technology questions to the qualified reviewer. Do not label the page fully accessible based only on a visual glance.

Save the handoff with the article revision so a later image or structure change can receive the same checks.

A useful handoff preserves the writer's meaning across tools and roles. It gives the publisher enough context to detect what was lost and directs system-level problems to the people who can repair them.