People with low Dutch language skills
Sophia finds it difficult to read Dutch. It takes a lot of energy and she cannot immediately see what is important and what is less important.
She could be:
- Someone with low Dutch language skills
- Someone with dyslexia
- Someone with a neurological condition
- A newcomer
What she needs:
- Short sentences
- Very directly stated what she should do
- Links are clear and the same in form, just different in content.
- Use of recognizable, conventional elements
- Alternatives to digital
What she offers you:
- She enjoys testing, and then you notice where navigation becomes difficult.
- She thinks along about why something is difficult, and
- She sometimes suggests how it can be improved.
People with low digital skills
Ton enjoys working with his hands, he prefers direct contact, and finds it annoying that more and more things are becoming digital. Using a computer and a mobile phone causes hassle and irritation.
He could be:
- Someone with low digital skills
- Someone with an old phone or computer on which not everything is possible.
- Elderly individual
- Someone who works little with computers and also does not game
- People who are regularly off the grid
What he needs:
- Clear website
- Short sentences
- Very directly stated what he should do
- Links are clear and the same in form, just different in content.
- Use of recognizable, conventional elements
- Alternatives to digital
What he offers you:
- He shows where he struggles with finding specific information or features on your platform, and
- He explains the ways he manages to get digital tasks done regardless.
People who use a screen reader
Marco uses a screen reader.
He could be:
- Someone who is dyslexic
- Someone who is blind
- Someone who is visually impaired
What he needs:
- A digitally accessible website
- Consistency
- Meaningful links
- Alt texts
- and more.
- Clear website
- Links are clear and the same in form, just different in content.
- Use of recognizable, conventional elements
What he offers you:
- He can show you and let you hear what he does and doesn't perceive from a website or app.
- He tests important elements.
- General usability issues also become clearer more quickly.
People who zoom in very strongly
Pim is unable to read texts anymore. She uses text enlargement and the dark mode on her phone.
She could be:
- Someone who is visually impaired
- Someone who needs reading glasses
- Someone who is sensitive to light
- Someone with a neurological condition
What she needs:
- Possible zoom up to 400%
- Calm site that is not too bright or supports dark mode
- Left-aligned texts
- Sufficient contrast
What she offers you:
- She shows how content looks when she enlarges it significantly.
- She can tell you what she does see, so you know what she's missing, such as texts in certain colors.
- She can tell you what she likes and dislikes about your website or app.
People with a neurological condition
Maja has difficulty concentrating and thinks less quickly than before. She does not follow many people as quickly. She enjoys a quiet environment.
Maja could be:
- Someone with an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)
- Someone on the spectrum
- Someone with a Mild Intellectual Disability
- Someone with age-related forgetfulness
- Someone with a lot of stress
What she needs:
- Definitely no fast flashy content
- Short sentences are always appreciated
- Very directly stated what she should do
- Links are clear and consistent in form
- Use of recognizable, conventional elements
- Alternatives to digital
What she offers you:
- She enjoys testing, and then you notice where navigation becomes difficult.
- She thinks along about why something is difficult, and
- She sometimes suggests how it can be improved.
People with limited hand function
Kayla has a physical disability and cannot use her hands. Therefore, she relies on aids that enable navigation in an alternative way, such as with her head.
Kayla could be:
- Someone with a high spinal cord injury
- Someone with a muscle disorder
- Someone with a neurological condition
- Someone with limited hand function
What she needs:
- Large buttons
- Well-programmed websites and apps so her assistive devices can interpret the code.
- Keyboard navigation
- Clear focus around active elements, so she knows where she is on a website.
What she can offer you:
- She can show where the assistive devices cannot interpret the code.
- She can show where the focus is missing or invisible.
- She can demonstrate how difficult it is to select a small button.
People who are deaf
Patricia uses Dutch Sign Language (NGT). She does not speak very clearly.
She could be:
- Someone who was born deaf
- Someone who has become deaf
What she needs:
- Transcript of audio and subtitles for video
- Chat as contact instead of a phone number
- NGT interpreter to make things truly understandable
What she offers you:
- Indicating what is unclear in the process of conveying information
- Pointing out which words and texts are difficult
People who are hard of hearing
Kees has difficulty distinguishing between different sounds, such as background or soft sounds. Following a conversation with several people is also difficult.
He could be:
- Became hard of hearing
- Born hard of hearing
What he needs:
- Options to pause, stop, increase or decrease volume
- Subtitles for video, transcript of audio.
What he offers you:
- Indicating which part is not clearly audible in a video
- Indicating if the audio is not clear enough
- Indicating where the service is not or poorly accessible for the hard of hearing.