For those of us whose disability or health condition means that leaving home is a no-no; virtual meetups can represent the only way to connect with family and friends, share experiences, attend important appointments and participate in social activities.

Going virtual especially comes into its own during the festive season when the prospect of spending Christmas or other observance days alone increases feelings of loneliness and isolation.

We love a chance to celebrate the holidays or share a few glasses of festive spirit as much as the next person, but often a lack of accessibility in party venues and community spaces leaves us saying ‘Bah Humbug!’

So team Passion4Social is sharing our favourite Google Meet’s accessibility hacks to ensure you don’t miss out on one moment of fun this year!

The X factor

Our remote working business model enables our employees to circumnavigate the physical and attitudinal barriers that they might experience in a more traditional office setting.

However, choosing a video conferencing platform that allowed everyone to fully participate in events, and gave them the confidence that their ideas were being listened to, has not been without its challenges.

Google Meets, as it turns out, has the X factor that everyone was looking for.

It caters to everyone’s diverse needs and differing levels of digital experience which is why we use it to host everything from staff training to our annual festive quiz.

Our top tips for perfect sound and vision this festive season

There was some truly magnificent festive apparel on show during said team quiz, which took place last week.

Not forgetting a beautiful rendition of Mariah Carey’s classic ‘All I Want for Christmas’ from our intern Andressa.

We made the following simple tweaks to our Google Meet settings to make sure everyone had the same inclusive welcoming experience.

We’d recommend you try them for yourself but bear in mind, these are just skimming the surface of the accessibility features Google Meet offers, so do also carry out your research to see what works best for you.

Turn on live captions when you join a meeting

This will provide real-time text captions when someone speaks, enabling you to follow the conversation with much greater clarity if you are deaf, have hearing loss, or simply prefer to process information in a written format.

The icon to do this is located at the bottom right of your screen.

No more missing out on the punchlines of all those cheesy jokes your oldest friend is so fond of sharing. Aren’t you glad?

Worth noting, that if you record the proceedings for posterity, you will need to select (record captions) to ensure they are embedded in the video.

Enable the push-to-talk feature in audio settings

This feature will allow you to switch your mic on and off using the space bar if you have limited mobility, or use assistive technology to control Google Meet functions.

Worth noting, it is not always a viable option for screen reader users whose space bar may perform a different function, but other keyboard shortcuts will work as well.

So, dispense with the worry of interrupting the sing-along or movie marathon with unexpected background noise. Do your worst Fido, for you and the Amazon delivery driver shall not spoil our fun! (Other shopping outlets are of course available).

Enable automated transcripts in Google Workspace editions by accessing the activities tab

In much the same way as the live captions, this feature will be useful to those of you who may experience challenges in keeping up with the conversation in real-time.

It is a written record of everything said throughout proceedings, so it can be handy for refreshing your memory on those must-see TV shows your friends shared, or you could simply use it to recreate that moment when your work bestie couldn’t get to grips with the book of festive tongue twisters you so generously sent her.

Cut out distractions

Turn on noise cancellation in audio settings if background noises such as typing, or notification sounds interrupt your focus.

You can also turn off the video feeds of other participants at the meeting, if you want to focus your view on your MC for example, or avoid being distracted by people who accidentally draw your attention by moving around.

They won’t be notified or see any difference on their screen, so if Uncle George’s shirt and tie combo is even more offensive than usual, then you’ve got our permission to have at it!

Turn on keyboard shortcuts in Gmail settings

These will allow you to control the camera, navigate around Google Meet and use accessibility features.

Enabling shortcuts is especially beneficial to screen reader users or anyone needing to input information through a keyboard only.

So no more killing the party vibes whilst it takes you an age to put your answers to the quiz questions on the chat!

Instructions on how to toggle keyboard shortcuts on or off, as well as a list of commands.

Limit the use of the chat function while people are speaking to give screen readers a chance to do their job

Google Meet is compatible with screen reading software; however, life can get very confusing if a visually impaired participant is trying to listen to what a speaker is saying whilst being bombarded with constant chat messages.

It sounds something like the babble you might hear when you land the dial on your radio between two stations.

So a little bit of chat etiquette goes a long way. Keep the chat feature for dedicated times during your event and everyone can have their say on the age-old debate about Die Hard.

Is it really a Christmas movie?

Check out Google support for information on all accessibility features and extensions

As we said earlier, the tips above are just a flavour of Google Meet’s capabilities when it comes to accessibility, so we’d suggest you have a thorough exploration of the Google Meet Accessibility support page.

It covers everything we’ve mentioned and much more. You are bound to find a solution that meets your specific needs.