Bilingual Email Structure & Keyboard Navigation

What it is

Bilingual email structure refers to organizing emails that contain content in multiple languages (typically English and French) in a way that allows recipients to easily navigate to their preferred language. This involves:

• Skip links: Hyperlinks at the top of the email that allow users to jump directly to content in their preferred language
• Bookmarks: Named anchors within the email that serve as destinations for skip links
• Visual separation: Clear visual indicators (like borders) that distinguish between language sections
• Keyboard navigation: Ensuring all navigation features work with keyboard-only access

Why it matters

Proper bilingual email structure is critical for accessibility because:

• Screen reader efficiency: Screen reader users can skip past content in languages they don't understand, saving significant time
• Keyboard navigation: Users who rely on keyboard navigation need functional skip links to navigate long emails efficiently
• Cognitive accessibility: Clear separation between languages reduces cognitive load for all users
• Language settings: Helps assistive technologies correctly identify and pronounce content in each language
• Official communications: Many government and bilingual organizations require accessible bilingual communications

How to structure bilingual emails

Basic bilingual email structure

1. Write your email
2. Translate it into the French or English depending on what is needed
3. Move the translated content above or below the original content, ensuring the local language of your region comes first
4. Place your cursor at the start of each language section, and select "Bookmark" from the Insert menu
5. Now add the "Skip to English | French" links at the top of the email
6. Add a "back to the top" link at the end of each language section

Using bookmarks

Bookmarks are named locations in your email that serve as targets for skip links.

How to create bookmarks in Outlook

1. Position your cursor at the start of the language section (e.g., before the English heading)
2. Go to Insert > Bookmark
3. In the Bookmark name field, enter a descriptive name (e.g., "english" or "francais")
4. Click Add
5. Repeat for each language section

Bookmark naming conventions

• Use lowercase letters
• Avoid spaces (use underscores if needed, e.g., "english_content")
• Keep names simple and descriptive
• Be consistent across emails

Creating skip links

Skip links are hyperlinks that connect to bookmarks within your email, allowing users to jump to specific sections.

How to create skip links in Outlook

1. At the top of your email, type the text for your skip links (e.g., "Skip to: English | Français")
2. Select the text you want to make into a link (e.g., "English")
3. Press Ctrl+K or go to Insert > Link
4. In the Address field, type #bookmarkname (e.g., #english )
5. Click OK
6. Repeat for other language links

Visual separation with borders

Use a horizontal line (or borders) instead of underscores or other text-based separators to visually distinguish language sections.

Why lines instead of underscores

• Screen reader friendly: Borders are ignored by screen readers, while underscores are read aloud repeatedly (e.g., "underscore underscore underscore...")
• Visual clarity: Borders provide clear visual separation without cluttering the content
• Professional appearance: Borders look more polished than text-based separators
• Maintains flow: Doesn't interrupt the reading flow for assistive technology users

How to add borders in Outlook

1. Select the heading or paragraph where you want to add a border
2. Go to Home > Borders button (in the Paragraph group)
3. Select Top Border or Bottom Border
4. For custom borders, select Borders and Shading
5. Adjust width, style, and color as needed
6. Click OK