Readability Confidence Score (RCS) helps teams check whether the words that matter can actually be read, recognised and acted on in the places people encounter communication.
It builds on accessibility standards by looking at the wider reading experience: background noise, hierarchy, asset quality, high-value words, format and context.
Beyond contrast. Beyond font size. Real-world readability.
Readable is not just technically compliant.
Built on accessibility standards. Extended for real-world communication.
WCAG contrast checks and font-size guidance are important foundations. They help identify avoidable barriers and set a minimum standard for accessible communication.
RCS does not replace those standards. It builds on them by asking a wider question: can the communication actually be read, processed and acted on in the real-world context where people see it?
The goal is not to challenge accessibility standards.
The goal is to help teams make better readability decisions earlier, so accessibility becomes part of everyday brand, marketing and design practice.
Why basic checks are not always enough
A colour combination can fail a contrast ratio and still appear readable in a specific context. Another can technically pass but still be hard to read because of scale, background, hierarchy, density, motion or compression.
What basic checks can show
Whether text and colour meet important accessibility thresholds such as contrast and minimum legibility expectations.
What RCS adds
Whether the message survives the real conditions people experience: images, clutter, feeds, movement, small screens, weak hierarchy and asset degradation.
What RCS considers
RCS looks beyond whether text technically appears on an asset. It considers whether communication can actually be read, processed and acted on in real-world conditions.
Text size and scale
Is the text large enough for the format, channel and likely viewing distance?
Contrast and colour relationship
Does the text have enough separation from surrounding colour and visual elements?
Background noise
Does the message remain readable over photography, gradients, texture, clutter or motion?
Message hierarchy
Can people quickly identify the main message, supporting detail and action?
High-value words
Are the words that carry the brand, offer, benefit or action visible enough to be noticed?
Density and processing load
Is there too much information to take in at once, especially in fast-scroll environments?
Asset quality and degradation
Does readability survive compression, resizing, cropping, low-resolution export or platform previews?
Real-world viewing context
Will the communication still work on mobile, social feeds, posters, slides or other real situations?
RCS is about changing how communication is created.
Too often, readability and accessibility are checked after the creative work is already finished. By then, decisions about type, layout, photography, hierarchy, density and format have already shaped who can access the message.
1
Move readability upstream
Bring readability into creative, brand and marketing decisions earlier.
2
Move readability upstream
Show where important words are being weakened by design, format or context.
3
Improve everyday standards
Help teams build better readable communication into repeatable practice.
How RCS fits into Fikrah
RCS is one part of Fikrah’s wider brand experience work. It helps assess whether brand communication is accessible enough to use, clear enough to understand and strong enough to carry the words that matter.
Free Brand Experience Snapshot
Campaign reviews
Template testing
Asset pre-flight checks
Software tools
Public readability resources
Governance
Want to see where readability may be affecting your brand experience?
Start with a free Brand Experience Snapshot, or get in touch to discuss how RCS could support your team, campaign, templates or platform.