I recently noticed that the Google web search is now marking up results using the HTML Heading tag. This is great news for people who access their web browser using modern screen reading software, as we can now quickly and easily navigate to the next and previous matches on a Google web search results page. Most screen readers include commands to move to the next heading, previous heading, or list all headings on a web page, and by implementing the Heading tag, many screen reader users will find it more efficient to find the information they are looking for using Google. And just as importantly, for those who cannot take advantage of Headings, this change should not have a negative impact on their Google experience.
Hopefully this simple improvement is just the first of many steps along the road to greater accessibility and enhanced usability for the world’s most popular search engine. Hopefully Google can extend the heading tag to Google’s other searches such as: news, blog search, groups, etc.