As more people are needing to rely on the internet and websites for everyday living, having an accessible website is becoming more and more important. Not everyone can access a website the same way. How they interact with your website can turn them into a client or can lead them elsewhere.
The MDN website, which is a resource for developers describes accessibility as “the practice of making your websites usable by as many people as possible. We traditionally think of this as being about people with disabilities, but the practice of making sites accessible also benefits other groups such as those using mobile devices, or those with slow network connections.”
“You might also think of accessibility as treating everyone the same, and giving them equal opportunities, no matter what their ability or circumstances. Just as it is wrong to exclude someone from a physical building because they are in a wheelchair (modern public buildings generally have wheelchair ramps or elevators), it is also not right to exclude someone from a website because they have a visual impairment. We are all different, but we are all human, and therefore have the same human rights.”
Not only is it the right thing to do, but with an accessible website, you may be turning away potential clients and customers without even realizing it. With so many options on the internet today, people are going to move on to an easier site to read, use and navigate, if they found yours too complicated to do so.
People with physical disabilities, hearing or visual impairments, or even people who work or live in loud, quiet, dark, bright environments with little thumbs, big thumbs, no thumbs, all benefit from features and design and development elements that can be implemented into your website.
Here are some other benefits of implementing Accessibility into your website:
- Increase your search engine capabilities.
- Increase your customer base.
- Improve your brand reputation (Consider what they could say about your site if they are too frustrated and angered)
Consider this:
Domino’s was sued after a blind man was unable to read the site using a screen reader The case is known as Domino’s Pizza v. Guillermo Robles, No. 18-1539.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/07/dominos-supreme-court.html
Depending on the type of service you provide and the business you have, you may be required by the Americans with Disabilities Act to have an accessible website.
Because I feel so strongly about the benefits of Accessibility, I’ve been studying the standards that have been put in place by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) around accessibility. They provide lists of what to consider, use cases and examples and a variety of ways to develop your website in a way that as many people as possible can use all aspects of your website.
I try to incorporate some of these elements automatically when I create websites for my clients, especially when considering how I layout the pages, or add text to the images, etc. Some elements are easy and quick to implement with some up-front thought.
But there are so many things to think about, and many of the elements and best practices require time to implement and test. If you want to know what can be implemented on your website to make it more accessible, or if you know you want to add some level of Accessibility to your website, let me know and we can have a conversation about it. Every little best practice that you implement, can make a difference to a lot of people.
If you want to learn more about accessibility, what is involved or why you would want to consider it, here are some resources that might help you:
A good explanation of Accessibility and how some people overcome it using technology: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/What_is_accessibility
Another great introduction to Accessibility: https://www.w3.org/WAI/fundamentals/accessibility-intro/
