We live in a world where more than 1 billion people have certain kinds of disability. And in this digital era where almost everything has become digital, have you wondered how people with disabilities use digital offerings?
People with disabilities also use all the digital services and products, often with the aid of assistive tools. But are you ensuring that your website and applications are designed with their needs in mind? Are they truly accessible to people with disabilities? Are the visual representations you provide, such as product images, accessible to them?
Try to imagine yourself in their shoes. You might end up frustrated! Hence, every digital business owner or service provider should take the initiative to make their website or app accessible.
How does accessibility help my organization?
Accessibility opens your organization up to a new market.
Accessibility increases findability.
Many accessibility techniques will help your site’s search optimization (SEO). If your site is screen reader-friendly, it’s also search-bot friendly.
Accessibility improves user experience.
How often do you use video captions, voice search, and building ramps? Accessibility features help everyone!
Accessible is inclusive.
Accessibility is part of fostering a more inclusive brand and a more inclusive workplace.
Why Invest in Accessibility?
Investing in digital accessibility drives innovation, opens new markets, and promotes social equity. With the right tools and expert help, you can start and sustain your accessibility journey, boosting your business and making a positive impact.
Understanding the importance of accessibility, Alistair Duggin emphasizes:
“By designing with accessibility in mind, we are designing for our friends, families, and future selves.“
Steps to get started
Assess your current state of accessibility.
Start by checking whether your website/app is accessible or not. The only way to know if your site is accessible is to test it. Achieving full accessibility across your websites and apps starts with understanding where you’re currently succeeding and where you need to improve.
With an Accessibility Audit (sometimes called an assessment or an evaluation) from a qualified digital accessibility solution provider, you can get a comprehensive report detailing any issues and providing guidance on how to correct them. It’s a great first step toward developing a plan for making your digital experiences accessible to all users, including those with disabilities.
The only way to truly know if your site and applications are accessible is to get a complete accessibility audit that includes both automated and manual testing and is performed by experts.
If your site or app is accessible, you are doing a great job! If it is not, it’s time to take action.
Get strategic consulting
Once you have a clearer picture of your current state of accessibility, you’ll need a playbook for not only remediating existing issues but preventing them in the future. Every company is different, and your organization will need strategies unique to your needs. Expert consultants can help you set goals and determine success metrics, optimize design and development processes, develop company policies, and more. Strategic consulting is an essential step toward launching and scaling a successful accessibility program.
Implement training programs
Becoming and staying accessible requires training your teams on the skills and tools they’ll need to achieve your company’s accessibility goals. Choosing an accessibility partner with the right expertise and content can make it much easier to implement and scale training across your organization. The right partner will help you build a training plan optimized for your company’s unique needs, and that aligns with your budgets and timelines.
“Shift left” and embed accessibility testing early in your design process
Maintaining development velocity is essential for a successful business. Conducting accessibility testing at the end of the software development life cycle risks slowing things down, and addressing accessibility issues after a product has been released is costly, time-consuming, and resource-intensive. Shift-left accessibility testing is an approach where accessibility testing is performed early in the design and development stages, and accessibility issues are caught much earlier. This saves time and money and frees resources up for new feature development while simultaneously reducing compliance risk and expanding the market for your products and services.
Financially, reputationally, and legally, accessibility is the right approach for your business. Get started today, and your company can look forward to expanding its reach and growing its customer base while avoiding legal risks.
Connect with a11y experts.
Now that you have an assessment report, you know how many or what accessibility issues you are dealing with. Connect with accessibility experts to understand how to eliminate these issues and deliver a great experience to people with disabilities. It will be a great opportunity for your business since you will access a large untapped user base, as Debra Ruh aptly put it: “Accessibility allows us to tap into everyone’s potential.”
By: Abin Roy Choudhury
VP of Global Sales & Operations at Deque Systems (APAC),