The Importance of Website Accessibility and How to Achieve It

Various countries enforce laws and regulations, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the U.S. and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) in Canada, so ensuring your website meets these standards is crucial.

While there might not be a law in your specific country requiring website accessibility, that doesn’t mean there are no consequences for non-compliance. In the US, for instance, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) can be used to enforce website accessibility. Non-compliance can lead to costly lawsuits, fines, and significant damage to your brand’s reputation. 

4 Ways to Ensure Content Accessibility

Making your website easy for everyone to use is not just a one-time effort—it’s an ongoing process.

So, how can you make sure that your website is accessible to all users? 

To ensure your site is accessible to all, including people with disabilities, you should follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provided by the World Wide Web Consortium. 

Here’s a simple breakdown of what these guidelines entail and how you can apply them to your website:

1. Perceivable 

Your site needs to present information in a way that users can perceive, regardless of their sensory abilities. Not everyone can see images or videos, so offering alternatives like text descriptions or audio is crucial. This ensures that everyone, including those who use screen readers, can understand your content.

Here’s how you can make your website perceivable:

• Provide text alternatives for non-text content (images, videos, etc.)
• Provide captions and transcripts for audio/video content
• Make content presentable in different ways without losing meaning
• Make it easier for users to see and hear content

2. Operable 

Anyone should be able to navigate and use your website easily. This includes moving from one page to another, selecting menu items, or playing videos. Keep your website simple and intuitive to make sure it can be used by people with various disabilities, like those who cannot use a mouse.

Here’s how you can make your website operable:

• Make all functionality available from a keyboard
• Give users enough time to read and use content
• Avoid flashing animations over a specific rate that can cause physical reactions
• Help users navigate and find content by using clear headings and titles

3. Understandable

Your site’s information should be easy to understand. Clear language and a logical layout are critical to making sure your site is accessible. Consider visitors who might have cognitive disabilities or who are not fluent in your website’s primary language. 

Here’s how you can make your website understandable:

• Make text readable and understandable by using clear and simple language 
• Make content appear and operate in predictable ways 
• Help users avoid and correct mistakes by showing error validation or suggesting fixes for form errors

4. Robust  

Your website should work well with different technologies, including screen readers and other assistive tools. Writing clean, standard HTML helps these technologies interpret your site correctly.

Here’s how you can make your website robust:

• Maximize compatibility with current/future technologies
• Ensure accessibility for assistive technologies by adding ARIA roles and labels for screen readers

 Remember: It’s not enough for your website to be usable if it doesn’t meet these four criteria. So, continuously updating and testing your site is not just a one-time effort but an ongoing process. This commitment to accessibility ensures the sustainability of your efforts as technology changes.