Feature
The Gist
- Accessibility boosts engagement: Inclusive websites create better user experiences and higher engagement, leading to increased customer loyalty.
- Legal and ethical necessity: Compliance with accessibility standards is crucial to avoid lawsuits and demonstrate a commitment to social responsibility.
- Business benefits: Accessible websites can expand market reach, enhance reputation, and provide a competitive advantage in socially conscious markets.
Digital accessibility ensures that all users, including those with disabilities, can effectively access and interact with online content. Businesses are increasingly required to prioritize accessibility to avoid legal repercussions.
By implementing best practices in digital accessibility, brands can create more inclusive experiences, comply with legal requirements and improve overall user satisfaction. Additionally, accessible digital platforms can broaden market reach, enhance customer loyalty, and position businesses as leaders in social responsibility.
This article explores best practices to enhance digital accessibility, helping brands make their digital platforms more user-friendly for everyone.
Introduction to Digital Accessibility
Digital accessibility refers to the practice of designing and developing websites, applications and digital content in a way that allows all users, including those with disabilities, to access and interact with these platforms effectively. This involves ensuring that digital platforms are usable by people with various impairments, such as visual, auditory, motor or cognitive disabilities. Accessibility is critical for ensuring that all users, including those with disabilities, can access and interact with online content without barriers. Accessibility isn't just about compliance with legal standards; it's about fostering inclusivity and enhancing user satisfaction.
Digital accessibility ensures that people with various disabilities can effectively access and interact with online content. Users may face challenges including visual impairments such as blindness or low vision, which require screen readers, adjustable text sizes, or high-contrast color schemes. Those with hearing impairments benefit from captions and transcripts for multimedia content. Motor impairments, which can make using a mouse difficult, necessitate keyboard navigability. Additionally, cognitive disabilities might require simplified navigation and clear, straightforward content. Addressing these diverse needs is essential for creating an inclusive digital experience.
Imagine an elderly woman with vision problems trying to access a mobile website to order groceries. Without proper digital accessibility, she might struggle with small text, low-contrast colors or complex navigation, making the experience frustrating or even impossible. Even worse, if the website was not designed for mobile devices, she would immediately be forced to exit the site to find another, more accessible source.
If, however, the website is designed with accessibility in mind, it would include features such as adjustable text size, high-contrast color options and screen reader compatibility. These features would allow her to easily navigate the site, read product descriptions and independently complete her purchase, enhancing her overall experience and satisfaction.
By prioritizing accessibility, businesses can create more inclusive experiences that cater to a diverse audience, improving overall engagement and customer loyalty. Additionally, accessible digital platforms help businesses meet legal requirements, avoiding potential legal repercussions and demonstrating a commitment to ethical practices.
Legal standards and guidelines also play a crucial role in shaping digital accessibility practices. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the most prominent frameworks. The ADA mandates that digital platforms must be accessible to individuals with disabilities, while WCAG provides a detailed set of guidelines for achieving accessibility. WCAG is divided into four main principles: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust (POUR), which outline the fundamental aspects of making digital content accessible to all users.
Related Article: The Ultimate Checklist for Website Accessibility Compliance
Understanding Digital Accessibility in Practice
Digital accessibility simply means that a website or application will be designed so that everyone, regardless of disability or limitation, will be able to use it. Key principles of digital accessibility include providing alternative text for images, ensuring keyboard navigability and maintaining sufficient color contrast for readability.
Joseph Kelly, founder of website design and marketing firm Designeo, told CMSWire that his firm keeps accessibility at top of mind at all times given how much Google emphasizes accessibility in ensuring a great user experience across the board.
“Metrics were leaked in March 2024 from Google that showed they are focusing much heavier on the experience of the user after they click on the page in addition to the content of the page," Kelly said. "Since making those adjustments to our strategy, our campaigns have paid dividends for our clients.”
Gary Warner, marketing and customer experience manager at Joloda Hydraroll, a loading and unloading solution provider, reiterated that there is not much point in creating marketing content if it can't be accessed by all potential customers.
"The best way we've found of ensuring accessibility across all of our content is to make it a key part of the content creation process,” said Warner. “If making something accessible is not considered until after something has been produced it's far harder to retroactively try and make it accessible, or it just becomes too easy to overlook."
Digital Accessibility Best Practices
Implementing key best practices for digital accessibility is essential for creating an inclusive online environment that meets the needs of all users, including those with disabilities. By focusing on website design, content accessibility and regular testing, businesses can ensure that their digital platforms are both user-friendly and compliant with accessibility standards.
Website Design and Development
For website design and development, best practices include:
- The use of Semantic HTML and ARIA Labels (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) helps assistive technologies understand the structure and functionality of web content, improving accessibility.
- Ensuring Keyboard Navigability and focus management so that all interactive elements can be accessed and navigated using a keyboard, with clear focus indicators.
- Implementing Accessible Forms and error messages ensures that forms are easy to use with clear labels, instructions, and error messages that are understandable by all users, including those using screen readers.
Content Accessibility
For content accessibility, best practices include:
- Include alternative text (alt text) for images, captions for videos and transcriptions for audio content to ensure that all users can access the information, regardless of disabilities.
- Organize content with proper headings, lists and clear language to enhance readability and ensure compatibility with screen readers.
- Avoid issues like poor color contrast, non-descriptive links and inaccessible PDFs, which can hinder users with disabilities.
Accessibility Testing and Tools
For accessibility testing and tools, best practices include:
- Regular Accessibility Testing to identify and fix issues before they affect users.
- Tools such as WAVE, Axe and Google Lighthouse can be used to assess a brand’s website’s accessibility, ensuring it meets guidelines and standards like WCAG.
Start With Accessibility Audit
Kelly starts by conducting an accessibility audit, followed by a simple test where he navigates the site using only a keyboard. This allows him to ensure that all clickable elements are easily accessible and highlighted with a high-contrast outline. He then checks that these clickable elements use descriptive text for clarity. Finally, he adds HTML ARIA labels, which is the most time-consuming part of the process, to ensure that the site is fully accessible to users relying on assistive technologies.
Chase Prioritizes Accessibility With Inclusive Features and Updates
James Green, head of digital accessibility at Chase, one of the nation's largest banking institutions, told CMSWire that Chase is continuously rolling out new features and app updates to its customers, all with accessibility at the forefront, with special attention paid to:
- Non-decorative images including charts and graphs have alternative text so customers using a screen reader (commonly used by blind and low-vision individuals) can have content described to them.
- Colors are chosen to support users with colorblindness or low vision and regular text has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 over its background to support the contrast sensitivity loss associated with reduced vision.
- Media players provide captions and audio descriptions so that users who may be blind or deaf have access to multimedia content. Control features to operate media players are built to accessibility standards and are intuitive to use.
- Products are keyboard operable allowing customers with vision impairments and/or dexterity limitations to interact with and operate features without a mouse.
Green said that accessibility isn’t a banking compliance function, something that you do if defects are found; rather, it’s a design function about understanding and building products for people.
Related Article: 4 Principles for Accessible Web Design & Digital Experiences
Challenges and Solutions for Digital Accessibility
Implementing digital accessibility presents several challenges for businesses, including navigating complex technical standards, limited resources and balancing accessibility with design aesthetics. For instance, many companies struggle with retrofitting existing websites to meet accessibility standards, which can be both time-consuming and costly.
Warner shared that one of the challenges he’s faced has been in understanding how best to design accessible content.
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“We realized that some well-meaning attempts at making things more accessible were not effective and also didn't always understand how some small things could accidentally make content less accessible,” said Warner. “That's why we invested in training for the whole team to help them understand best practices and how to apply them.”
Warner said that his company created guidelines for the team to refer to, to ensure they always consider accessibility at every stage of the digital content creation process.
“We're not perfect and are aware there are still some areas for improvement, but by making it a key part of the process, we are ensuring that accessibility is considered in everything we produce," Warner said.
Case Examples of Digital Accessibility
Businesses that are beginning the process of accessibility design can draw inspiration from successful case studies. For example, Target faced legal action due to the inaccessibility of its website for visually impaired users. In response, the company revamped its ecommerce platform to meet accessibility standards, including WCAG 2.0 guidelines. By prioritizing accessibility in their redesign, Target not only complied with legal requirements but also enhanced the shopping experience for all users.
Similarly, Microsoft formed an Ability team that works across departments to ensure all products, from software such as Windows to hardware such as the Xbox, meet accessibility standards. Microsoft’s commitment to accessibility is evident in features like the Narrator screen reader and eye-tracking technology, making their products usable for people with various disabilities.
The Business Case for Accessibility
Svetlana Kouznetsova, consultant, author, and speaker, emphasized that accessibility is very critical in all industries yet many businesses are ignoring it.
"The main issue with many businesses (both big and small) is the lack of accessibility to the world's largest and the most ignored minority of 1.85 billion disabled people,” said Kouznetsova. “Our population size is larger than the population of China and the EU combined. We control $1.9 trillion in annual disposable income. If our needs are ignored, businesses may lose not only us, but also our family, friends, and colleagues who make up another 3.4 billion potential customers. Together we control $13 trillion."
As such, digital accessibility is not just a legal requirement; it's a strategic advantage that significantly enhances user experience, and customer satisfaction.
“Optimal accessibility is important not only to us disabled people but also increases audience and ROI for businesses,” said Kouznetsova.
Accessible websites and apps lead to higher levels of customer engagement and satisfaction. Accessible design often leads to better overall usability, benefiting all users, not just those with disabilities. Features such as clear navigation, easy-to-read fonts, and logical content structure improve the experience for everyone, which can increase conversion rates and reduce bounce rates.
In addition, meeting accessibility standards reduces legal risks and aligns with ethical business practices. In the long term, prioritizing accessibility broadens a brand’s audience reach, strengthens brand reputation, and builds customer loyalty, positioning a business as inclusive and forward-thinking. Companies that commit to accessibility are often viewed more favorably by consumers, leading to a competitive edge in increasingly socially conscious markets.
Bake in Digital Accessibility From Starting Line
Digital accessibility is not just a compliance requirement, but rather a fundamental aspect of creating inclusive and user-friendly online experiences. As technology continues to evolve, maintaining an ongoing commitment to accessibility will be crucial. This commitment not only ensures legal compliance and mitigates risks but also opens up opportunities to reach wider audiences, enhance overall user satisfaction, and build a stronger, more inclusive brand image.
Brian Gavin, co-founder at Wally, provider of an experience platform, told CMSWire that for his business, ensuring accessibility across his brand’s platforms starts with embedding accessibility into the very foundation of the development process.
"We leverage AI-driven tools to identify and remediate accessibility issues during the design and coding stages," said Gavin. "This proactive approach ensures that accessibility isn't an afterthought but a core component of our digital offerings. We also conduct regular audits and involve users with disabilities in testing to gather real-world feedback and make necessary adjustments."
Gavin explained that his team’s biggest challenge was integrating accessibility seamlessly into the development workflow without slowing down production. Another challenge was staying up-to-date with evolving accessibility standards and guidelines, Gavin added. This was addressed, he said, by building in robust contextual knowledge and guidance that his team continuously leveraged to adapt to new requirements and best practices.
Denis Erturan, paid media and insights lead at Seen CONNECTS, a social marketing agency, told CMSWire that the core best practices for social media marketing remain relevant across all audiences, including those with an increased need for accessibility. Designing for accessibility doesn’t mean that developers have to throw past practices out the window.
"The key is not to reinvent these practices but to enhance them for greater inclusivity," Erturan said. "There's no need to reinvent the wheel, but tires get worn and rubber technology improves."
Erturan related that, for instance, while adding subtitles to videos is widely accepted as best practice, it can be improved by testing contrasting backgrounds, using different fonts for readability and ensuring that key messages are clear even without sound.
“By continuously refining these elements," Erturan said, "we ensure that our content is accessible and effective for everyone.”
