April 2023
Why website accessibility is important: Tips for designing inclusive websites
Find out why website accessibility matters and how to make your website inclusive.
Website accessibility is the process of making web content and applications accessible to people with disabilities. It involves creating websites that can be navigated and used easily by anyone, regardless of physical or cognitive abilities. This includes people who are blind, deaf, hard of hearing, use screen readers or speech recognition software, have mobility impairments, or other disabilities. In addition to helping ensure a more inclusive experience for users with disabilities, website accessibility also benefits all users through improved usability.
By supporting diversity and inclusion through web design, you’ll be able to attract more customers while also boosting customer loyalty by creating memorable positive user experiences (UX).
Benefits of website accessibility
Accessibility guidelines are becoming increasingly important as digital accessibility lawsuits have soared in recent years, making it essential for organizations buying technology this year to prioritize them.
In addition to avoiding legal penalties and fines globally, creating an inclusive website has many benefits that go beyond compliance.
By supporting diversity and inclusion through web design, you’ll be able to attract more customers while also boosting customer loyalty by creating memorable positive user experiences (UX). Having an accessible website means you’re opening up your business to 25% of the US population who self-identify as having a disability.
Adopting good accessibility practices has many benefits beyond simply being inclusive – it makes your site easier to navigate which improves user experience overall leading to increased engagement rates and conversions.
Additionally, some search engines may rank sites higher if they meet certain accessibility criteria meaning better visibility in search results.
Tips for Designing Inclusive Websites
Designing inclusive websites requires careful consideration of various elements to ensure that all users have an equal experience.
Clear and Simple Language: Clear and simple language should be used throughout the website, allowing for easier comprehension by a wider range of readers. This includes avoiding jargon or technical terms unless they need to be used. If you must use acronyms these should be clearly explained.
Hierarchy: Hierarchy should be established in the structure of content – such as headings and subheadings – so visitors can quickly find what they’re looking for without having to read through long blocks of text.
Colors and Contrast: Careful selection of colors should be made, creating a distinction between text and background shades to enable legibility for those who suffer from color blindness or visual impairments.
Image and Video Descriptions: Alt text descriptions must be included for images/videos so that screen reader users can understand what is being shown without having to watch or listen to them directly.
Video Captions: Video captions can also help those who cannot hear audio content get the same level of understanding as others from videos on the website.
Navigation: Simple and intuitive navigation is important for all website users, and should be designed in a way that allows users to easily navigate around the website without confusion. You should use descriptive text for buttons and navigation so that the visitor knows what they are clicking.
Keyboard navigation is another important aspect; clickable elements like buttons must be easily navigable using only a keyboard rather than needing a mouse too.
Size and Space: Make sure to give each element on your page an appropriate size and enough space so that it is clearly defined as separate from other elements. Clickable elements like buttons must be big enough (at least 44px) to be easily clicked on all devices.
Minimal use of Animation: Animations should be used sparingly as they can be distracting or cause confusion. If animations must be used, it should be clear when starting and ending, as well as what action it is prompting the user to take.
ARIA: ARIA, which stands for Accessible Rich Internet Applications, is an expansive collection of HTML roles and properties that offer extra context to assistive technologies when the existing semantic HTML tags just don’t cut it.
To illustrate, if a <div> element is used to demonstrate progress on something, it should be assigned the ARIA role of “progress bar” in order to indicate that this particular element represents a progress bar.
If you’re curious to learn more about ARIA, start with the Hubspots guide to ARIA accessibility.
Web Accessibility Audits
Carry out web accessibility audits to identify any potential issues. This can be done by manually testing or using automated tools.
Resources for Website Accessibility
There are numerous resources available online to help you update your website such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2 standards, and Wave website accessibility audits.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the cornerstone of website accessibility. They provide a set of criteria that must be met in order to ensure an accessible web experience for all users, regardless of their physical or cognitive abilities.
Wave has a website accessibility tool that can show you any areas on a page that may not meet the guidelines.
Accessible Website Examples
1% for the Planet: By joining the 1% for the Planet network, businesses are able to counteract their environmental footprint through choices that give back. With over 3,000 members and well over $100 million contributed so far, each organization’s donation of 1% of profits goes towards vital charitable causes and non-profit organizations dedicated to preserving our planet.
Living up to its motto of “People and the Planet Over Profit,” this organization proves that accessibility is paramount. Their website prioritizes high-contrast text, ARIA tags, and detailed HTML page structuring for better accessibility. The pages remain simple in their content presentation while being fully mobile responsive – a perfect example of an accessible website!
Mysa Skincare: Mysa Skincare has created a website that is both inviting and easy to navigate. Bold colors dominate the interface, with text, images featuring alternative text descriptions along with ARIA markers and functional labels for all elements included. The site includes subtle animations and transitional effects without being excessive or obtrusive in any way.