You undoubtedly want to provide the highest customer service possible as a business owner. You want your customers and clients to have a positive experience when interacting with your company, whether buying a product from your website or visiting your brick-and-mortar store.
Offering accessibility controls on your website is vital to show that you care about the customer experience. While people with physical mobility issues often come to mind when thinking about accessibility, other groups of people with health concerns can limit or prevent them from using a website without accessibility controls.
Some common web accessibility issues include:
- Blindness, color blindness, or low vision
- ADHD
- Deafness or hard of hearing
- Motor disabilities
- Seizures
- Photosensitivity
- Dyslexia and other cognitive/neurological disabilities
As you might imagine, any of these issues can make it difficult or impossible for someone to use your website. And for organizations and companies following all-inclusive policies, offering accessibility can be a legal requirement.
Website Features Could Cause Hardship For Some
As a business owner, you might not have the time to learn all the ins and outs of web accessibility guidelines. However, it’s essential to be aware of some standard website features that can cause hardship for certain groups of people with disabilities:
Flashy Videos Or Light Patterns – While that trendy video homepage might look great to you, it could cause migraines or trigger seizures for visitors with a photosensitivity disability. Unfortunately, photosensitivity affects as many as 3% of the population, which is a genuine concern.
Non-Text Elements – Images, videos, and audio are often used on websites as supplemental content to help explain or enhance the written text. However, this information is inaccessible to someone who is blind or has low vision and uses a screen reader. By filling in alt tags or providing transcripts, you can help to provide a richer, more inclusive experience for everyone.
Complicated Forms – Many website forms are long. They require users to fill in multiple information fields, which can be daunting and challenging for somebody suffering from dyslexia or another cognitive/neurological disability that affects their reading comprehension or ability to use a keyboard.
Website Pop-Ups – Like complicated forms, those website pop-ups that appear out of nowhere can cause difficulty for some users. For instance, they might have trouble finding the X to close the window or accidentally click a link that navigates and takes them away from the page they were initially trying to access.
Navigation – If your website contains several pages and sections, it can be challenging for somebody with a motor disability to click on the correct links or scroll up and down the page using a trackpad. By simplifying the navigation and providing larger clickable areas, you can help make your website more accessible.
Website Color Choices – You could be surprised to learn that colorblindness is a condition affecting 1 of every 12 men and 1 of every 200 women. People with this vision impairment have difficulty or can not see the colors green and red. When choosing a website color palette, a colorblindness simulator tool can ensure that your site is easy to read and navigate.
Website Font Choices – Much like website colors, some website fonts are easier to read for some people than others.
All this technical information can be a lot for anyone to try and take in, and as a business owner, you may not have the time to learn all the ins and outs of web accessibility guidelines. However, it’s essential to be aware of some standard website features that can cause hardship for certain groups of people with disabilities.
Empower Website Visitors With The Tools To Make Website Adjustments
By being mindful of potential barriers to entry and taking measures to address them, you can create a website that is accessible and inclusive for everyone. Luckily, technology provides a seamless solution to empower visitors to make accessibility changes to meet their preferences, needs, and requirements.
- A seizure-safe profile blocks flashing content, eliminating the possibility of having a seizure triggered by your website.
- A dyslexia-friendly font makes reading text on screen much more accessible for people with dyslexia.
- Visitors can use a high-contrast color scheme to improve visibility if they have low vision or are colorblind.
- Content and color controls allow visitors to adjust the font size, line height, and the amount of space between paragraphs to better suit their needs.
- Users can also enable a “read aloud” feature that will read written website content aloud, which is beneficial for those with reading impairments or non-native English speakers.
What Are The Benefits Of Website Accessibility Controls?
In the same fashion that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, website accessibility is subjective and personal.
What might not be an issue for one person could be a significant obstacle for somebody else. By giving visitors the power to make accessibility adjustments, you’re providing a level of control and customization that can significantly improve their overall experience on your website.
In addition to promoting inclusivity, website accessibility controls can also:
Avoid Potential Lawsuits – Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA prohibits discrimination in “places of public accommodation” against anyone with disabilities.
Unfortunately, in recent years, there’s been an uptick in lawsuits filed against businesses with inaccessible websites. While ADA requirements may not cover your business, it’s still best practice to make your website as accessible as possible to avoid potential legal issues.
Improve Search Engine Optimization – Websites optimized for accessibility tend to rank higher in search engine results pages due to broader accessibility. In addition, user-friendliness is a key ranking factor for search engines, making it a practical way to get ahead of the competition.
Attract And Retain More Customers – By making your website more accessible, you’ll attract new customers and improve customer loyalty and retention rates. One study found that nearly 60% of people would not return to a website after having a bad experience.
Interactive Palette Is Available To Help
If your company boasts an inclusive corporate culture, why not extend that same level of inclusivity to your website?
Interactive Palette is here to help you make your website more accessible for everyone. So please get in touch with us today to start the conversation!
