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You probably are already familiar with the Americans With Disabilities Act and have made your business establishment compliant with its terms. However, are you aware that you should also make your website user-friendly for people of all abilities? Accommodating all potential customers through common forms of website accessibility will boost your business and prevent legal issues. Although there are no federal guidelines you must follow to achieve this, you can make your web content ADA compliant by following the standards of the World Wide Web Consortium.
Perceivability
The first step is to make the site usable for everyone through means such as the following:
- Adding captioning to videos and alt tags to images
- Allowing for non-text content to be changed to an accessible form (such as large print or speech)
- Using sufficient contrast for more distinguishable viewing and listening
Removing any barriers to participation with your content is the foundation of website accessibility.
Operability
Ensure the site is easy to use and offers options for better functioning. For example, each page should have clear labels and let the visitor navigate between sections through the computer keyboard. The user must also be able to pause moving content to increase access time and disable animation to prevent triggering seizures.
Understandability
People have different levels of reading comprehension, so helpful tools are necessary for web content accessibility. Include definitions of industry jargon and abbreviations or an alternative version of the material written in simpler language. Allow users to choose which language to read in. Check that instructions for input (such as contact forms) are straightforward and that the website as a whole is consistent and predictable.
Robustness
Visitors may use different types of assistive technologies to interact with your site, so make sure it is robust enough to manage this through proper programming and compatibility.
If all these enhancements seem overwhelming, know that you do not have to do the work alone. Amnet provides website accessibility services to ensure ADA compliance, so you can focus on your business tasks. Get started today.
Sources:
1. https://www.searchenginejournal.com/ada-compliant-website/200106/#close
2.https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/12/26/2017-27510/nondiscrimination-on-the-basis-of-disability-notice-of-withdrawal-of-four-previously-announced
3.ttps://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/quickref/
