Is Your Site Accessible?

The population’s median age is climbing. Along with that comes the increased likelihood of accessibility issues– both visual and motor control issues. Accessibility is already an important topic and its import will only climb in the coming years. Site owners, web designers and marketers need to know where their websites stand when it comes to accessibility and compliance with existing standards and existing legislation.

The Merits of Accessibility Compliance

A website accessibility checker is a digital tool that serves as a quick and efficient way to scan your website for various accessibility issues and errors. These tools use automated testing and sometimes manual evaluation to identify potential problems related to web accessibility. The insights generated by a website accessibility checker provide a starting point for ensuring that your website complies with established accessibility standards, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). These standards are essential for making your website usable by individuals with disabilities.

Website accessibility checkers are helpful for achieving compliance with recognized standards such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. For US-based businesses, compliance plays a role in preventing violations of accessibility-related legislation. By using these tools, website owners can proactively address accessibility issues and reduce the risk of legal actions. Canadian jurisdictions are closely aligned with the ADA and look the WCAG as a standard. Looking at Ontatio’s AODA legislation, the similarities are clear.

Accessible websites cater to users with disabilities but also enhance the overall user experience for everyone including machine readers such as search engine crawlers. They can positively impact your website’s search engine optimization (SEO). Search engines like Google consider user experience as a ranking factor, and accessibility is a fundamental aspect of a user-friendly experience.

Google introduced its Core Web Vitals algorithm update, which emphasizes user experience, in May 2020. This update highlights the growing significance of providing an accessible and user-friendly experience on your website. Therefore, ensuring that your website is accessible is not only a matter of legal compliance but also a strategic move to improve your website’s performance and reach a broader audience.

A website accessibility checker is a tool that identifies issues to address on your website, aligning it with recognized standards and legal requirements. Adopting WCAG improves the user experience and can have a positive impact on your website’s SEO.

Accessible? What A Report Can Tell You

An accessibility report is a crucial tool in the process of making a website accessible to individuals with disabilities. It provides insights and feedback about the current state of a website’s accessibility, highlighting areas that need improvement. Here’s how an accessibility report helps in making a website accessible:

1. Identifies Accessibility Issues: Accessibility reports identify potential accessibility issues on a website. These issues can include problems with text alternatives for images, keyboard navigation, color contrast, and more. Automated tools can scan a website for known accessibility violations, while manual testing involves human testers who can identify issues that automated tools might miss.
2. Prioritizes Issues: The report typically categorizes the identified issues by severity or priority. This helps web developers and designers focus on fixing the most critical problems first. For example, issues that prevent screen reader users from accessing essential content would be considered high priority.
3. Provides Recommendations: In addition to identifying issues, accessibility reports often provide recommendations on how to fix the problems. These recommendations can include code snippets, design suggestions, or best practices for making content accessible. They can also provide links to relevant accessibility guidelines, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
4. Gives Detailed Information: Accessibility reports usually offer detailed information about each issue, including the location of the problem on the website, a description of the issue, and why it is important for accessibility. This information is valuable for developers and designers who need to understand the context and impact of each issue.
5. Allows for Testing and Validation: Once developers make changes to address the issues identified in the report, they can use the same report to validate that the changes have been effective. This iterative process helps ensure that the website becomes more accessible over time.
6. Compliance Documentation: In some cases, accessibility reports serve as documentation to demonstrate compliance with accessibility regulations or standards. This documentation can be important for legal and regulatory purposes.

An accessibility report is a valuable resource for web development teams and organizations committed to making their websites inclusive and accessible to all users, regardless of their abilities or disabilities. It helps identify, prioritize, and address accessibility issues, ultimately leading to a more inclusive online experience for everyone.