What is Website Accessibility?

While it may seem like only a small percentage of individuals have a disability, the CDC states otherwise. 26% of U.S. adults live with some type of disability - that’s ¼ of the population. Unfortunately, 98% of the Internet’s frequently viewed web pages have accessibility barriers. Now that you’re aware of the statistics, it’s time to discuss why website accessibility is so crucial for billions of individuals worldwide.

What is Digital Accessibility?

If your website provides digital accessibility, all users can navigate and understand your website’s content, regardless of whether that individual has a disability or not. Our WCAG vendor and partner, AudioEye, explains some common digital accessibility pitfalls to avoid:

• Images with missing alt text: Alt text provides an accurate description of the image shown so users with a visual disability can still understand what is on the screen.

• Too low of color contrast: Text on the foreground of the website needs to have a sufficient contrast ratio compared to the background so users can easily read and understand the content. For normal text, a 4.5 to 1 contrast ratio is needed and for bigger text (14-point font or larger), a 3 to 1 contrast ratio is needed.

• Lack of visual focus: Each element of content on a website should have a visible outline for those with vision issues.

The digital accessibility pitfalls don’t stop there. Basic things we may take for granted, like viewing images and using keyboard shortcuts, aren't always options for everyone.

What is the ADA?

The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, is a civil rights law passed in 1990 prohibiting discrimination against those with disabilities and guaranteeing that those individuals have the same opportunities as all other Americans. Some examples include:

• Employment opportunities
• Participation in government activities
• Purchases of goods and services
• Public transportation

While the law itself doesn’t name each one, some examples of disabilities the law covers includes:

• Blindness
• Deafness
• Attention disorders
• Wheelchair confinement
• Learning disabilities

Why is Website Accessibility Important?

Proper digital accessibility all comes down to the coding of a website. If your site has broken code, the average person may not be affected and can still navigate it with ease. However, for the millions of individuals who need accessibility tools, your website is inaccessible. This means a percentage of prospective customers are locked out and can’t access your products or services.

What Does Website Accessibility Look Like?

Some of the many examples of accessibility tools AudioEye provides in their Visual Toolkit include:

• Contrast to improve readability for color blind users
• Keyboard focus which draws a colorful box around buttons and links for visual keyboard users
• Big cursor which makes tracking easier for low-vision users
• Reading guide to enhance focus and improve reading comprehension
• Alt text to describe any image when it’s hovered over
• Text size and spacing to change, enlarge and space out text for low-vision users

How can Better Accessibility Help Your Business?

Not only does digital accessibility benefit individuals with disabilities, but it directly benefits your business, too. For example, you’ll experience:

• Improved Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Larger consumer base
• Better website usability and navigation
• Reduced legal risks
• Boosted brand image

Imagine if 98% of physical businesses had barriers that kept 26% of the population out of their stores. Your sales would take a hit and your business would likely make the wise decision to dispose of those barriers. Website accessibility tools are like the ramps and rails of the digital world.

How does AudioEye Help?

AudioEye is the industry-leading digital accessibility software solution provider. Not only do they provide website accessibility compliance to businesses of any size, but they have a suite of solutions for every budget. Here at VGM Forbin, our partnership with AudioEye ensures that all of our websites are accessible since we support their mission to eradicate every barrier to digital access.

As AudioEye states, equal access to digital content is the right of every individual. The good news is that companies like AudioEye make sites, including all of our clients’ websites, accessible for all users. To learn more about digital accessibility or to take the first step towards creating an accessible website for your business, contact us today.