Speckled Frog

Web guide

What is accessibility and why is it important?

Most people understand ‘accessibility’ in a physical sense; wheelchair ramps in libraries, wider access doors in our homes and Braille information on cash machines. Disabled people are provided with the same service as non disabled people.

With a website, the same is true – an accessible site provides equal information and services to "all" users who want to access them, regardless of disability.

Is it just about disability?

Although accessibility addresses the need to provide equal access for disabled users, new technologies and devices need accessible sites too: a mobile phone or PDA or a voice browser in a car navigation system. Importantly, search engines (especially Google) need websites that are accessible so they can read and index all its pages and every word that's found within links, images, text and titles.

Do I have to make my site accessible?

Accessibility is now a legal requirement. The UK enforces the Disability Discrimination Act, which requires all web sites to show that they have taken steps to enable access.

Common misconceptions

I’m sure many people have their own ideas about accessibility and what an ‘accessible’ site might look like. Let’s dispel some commonly heard myths:

Accessible web sites are expensive

False - Developing a site that is accessible is no more expensive than a non-accessible site. In fact, once the site is developed, making changes to a compliant site or adding features such as content management or ecommerce is far quicker (and much cheaper).
Plus, you don’t have to worry about legal action!

Accessible websites are boring

False – Any design can be built to be accessible and have all the excitement and features of a non-accessible site. As long as people have a choice and alternatives to content such as video, flash or music, a site can look good AND be accessible.

None of my customers are blind; do I still need an accessible site?

(Said by a prospective client!)

False - Accessibility isn't an issue just for people who are blind. There are lots of users who will have sight limitations but are not blind:

One in 12 men are color blind, colour choice affects their ability to use a site
Baby boomers (over 65’s) are the fastest growing group of new Internet users but can find it difficult to read small fonts - accessibility offers them the flexibility to enlarge the text on screen to suit them
Mobile phone users don’t get the same big monitor view and will need to scan a site for relevant information
Some people prefer to switch off images, they still need to know what the site is about.

Summary

Website accessibility isn’t difficult to do, in fact it makes creating and updating websites much easier (and cheaper for the client!) and it gives everyone access to the information on websites in a way that they want it, not just how the designer wants it. These visitors will like the website, which means they will like your company – and they may even be your next customer!