7 Tips to Make Your Website Accessible: Inclusive Web Design

With the shift to a modern, digital world, it’s no longer a best practice to have a website that is accessible to everyone: it’s a mandatory requirement. It allows all users including people suffering from disability to use, access and interact with content on your site. Given that around 15% of the world’s population has a disability in some shape or form, it is important to understand that web accessibility is crucial for any kind of equal opportunity and participation in society as well as the web.

To some, accessibility focuses on maintaining legal compliance, however, it is deeper than that: it is about ensuring everyone is put in a space where they can contribute. With the eradication of these barriers through accessibility features, you not just improve the experience for the disabled, but also the experience for the entire population. Additionally, Google prefers content that has simple and usable designs, thus enhancing your overall SEO efforts; furthermore, having a well-designed website will allow you to have a more diverse customer base, and will increase customer retention.

In this blog post, we hand over to you our seven best tips for creating an accessible website. These strategies not only encourage the development of a website that everyone can use regardless of their ability, but will also make it easier for the users to navigate the site. Whether you are an experienced web developer or a novice, taking notes of these tips will enable you to make the first steps towards accessible websites.

Importance of Web Accessibility and Main Aspects

In recent years, web accessibility has become an important topic of discussion around the world, and web accessibility is: ”the practice of designing and developing websites that can be used by all users, including people with disabilities.” It includes a wide range of impairments, including visual impairment, hearing impairment, cognitive impairment, and motor skill impairment. The major reasons for web accessibility includes the following:

Inclusivity : Ensuring that your website is usable by all users, regardless of their capabilities, means making sure that your content and services can be used by everyone and enhancing Web and Digital inclusion.
Legal Requirements : There are countries that have already enacted legal provisions relating to web accessibility. So, disregarding these laws can have legal implications and fines.
Improved Customer Experience : Because of the basic accessibility design principles, practically every visitor is more likely to have a better user experience. Giving clear direction in menus, properly organizing important information, descriptive internal links let everyone even those without disabilities use the resources.
Better SEO : Google prefers sites that can be easily navigated. Making your site easier to use and implementing accessibility features should go hand in hand, enabling you to improve your site’s rank.
Broader Audience Reach : In providing users accessibility features, you are opening up your audience potential. A more accessible site will draw visitors of all sorts. This finally benefits your business or organization.
Good Brand Reputation : Having access to people is better seen as being socially responsible and thus would also enhance the reputation of the brand. Businesses are more likely to attract users who are into inclusive practices and afford accessibility.

7 Tips for Building an Accessible Website

Building an accessible website is critical to allow all users, including the disabled, to adequately navigate and understand, and use the content. Accessibility always enhances the user experience while reaching more of your audience. Here are our top seven tips for creating an accessible website:

1. Good Use of Semantic HTML

Semantic HTML enriches the experience of the screen reader when it uses your content. Appropriate semantic HTML elements like

<‘header’>, <‘nav’>, <‘main’>, <‘article’>, and <‘footer’>

helps to create a clear hierarchy that can be understood by screen-readers. This way, assistive technologies are eliciting the layout and function of the page.

2. Include Text Alternatives to Non-Text Content

Non-text content which includes the likes of images, videos and other multimedia should also be equipped with alt texts that would describe it. This is important for people who are dependent on screen reading. For instance, instead of placing a simple picture, it would suffice to write a pretty concise yet descriptive statement of what the image is representing-completely opening the understanding of all users.

3. Emphasize on Keyboard Navigation

Not all of the people make use of the mouse and that is why you should make sure that mouse free full navigation is there on your site. Test out your site completely using the Tab key for all interactive elements.

4. Design for Color Contrast

The last measurable parameter that goes a long way in improving readability and accessibility is color contrast. Ensure that the colors of text and background are contrasting sufficiently. You can do the comparison using the WebAIM Contrast Checker to validate the colors used for the recommended contrast ratios, which will make the text readable by every user, including visually impaired people.

5. Employing Clear and Meaningful Link Text Elements

It is advisable for link text to be contextual and informative enough about the location to which the link routes. This reminds or warns users against using mundane phrases like – ‘click here‘, ‘read more‘, ‘go to‘. Instead, context phrases are used like: ‘Download our accessibility guide’ and ‘Become acquainted with our services page’. In this manner users, especially those who rely on screen readers will have an idea on what the link is about before clicking on it.

6. Use Of ARIA Markups

Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) landmarks offers assistance on the assistive technologies about the roles and functions of different elements of the website. Use ARIA roles like role=”navigation” for navigation menus, or for the primary content area use role=”main”. ‘This permits the users of the screen reader to handle the site in a better way.

7. Accessibility Testing Of Your Website

Access testing is necessary and testing is vital in keeping access. Tools such as WAVE, axe or Lighthouse can be useful depending on the access features of the site. Information obtained will help in the usability testing where disabled people are used so that the experiences rather than assumptions guide decisions. This will assist you in figuring out what could be improved upon and guaranteeing that your site is actually usable.

In fact, understanding all dimensions of web accessibility is the very first step in making a website that works for all users. Upon this foundation, the next is implementing these tips to boost your website’s accessibility.

Conclusion

Accessible website building is not just a legal requirement but a moral obligation. The seven tips mentioned in this blog will make it possible to create a more inclusive online environment, serving all users regardless of ability. Accessibility enhances user experience and broadens audience reach. You show commitment to inclusion when you make your website accessible. Let’s build towards an accessible web for everyone!

Take the step to elevate your presence online with HelloPixels!!

HelloPixels is the #1 web design agency cum experts in Dubai, UAE. As such, we appreciate the significance of accessibility in web development and thus continuously strive to produce more accessible but great-looking websites. When you partner with HelloPixels, the greatest web development company in Dubai, your website becomes highly inclusive meeting standards at par with the best user experience. We got the latest accessibility features put on your digital presence to reflect what it looks like really at serving all visitors. As one of the best web development companies in Abu Dhabi, we offer truly custom solutions to meet your needs, however specific you need them. HelloPixels builds websites from scratch, as well as refines existing ones. Contact us to discuss how we can make your website a truly inclusive and engaging place where everyone can resonate; don’t let barriers to accessibility hold your business down.