A Comprehensive Web Accessibility Audit Ensures Maximum Audience Reach
Creating a website accessible to everyone is a win-win for businesses and consumers. ADA compliance is typically discussed in terms of physical public spaces, but people and the courts increasingly view the online landscape as serving a similar function. Accessibility audits allow developers and executives to ensure their sites are compatible with assistive technology and identify new opportunities to better support users with disabilities. Web Accessible offers comprehensive accessibility audit services that help you reach a wider audience while making the internet a more inclusive and accessible place for all.
Is ADA Compliance Required for Websites?
It’s true that many online sites still have not incorporated features that can be used with assistive technology for people with disabilities, but there is a growing risk associated with this. The public is increasingly prioritizing businesses that are open to everyone, and courts often rule in favor of plaintiffs with grievances about a lack of online accessibility.
Incorporating features into your website that allow everyone to use it should be a given. While specific compliance standards are currently mandated only for government entities and their contractors, everyone should be willing to provide inclusivity. Besides the possible legal repercussions of non-compliance, there are many reasons to perform accessibility audits from a business perspective:
Wider Audience Reach:
Consumers with disabilities comprise a significant demographic. An accessibility audit will help ensure you can effectively reach this demographic and a broader audience.
Improved User Experience:
Bounce rates, non-conversion, and short session durations often indicate that visitors aren’t finding what they need. A poor layout and user experience can be why they aren’t finding information, especially if there aren’t features that enable individuals with disabilities to browse, including integration with assistive technologies.
Stronger Brand Reputation:
Demonstrate social responsibility and inclusivity as part of your overall mission of providing valuable products or services. Today’s consumers appreciate this in companies and are more likely to do business with them.
You May Need To Ensure Compliance With Section 508
Some organizations may be required to comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which states that all electronic and information technology used by government agencies must be accessible to people with disabilities. The law also includes government contractors, vendors, or entities that receive federal funding.
- Government Entities and Their Contractors
- State and Local Entities Receiving Government Funding
- Educational Institutions
- Nonprofits Receiving Federal Grants
Frequently performing accessibility audits is critical for these kinds of organizations. Don’t miss out on essential funding or open yourself to legal risk. Utilize our advanced accessibility audit service to ensure that features like screen readers and keyboard navigation tools can be effectively utilized for enhanced usability.
What Does an Inclusive Website Look Like?
It’s often hard for someone without disabilities to understand what an inclusive web address looks like. Individuals with one or more impairments have a drastically different online experience and usually use assistive technology to browse and understand information online, including screen readers, speech recognition software, and alternative input devices.
Websites are not automatically compatible with assistive technologies. Developers must intentionally design pages to enable users to effectively utilize these tools. Developers should also provide simple features, such as appropriate color contrast and text size, that allow easier readability. Our accessibility audit services can help designers and business executives verify the operability of these features and identify additional ways to increase everyone’s access.
Some essential features of an inclusive website that improve the user experience for disabled people include:
There are many more features that you can implement to expand your site’s reach to more users. Verify the operability of existing solutions and explore new ones that can enhance the user experience by utilizing our accessibility audits.
Accessibility Features Can Align With SEO Practices
Accessible features can align with Search Engine Optimization best practices to bring a broader audience to your website. Pages rank higher when content is easy to understand, and the site is easy to navigate and use.
Many practices used to enhance usability for people with impairments also make online spaces more appealing to search ranking algorithms, including using proper heading structures, adding alt text to images, and writing descriptive link text. Clean, semantic HTML can also help assistive technologies interpret a site correctly while improving crawlability and indexing, which in turn boosts your search rankings.
A web accessibility audit will help you enhance functionality and unlock the potential for improved user engagement. Build a better website that’s more inclusive and performs better in search results, increases dwell time, reduces bounce rates, and converts more visitors into customers. Consider our accessibility audit service to enhance your organization’s commitment to ethics and refine its digital strategy.
Discover More Strategies To Improve User Experience for Everyone
Our advanced web accessibility audit tools can help designers and businesses discover more ways to improve access and usability for everyone. Our in-depth scans provide tools that quickly analyze thousands of pages for WCAG compliance issues, including missing alt text, poor color contrast, or improper heading structure. Scanning provides a clear starting point for uncovering areas that require repair or improvement.
Beyond simply identifying which features aren’t working, our web accessibility audits provide actionable reports that break down issues and offer step-by-step remedies. Receive comprehensive explanations about how each issue affects users with disabilities and how to remediate the problem.
Stay up-to-date with the latest information about the WCAG guidelines that ensure online spaces are compatible with tools such as screen readers, keyboard navigation, and speech recognition tools. Provide your teams with training and knowledge on design code considerations that enhance accessibility. We can also provide ongoing monitoring and support to help you maintain these best practices as your company grows and evolves.
Explore our various pricing models and discover the accessibility audit services that best meet your current and future needs.
Get Started Today With a Compliance Scan
Ensuring ADA or Section 508 compliance may be a requirement for some organizations based on their industry. However, making the internet open for everyone should be a priority for every business. An in-depth web accessibility audit can provide developers and executives with actionable steps to make their sites compatible with assistive technologies and features that enhance the user experience for individuals with disabilities.
Opening access to a broader audience also brings higher potential revenue. Discover advanced accessibility audit services that verify usability and include step-by-step actions for remediation and improvements by scanning with WebAccessibility.Biz today.