What is digital accessibility and why it matters
“So… not to be ignorant, but what is digital accessibility?”
I was in a meeting with fellow female entrepreneurs recently, and as I gave my monthly update, I was confronted with this question. It was one of those situations where I felt completely on the spot—but in a good way, because I knew exactly how to answer her question.
This question is a reminder to share not only what I’m passionate about, but to also expand on what digital accessibility means and why it’s important now more than ever before.
What is digital accessibility?
The truth is that the vast majority of digital spaces aren’t accessible right now. In fact, a 2022 study by WebAIM detected that 97% of the world’s websites are inaccessible. But what does that mean?
At its core, digital accessibility means ensuring your websites, apps, and digital documents are barrier-free for users of all abilities. It comes down to everyone having equal access to digital experiences.
Do you provide captions or transcripts for your video content? Is there enough contrast between foreground and background colour combinations? Does your website provide full keyboard navigation and support? If not, you’re creating barriers for your customers.
“Digital accessibility is the inclusive practice of ensuring that everyone has equal access to information, function¬ality, and experience on digital platforms. That means no barriers prevent interaction with, or access to, digital products by people with any type of disabilities or traits commonly linked to disabilities.”
Cover art of Sheri Byrne-Haber's handbook "Giving a Damn About Accessibility."
Here’s an example. Imagine you’re a furniture designer selling your products online. You need to consider the accessibility of the customer and user experience. This means thinking about
Branding colour scheme and style guide
Website navigation
Online shopping experience from browse to payment
Channels of communication
Marketing and sales content
If you’re thinking that it’s a lot of ground to cover, take a breath. It is, but you’re not alone. Designing for accessibility requires a reframing of the fundamentals we’ve been taught.
Content creators, designers, and developers usually start thinking about accessibility right before they hit “publish”—or when they get notices from quality assurance and legal teams. To be effective, accessibility needs to be baked right into the beginning of the creative process.
I’ll get into this more in a future post. But for now, the fact that you’re reading this is a great place to start.
Barriers in digital experiences
When we talk about barriers, what do we mean?
In digital spaces, barriers could be
Poor colour contrast
Relying on colour to convey meaning
Missing alternative text for pictures and videos
Improperly labelled online forms
Lack of keyboard navigation
Missing or skipped heading structure
Ambiguous link text (Ex., “Click here” or Read more”)
Accessibility barriers are rooted in differences in communication needs, physical mobility and dexterity, audio and visual processing, among others—and are not necessarily tied to people with disabilities.
In physical spaces, curb cuts aren’t solely used by wheelchair users. They’re also helpful for kids on bicycles, people pushing shopping carts, and parents with strollers. The same applies for digital spaces.
Nick-philly, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
We all interact differently with technology and it’s our responsibility to make sure we design experiences to be as inclusive as possible. Accessibility benefits everyone, and if you’re not considering it, you’re doing everyone a disservice.
Accessibility awareness is building
There was once a time where stairs, doorways, or public transit weren’t seen as inaccessible.
Government legislation, like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), has turned this around—to the point where accessibility is a legal requirement. Buildings are required to have ramps, elevators, and minimum clearances for doors and hallways.
As we become more reliant on technology, accessibility is entering in our field of awareness and initiating change.
The ADA recently clarified their guidance on web accessibility
Canada has passed federal legislation to realize a barrier-free country by 2040, hiring the country’s first Chief Accessibility Officer to boot
Public sector organizations in British Columbia need to comply with AccessibleBC Act by September 2024
Accessibility and disability are also headlining pop culture.
Oscar-winning actor Marlee Matlin, who is deaf, walked out of a Sundance Film Festival screening when the closed-captioning failed
Neurodivergent actors are getting more on-screen representation and shattering age-old stereotypes in TV shows like As We See It and Heartbreak High
Influencers like Lauren Melissa Ellzey (aka @Autinelle), Catarina Rivera (aka Disability Stigma Smasher™), and Sony Jane Wise (aka @LivedExperienceEducator) are using their social platforms to help people accept themselves and teach people about disability
The more we talk about and see differences in abilities, the more we witness human diversity and open ourselves up to the many ways people move through the world.
Accessibility is the future
I believe accessibility is the future, and this is for several reasons.
First, governments are seeing the importance of access and inclusion and are introducing legislation. The reality is there will be legal requirements you’ll be required to meet, that is, if you don’t already. (A forewarning that ADA Title III lawsuits are in record numbers, with no signs of stopping.)
Second, we’re facing what some are calling “The Great Retirement Boom” in which we’re seeing record-level retirements from an aging workforce. Given that the baby boomer generation is getting older, their needs are different today. Assistive technologies like screen magnifiers, modified keyboards, and closed captioning—and their compatible interfaces—will be increasingly necessary to reach this demographic.
And finally, with this labour market reckoning underway, we have an untapped pool of talent. Did you know that 1 in 4 adults in the United States are disabled? Disabled people enter the work force at a slower rate than abled people; disabled people also leave workplaces more frequently than abled people do due to systemic ableism and discrimination. This needs to change.
Awareness is building and the pressure is mounting. It’s only a matter of time before we realize accessibility exists to make the web an inclusive space for everyone, including our future selves.
Remove the barriers and prepare to be amazed
Despite the benefits of creating accessible sales and marketing content, it can unfortunately be hard to keep up with the demand.
But we’re here to help. We know what it takes to write for web accessibility and create accessible content. You’ll be hard-pressed to find another team who’s passionate about accessibility like us 😉 Contact us today.