Introduction
Providing accessibility to websites for people with disabilities is a step towards a better online experience for all people. No matter one’s ability, or circumstances, incorporating such best practices into website design is a movement in the right direction to inclusion. With all that is possible and provided by websites, disregard for people with disabilities is a restraint on their abilities. In this blog, we will discuss matters on providing these accessibilities on websites.
Necessity
Demand for websites incorporating items for people with disabilities is a barely touched field. The need for such sites is a must. Studies show that awareness for this cause has been growing but according to UserWay, only 3% of the internet is accessible to people with disabilities. Think about all the people who are being restricted from the infinite possibilities through the internet. This one barrier is limiting not just the users but also developers. This is truly an untouched audience who would be very appreciative of the accessibility put in for them.
Focus on the Visually Impaired
I would like to put specific emphasis on the visually impaired. This is one type of disability that an individual may have. One can expect this to be a hard problem to tackle when dealing with user engagement. Most websites do not have the tools or help to assist anyone with a visual impairment. This gives those specific users a frustrating and inefficient experience.
Including tools like screen readers, braille displays, or magnifying options is a very helpful way to provide a better and tailored experience for the user. Some of the biggest problems faced for the individuals in this group are unclear image descriptions, bad contrast, and unwell organization. Here, I want you to think about how you can try to find the solutions to these common problems.
Key Accessibility Features
The following accessibility features are chosen for people with disabilities in order for them to engage in websites.
- Text-to-Speech: This is a feature specifically designed for people with visual impairments. Text-to-speech reads the website content aloud for it to be heard by the user. Screen readers like JAWS or NVDA are screen readers which can aid in this feature to make sure that users hear all content, like headings, links, etc.
- High Contrast Mode: Contrast is incredibly important. Users with low vision or color blindness will find it difficult to differentiate the different elements on a website. Providing high contrast color schemes with your text, images, and background make it easier on the user to distinguish text from background altogether improving readability.
- Alt Text for Images: This is a tool which helps in deciphering images that otherwise may be difficult for some users to depict. Alt text is used to describes the content of an image.
Incorporating these tools in your website designs can show to be great improvements.
Implementing
Implementing these techniques is a good strategy to benefit yourself and others. Be sure to include tools like text-to-speech for understandability, good contrasts and color schemes to differentiate elements, and alt images to decipher images. Through the implementation of these tips, you will acquire more user engagement and provide a better and more thorough user experience.
Benefits
Both developers and user can gain benefits from the use of the accessibilities. Developers gain more traffic, user engagement, awareness, SEO rankings, For users the whole experience is amped.
Test Results
Website With Accessibility
- Frustration
- Difficulty
- Left the site in 3 minutes
- Foot tapping
- Tense look on face
- Trouble navigating and locating elements on the website page
Website with accessibility
- Easier time navigating
- Spent 13 minutes on the website
- Relaxed sitting position
- Listened attentively
From these results, taken from a test done by having a visually impaired person interact with a website with accessibilities incorporated and a website without we can see which is preferable.
Legal Considerations
The legality of websites and people with disabilities is growing. The ADA in the U.S. is a legislation to make sure websites are accessible to those with disabilities. When developing websites, we must all comply with the laws. The WCAG is a Global guideline standard.
In the future, I believe it is safe to say that these laws will only get stricter. As technology becomes a bigger part of more and more people, its importance rises. Laws are necessary in society and will provide everyone with a better experience online.
Conclusion
The incorporation of accessibility for those with disabilities is a movement towards equality of opportunity on online platforms. People with disabilities deserve the same online opportunities as everyone else. Web developers providing the tools for them to be able to is a two-way benefit.
Thank you for reading! Visit another one of my blogs! Guide to Build an incredible E-commerce Website on 2025