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<\/div>\n Even if your business does NOT operate overseas, don\u2019t make the mistake of thinking these requirements don\u2019t apply to your US-based business, as there are significant benefits that can come from making your website accessible in 2025, as well as potential legal repercussions for not ensuring website accessibility for users in the United States.<\/p>\n
Accessibility requirements in the US are similar to those laid out by WCAG and are governed by a patchwork of federal and local laws including ADA and CVAA regulations, among others. In recent years, companies including Netflix, Target, Domino\u2019s Pizza, and CVS have all faced legal penalties at home for violating these laws and were forced to make changes to their business models and websites to accommodate users with disabilities.<\/p>\n
What is website accessibility?<\/h2>\n
In general terms, web accessibility means ensuring all users \u2013 including those with disabilities \u2013 can utilize your website effectively. This includes (but is not limited to) the following key considerations, which we will discuss in more detail further down:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Text alternatives for non-textual content<\/p>\n
\u2022 Keyboard accessibility<\/p>\n
\u2022 Contrasting color usage<\/p>\n
\u2022 Accessible forms<\/p>\n
\u2022 Proper document structure<\/p>\n
\u2022 Accessible navigation<\/p>\n
\u2022 Multimedia captions and transcripts<\/p>\n
\u2022 Clear and simple language<\/p>\n
\u2022 Mobile accessibility<\/p>\n
\u2022 Error prevention<\/p>\n
\u2022 Link accessibility<\/p>\n
\u2022 Consistent layout and formatting<\/p>\n
Every website is different, so a full accessibility audit is recommended to understand the issues that impact you.<\/p>\n
Why web accessibility matters<\/h2>\n
As of 2022, more than 44 million<\/a> non-institutionalized US civilians had disabilities including difficulty seeing, hearing, walking, or climbing stairs. People who have auditory or visual impairments (including color blindness) are still likely to use digital mediums such as websites and mobile apps and will gravitate towards those that provide the best user experience.<\/p>\n Elixirr Digital can perform a comprehensive audit of your website or mobile app to identify accessibility issues and the steps required to address and correct them.<\/p>\n Figure 2: Web design considerations for color blindness. Source: https:\/\/www.accessibilitychecker.org\/blog\/color-blind-accessibility\/<\/em><\/p>\n Here are some key accessibility considerations to keep in mind, and how someone living with a disability is impacted:<\/p>\n \u2022 Add descriptive alt text to images, videos, charts, and other non-text content so screen readers can convey their purpose for the visually impaired.<\/p>\n \u2022 Ensure all interactive elements like buttons, forms, and the navigation menu are accessible via keyboard shortcuts to accommodate users with motor impairments.<\/p>\n \u2022 Ensure all textual content has a high contrast ratio against its background for users with low vision or color blindness.<\/p>\n \u2022 Ensure forms are clearly labelled, have descriptive error messages, and can be navigated and submitted using only a keyboard to accommodate users with motor impairments.<\/p>\n \u2022 Use proper HTML tags for headings and lists, and structure pages logically for screen readers and assistive technology to interpret hierarchy for the visually impaired.<\/p>\n \u2022 Provide captions for video content and transcripts for audio content to accommodate the hearing impaired.<\/p>\n \u2022 Make sure your website is mobile-friendly, fully responsive, and uses large interactive elements that can be easily tapped on smaller screens by users with visual impairments or limited dexterity.<\/p>\n \u2022 Use descriptive link text and ensure links are distinguishable from non-interactive text by using underlines or contrasting font colors to accommodate users with visual or dexterity limitations.<\/p>\n \u2022 Provide clear, descriptive feedback when users incorrectly complete a web form; offer error messages that are easy to understand, and provide examples of the expected content or format for the benefit of non-native speakers and users with cognitive disabilities.<\/p>\n \u2022 Make sure your website loads quickly by optimizing images and media, minimize the use of scripts and plugins, and use content delivery networks (CDNs) to serve content quickly, as website speed directly impacts user experience and organic rankings.<\/p>\n \u2022 Provide clear privacy policies, implement secure data practices such as HTTPS and secure logins, and obtain consent from users for first-party cookies and tracking to comply with accessibility regulations.<\/p>\n Many of these guidelines are also \u201cbest practice\u201d for building SEO-friendly websites and will positively impact your organic rankings in search engines like Google.<\/p>\n Whether or not your business operates in the EU – or plans to in the future, making your website more accessible provides significant benefits, including:<\/p>\n \u2022 Avoiding legal challenges and expense.<\/p>\n \u2022 Opportunities to operate overseas without fear of legal consequences.<\/p>\n \u2022 Higher organic rankings owing to Google\u2019s algorithms favoring accessible websites.<\/p>\n \u2022 More business growth opportunities resulting from providing a better user experience to a broader audience.<\/p>\n \u2022 Stronger customer engagement and brand loyalty.<\/p>\n Key statistics:<\/strong><\/p>\n Research has shown<\/a> that:<\/p>\n \u2022 70% of customers with disabilities said they will click away from a website that they find difficult to use.<\/p>\n \u2022 83% of participants with access needs limit their shopping to sites that they know are accessible.<\/p>\n \u2022 86% have chosen to pay more for a product from an accessible website rather than buy the same product for less from a website that was harder to use.<\/p>\n \u2022 4 million people abandoned a retail website because of the barriers.<\/p>\n By taking a few basic steps with your public-facing website, you can mitigate unnecessary legal and financial risk, appeal to a broader audience, position yourself for higher organic rankings, and realize other benefits as well.<\/p>\n Elixirr Digital are experts in helping modern businesses ensure compliance with website accessibility standards both in the US and abroad.<\/p>\n What\u2019s more, we have successfully assisted dozens of organizations in optimising their websites for better organic rankings and higher conversion rates.<\/p>\n If you have questions or concerns about your website, we would love to discuss how we can help you. Contact us today<\/a> for a free consultation.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Imagine being unable to access vital services or products simply because a website or mobile app wasn\u2019t designed with you in mind. This is the reality for millions of people…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":6608,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[118],"tags":[],"related_service":[79],"related_industry":[],"class_list":["post-6605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-accessibility"],"acf":[],"card":"What you can do today<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nHow your business can benefit<\/h2>\n
We\u2019re here to help<\/h2>\n