Accessible Web Design: 7 Easy Ways to Become ADA Compliant

Accessible Web Design: 7 Easy Ways to Become ADA Compliant

Accessibility is not just about designing your site to be ADA compliant. Here is accessible design that achieves the highest functionality and CTR possible.

Keyword(s): accessible

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act was established to ensure citizens with disabilities are in no way discriminated against. You can see the act integrated into society with wheelchair ramps, handicapped parking spaces, safety bars in bathrooms, and more. However, you might not know that the ADA also has accessibility policies about websites to make sure they’re usable for people with varying disabilities.

Is your website ADA compliant? Is it accessible for people with common disabilities or impairments?

If not, you may be losing engagement, viewership, and potential customers. Furthermore, having a non-ADA compliant website can leave you vulnerable to lawsuits.

Before you panic, let’s talk about some seven easy ways to address the problem.

1. Forms Must Be Labeled Clearly

One of the most important purposes of your business website is to generate leads. Often, this requires your users to fill out forms to subscribe to email lists, order products, receive a quote, etc. However, one of the biggest mistakes companies make is not designing this process to be completely error-proof.

Make sure your forms are labeled clearly. Don’t put the field requirements inside the box that the user is supposed to type in, which can be hard to read. Screen-readers for people with visual disabilities may not see the text at all and it may cause confusion for people with cognitive impairments.

2. Account for Devices That Don’t Use a Mouse

Remember, we’re living in the age of mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets, and more. These devices don’t have mouses, nor do most laptops. Make your website more accessible by avoiding links or buttons that require a mouse to hover over it to offer a description of purpose.

3. Contrast is Important for Readability

Nearly 12 million Americans over the age of 40 have some form of visual impairment. When designing graphics or laying text over images, make sure you provide plenty of contrast for quick and easy readability for the user. For example, when laying text over an image, you may need to create a block of color for the text to lay on to add contrast.

4. Color Alone Isn’t Enough

However, it’s also important to realize that changing designs to color alone isn’t always enough for digital accessibility. People who are colorblind can’t discern certain colors and may completely miss important aspects of your webpage. Make sure you’re also considering contrast in brightness, shapes, and more.

5. Give Feedback on User Errors

If a process on your website, such as filling out a form doesn’t work, a user needs to know why. Your website needs to offer feedback for errors. These need to be highlighted with colors, contrast, asterisks, etc.

6. Keep Navigation Intuitive, Simple, and Consistent

Accessible product design websites keep things simple and user-friendly. For example navigation throughout the website needs to be easy, intuitive, and consistent. Keep the same headers at the top of each page which can direct users where they want to go.

7. Optimize for Various Devices

While SEO for your website is vital for extending your reach throughout the community, device optimization is vital for accessibility. Your website should be designed to function properly and intuitively with various screen sizes on mobile devices, computers, laptops, and more. This will help users navigate your website and have a positive experience regardless of how they’re accessing your site.

Looking to Make Your Website More Accessible?

User-accessibility requires even more than what’s listed in this article. If you want to make your website ADA compliant and incredibly accessible for users of all kinds, we can help. Contact us today for our professional website and web development solutions and services.