In today's digital age, creating an accessible website is a necessity, not just a good practice. Website accessibility refers to improving the inclusivity of the digital world by ensuring sites can be used by all, including those with disabilities. This practice ensures that everyone, including those with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive disabilities, can access and interact with web content.
Does Your Oklahoma Web Design Have to be Accessible?
Website accessibility is legally required in the United States. Introduced in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. This encompasses all areas of public life, including digital spaces.
According to the ADA, both state and local governments and public businesses must make their goods, services, and activities, including those online, accessible to those with disabilities.
Why Make Your Website More Accessible?
Beyond legal compliance, web accessibility is simply the right thing to do. Accessibility is essential because:
● It improves inclusivity. An accessible Oklahoma web design ensures that all users of various ability levels can access information and services online, fostering a digital environment of inclusivity and equal opportunity.
● It helps with user experience. Enhancing accessibility improves the overall user experience, making navigation more accessible for everyone.
● It provides SEO benefits. Accessible websites often have better rankings on search engines because they follow best practices for web development, such as the proper use of alt text for images.
● It expands your audience. By making your website accessible, you open your business to a broader audience, including the millions of people with disabilities.
How Can You Improve Your Website Accessibility?
Creating a fully accessible website takes time and will likely require a partnership with knowledgeable website developers near me. Some tools and practices that can help improve your site's accessibility include:
Screen Reader Compatibility
Screen readers are programs that use software to allow visually impaired users to read text on a screen with a speech synthesizer or braille display. Developers can incorporate WAI-ARIA to help improve the accessibility and functionality of web content and applications for individuals utilizing screen readers, ensuring they have a user-friendly experience with your website.
Keyboard Navigation
Many users rely on keyboards rather than a mouse to navigate websites. Making your website fully navigable using the keyboard is critical. This involves providing visible focus indicators and ensuring all interactive elements are navigable via keyboard shortcuts.
Resizable Text
Text should be able to be resized up to 200% without losing content or functionality. Ensuring your Oklahoma web design is responsive and uses relative units like percentages or ems for font sizes can help achieve this.
Text Alternatives
It is essential to provide alternatives for non-text content like videos, images, and audio files. These alternatives can include alt text for images and transcripts for audio and video content. This makes the content accessible to screen reader users and those with difficulty interpreting visual content.
Color Contrast
Ensuring sufficient color contrast between text and background is crucial for visually impaired users. Tools that check color contrast ratios can help you adjust your design to meet accessibility standards.
For more specific information about ADA web compliance, please visit W3C Accessibility Guidelines.
Improve Your Site's Accessibility With Our Website Developers Near Me
By investing in web accessibility, you comply with legal requirements and create a more
inclusive digital environment. Whether you are starting from scratch or need to make an existing website more accessible, our team at myheartcreative is here to help.
We are committed to helping create websites that are inclusive and accessible to everyone. Our experienced web designers and website developers near me are well-versed in the latest accessibility guidelines and best practices. We provide a collaborative and detailed approach to web design that prioritizes accessibility without compromising visual appeal or functionality. Our accessibility services include audits, designs that comply with accessibility standards, integration with a top-notch website widget, manual maintenance by our team, and remediation for digital documents.
Please reach out to get started.
