Web Accessibility Tips for Your Content Strategy

Marketing Morsels is a series of short and sweet blog posts for Marketing Managers looking for bite-sized knowledge hits that’ll help drive business. Many of these blog posts have been shortened and adapted from their original home, InspireFirst.

 

Did you know that 60 million Americans have some form of disability? (That means 1 in 4 Americans.) Globally, 1 billion people experience disability. This is expected to double by 2050. This means a very large number of users who use the internet and browse your website, might benefit from web accessibility. If you want to make your website and content more accessible, you have come to the right place for accessibility tips.

What’s “accessibility” about anyway?

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines a disability as “a function of the mismatch between a person’s impairment and the multitude of influencing factors in their environment.”
Put simply, it is a physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities.

So, what does this look like for your business and content?

If your business falls under Title I or Title III of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) you need an ADA-compliant website.

PRO TIP: Title I refers to businesses with 15+ employees, operating for 20+ weeks a year whereas Title III businesses fall under “public accommodations”.

 

The business case for accessible content

Not only is it the law and the right thing to do but there’s a huge marketing case for accessibility, too. For context: if we factor in those with disabilities and their families, this is a group the size of China PLUS the EU with $13 trillion in disposable income.

Keeping accessibility at the forefront of your marketing is an advantage for both your business and your customer. That said, don’t underestimate the power of recognizing your audience’s needs through accessible content. In fact, it may just be what helps you stand out. A 2021 survey by WebAim showed that “users with disabilities would expect to encounter detectable errors on 1 in every 17 home page elements.”

What if your blog or website is a place they can go to without running into errors?

So, as you think through how to make your website accessible, it’s good to remember that much of the tech we take for granted or think of as simple vehicles for convenience (i.e. voice commands, screen magnification, etc) were actually built specifically with accessibility in mind. Accessibility is actually built into our lives in many ways.

One prime example is how similar search engines and assistive tech (i.e. screen readers) are to each other. This is good news because, when implemented correctly, web accessibility will also boost your SEO efforts. What’s more, it will help and improve your website’s organic search rankings.

4 Accessibility Tips for Your Website

So, what does web accessibility look like? If you’re not sure where to start, use accessiBe to test your website for ADA and WCAG compliance. Some other tips:

• Stop that funky text: Make sure your font and colors are readable
• Use a color contrast checker to review the accessibility of your graphics.
• Cover all your bases by leveraging multiple content mediums;
  • When you share a podcast, include a transcript.
  • Add closed captions to all your videos
  • Include alt text and tags to all images
• Consider your website’s navigability by asking;
  • Are your landing pages easy to navigate?
  • Does your platform integrate well with assistive technology?

At the end of the day, caring for others is a benefit to all. Making your website accessible will help you create a better overall experience for your audience, so get started right away!