Imagine you’re a customer trying to order from your favorite coffee shop’s app. But after a recent update, the interface has changed– the buttons are smaller, the font and colors harder to read. What was once a quick, painless task is now frustrating and inefficient.
This scenario highlights the importance of creating accessible digital experiences for everyone. Prioritizing elements like adjustable text sizes, clear navigation, and responsive design help create digital environments that cater to everyone. Creating accessible experiences is about more than compliance. It’s about embracing universal design principles that benefit everyone.
Shifting Perspectives on Accessibility
While it may seem obvious, the traditional view of accessibility often focuses on designing solely for disabilities. Although this focus is undoubtedly important, it misses a crucial point– accessibility is usability extended to more people. One of the biggest things is shifting the mindset from designing for disabilities to designing for universal design. Universal design means creating environments that can be used to the greatest extent by all people.
This shift in perspective is essential for creating inclusive digital experiences. When accessibility is prioritized, the door opens for a broader audience to access your site. Solutions designed with accessibility in mind often enhance the overall experience for everyone.
The Business Case for Accessibility
More than 1 in 4 adults in the United States have some type of disability. Many of these same people are active professionals in the workforce. This highlights a significant portion of the population that requires accessible digital experiences, making it a critical business insight, especially for B2B digital strategy.
Consider the professional landscape– these individuals with disabilities are not just consumers, but decision-makers, managers, engineers, and buyers in the business world. They rely on digital platforms to research products, compare solutions, and make critical business purchasing decisions. When B2B websites lack accessibility, they create significant barriers for professionals. Historically, many B2B websites have not been user-friendly or accessible, which worsens these challenges.
Where Do B2B Websites Fall Short?
It’s no secret that B2B websites often fall short in several key areas compared to their B2C counterparts. This is especially true when it comes to digital accessibility. These shortcomings are not just design oversights, but potential legal and ethical compliance issues.
Navigation Challenges
One major issue is complex navigation. Many B2B websites have inconsistent structures that hinder users, especially those that use assistive technologies like screen readers. Around 20% of the population relies on assistive technology, which requires clear, semantic HTML structure and descriptive alt text for effective navigation. When B2B sites lack proper heading hierarchies or use vague link text like “click here”, it complicates the user experience. This complexity becomes even more critical when considering that these challenges are impacting nearly 1 in 5 potential users.
Visual Accessibility Problems
Another hurdle is visual accessibility. Many B2B websites fail to meet basic readability standards for the 300 million people worldwide affected by color blindness. Color contrast, text size, and font selection are not just aesthetic choices, but essential accessibility features. Many B2B sites use insufficient color contrast ratios, tiny text sizes, and difficult font styles that make it nearly impossible for users with visual impairments to perceive content. Additionally, low quality imagery, like low-resolution graphics and non-informative decorative images without alt text, amplifies these accessibility issues making it harder to engage with the content. Businesses can leverage various tools like WebAIM’s Color Contrast Checker or the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool to assess and improve their visual accessibility.
Product Information
B2B websites often struggle presenting product information in an accessible way, which can violate ADA compliance. Many businesses use PDFs for critical product data, but these documents frequently lack proper tagging and alt text. To follow accessibility standards, documentation must include comprehensive and clearly structured information, utilize robust alt text and logical heading hierarchies, and present technical specifications in a user-friendly way.
The Risk of Doing Nothing
The risk of neglecting accessibility is growing. While retailers are typically the most common targets for lawsuits under the ADA, B2B companies are not immune from web accessibility lawsuits. Under the ADA, all business websites are considered “public accommodations” and there is no differentiation between B2B and B2C websites.
In 2023, there was a 62% increase in digital accessibility lawsuits against businesses with accessibility widgets or overlays on their website. These ‘quick fix’ solutions can oftentimes be viewed as inadequate band-aids for web compliance. Companies may seek fast, inexpensive fixes, but the reality is that creating a truly accessible website takes time, effort, and continuous improvement to get right.
Building Accessible Experiences
Creating accessible experiences is often easier said than done. A good place to start is ensuring your design team or development partner are familiar with ADA Standards for Accessible Design. If that feels overwhelming, Smith offers a straightforward checklist to help you assess how your website stacks up. Regular accessibility audits are essential for identifying barriers within digital spaces, ensuring compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) – the international standard – and pinpointing areas for improvement.
Building accessible experiences is a collective responsibility that spans all departments. Every role – designers, developers, copywriters – plays a crucial part in implementing accessibility standards. To effectively plan and execute these experiences, it’s important to identify who should be involved and at what stages. Think of it like constructing a building. Each contractor must adhere to specific codes and regulations to ensure safety and functionality, and similarly, your project must comply with established accessibility guidelines. By prioritizing this mindset from the outset, you can integrate accessibility during the research phase and throughout the development process. Establishing regular checkpoints will help ensure all teams are aligned with these principles, fostering a culture of inclusivity and shared understanding.
Engaging with users – including individuals with disabilities – during the research phase is key. Their insights provide a deeper understanding of accessibility needs and help create user-friendly experiences for everyone. Accessibility should be viewed as an ongoing program that demands continuous commitment and improvement. When prioritized, accessibility empowers businesses to create environments where everyone can participate and thrive.