Website Accessibility Impacts Business Part 2
Benefits of accessibility
Website accessibility impacts business both financially and ethically. It just makes sense to want to reach as many people as possible to increase your sales. Plus, Google cares about accessibility and Google is king. If you want your website to get better rankings and more traffic, you need to play by their rules.
This is the second part of a 2-part post and covers the benefits and features of accessible websites and how it impacts your business.
Accessibility expands market reach
Very few people search websites in ideal conditions. Maybe they’re sitting in bright sunlight on their phone, a dark room on their tablet or a noisy environment with a bad wi-fi connection. All these things make navigating the web harder.
By making your website more accessible for people with disabilities, you’re also making it work better for those in unfavorable environmental conditions. In short, you’re making it easier for ALL potential customers to use your website.
Advantage over your competitors
If your competitors’ websites are not accessible, then you should jump at the chance to separate yourself from them. You’ll gain new customers when they leave websites that aren’t accessible in search of those that are. By leading the way, you’ll reach people who otherwise would have been missed.
Ageing population presents opportunity
The U.S. has an ageing population. This results in more people having changing abilities, some permanent and some temporary. Removing barriers to have a more inclusive website enables them to use your website rather than pushing them away.
Accessibility and Google
Google wants to deliver a good user experience and to do that, it has made functionality a high priority in its algorithm. An accessible website makes it easier for all visitors to use your site and therefore, wins you points with Google.
In addition, the factors that make a website more accessible also make it easier to be indexed in search engines. When pages of your website can’t be indexed, it directly affects your rankings.
Accessible website features
You can have a website built with accessible features that make it easier for ALL people to use. That’s a win-win. Please note this is not a complete list of accessible features.
- Works better with screen readers
- Navigate via your keyboard
- Passes color contrast test
- Light and dark color themes
- Form input labels on contact forms
- Prefers Reduced Motion tag
- Proper HTML headings
- Links and buttons labelled
Updated note: On March 18, 2022 the Justice Department issued web accessibility guidance under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). It explains how all businesses open to the public can make their website accessible to those with disabilities.
Accessibility benefits everyone
Accessibility is not just for people with disabilities. Accessibility is for all people as it makes it easier for them to navigate your website.
When faced with a choice of inviting new customers to use your business or turning them away, isn’t welcoming them the smart business move? Seems like a no-brainer to me.
Website accessibility impacts business so make sure it does so in a positive way. Contact Sleepy Dog Media for more information about getting your own accessible website.
