8 Things Every UI/UX Designer Needs to Know About Making a Website More Accessible

Accessibility is an important part of web design. Website design it’s not just about making sure your website looks good and functions well on all devices, but also that it is accessible to people with disabilities. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has a standard for designing and building web content and applications that can be used by individuals with any type of disability. This includes blindness, colour-blindness, deafness, dyslexia, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations, speech or language impairments, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), age-related conditions (ARCs), the effects of medications on cognitive ability, intellectual disabilities (ID), mental health conditions like depression or schizophrenia.

This article will guide every UI/UX designer on the basics of accessibility to help them make any website more accessible.

What is Accessibility?

Accessibility is the ease at which people with disabilities can interact with your website. The W3C standard for designing and building web content and applications that can be used by individuals with any type of disability is called Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

WCAG has two levels of guidelines. Level 1 is for basic accessibility, while Level 2 includes more stringent guidelines for users with disabilities. For example, Level 1 only requires one link to skip navigation, while Level 2 requires multiple links to provide additional navigation options.

Also read: Top Effective Trends Of UI/UX Design To Follow In 2022

There are 8 things you need to know about making your website more accessible:

1. Provide text equivalents for all non-text content
2. Make your pages load quickly
3. Use colour contrast to improve readability
4. Create visual cues within the text
5. Avoid having flashing or animated elements on a page that could distract or confuse users with photosensitivity disorders
6. Present information in the simplest form possible so it will be easier for everyone to understand it including people who have cognitive limitations due to mental health conditions like depression or schizophrenia. This means avoiding jargon when possible.
7. Design pages so they use open standards like HTML5 and CSS3 rather than proprietary technologies, which may not work well across different browsers and devices
8. Provide captions and transcripts for audio-only files like podcasts or videos if they include important information in order either spoken words or sound effects that describe what is happening in the video or audio file.

Why Accessibility is Important?

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has a standard for designing and building web content and applications that can be used by individuals with any type of disability. This includes blindness, colour-blindness, deafness, dyslexia, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations, speech or language impairments, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), age-related conditions (ARCs), the effects of medications on cognitive ability, intellectual disabilities (ID), mental health conditions like depression or schizophrenia.

Each of these individuals may find it difficult to use your website due to their disability. Some people will not be able to see your site at all while others may have trouble using the navigation. Your website needs to be accessible for everyone so they can access and enjoy all of its features.

Also read: What Are The Benefits Of Custom Mobile App UI/UX Design For Business?

Create an accessible website

• Use a text-only link for navigation
• Provide a Full Keyboard Accessible Site
• Provide a Skip Navigation Link
• Keep your tables as simple as you can
• Provide Alternative Text for All Images
• Use colour contrast effectively
• Create a mobile-friendly site
• Avoid automatic navigation
• Create a keyboard accessible site

Design With Accessibility in Mind

Designing your website with accessibility in mind will not only make it more user-friendly for people with disabilities, but it will also help you avoid some common mistakes that can make your site inaccessible.

One of the most common issues is using images as buttons instead of text. This makes it difficult for screen readers to interpret what’s happening on the page, which means people who are blind or low-vision won’t be able to use your site. You should always prefer using text buttons rather than graphics.

Another big mistake is forgetting to provide alternative ways to interact with the page. For example, if you have a form that’s asking for input from a user, you should also provide appropriate keyboard navigation so that someone who can’t see the screen can enter information into the form without needing sighted assistance.

There are many other common mistakes that designers make when designing their websites — these are just two examples. Making sure your web content is accessible will not only help people who have disabilities, but also anyone else who comes across your site. It may seem like designing with accessibility in mind takes more time and effort upfront, but it will save you time and effort later on when users find errors and report them to you.

Make Sure Your Site is Responsive on All Devices

A website should be responsive on all devices, not just desktops. It’s important that people who are viewing your site be able to do so comfortably on any device they choose. With a responsive web design, the content will automatically change when the user switches from a desktop browser to their phone. This means if someone is viewing your site on their phone, your site will show up in a mobile-friendly layout where they can easily navigate. One way to make sure your site is responsive on all devices is by using the Graceful Degradation technique. Graceful degradation simply means that you make it so that your site still functions properly if someone with disabilities does not have the support they need. For example, if someone has colour blindness and isn’t able to see colours correctly, you’ll want to use colours that are more distinguishable for them or use symbols instead of words. Another way to use graceful degradation is by making it so that even if someone doesn’t have JavaScript enabled, your site will still provide an easy user experience for them.

Use Screen Readers and Other Tools to Make Sure Your Site Is Easy to Navigate

Accessibility starts with making sure your site is easy to navigate. If someone visiting your site can’t easily find the content they’re looking for, then it’s not accessible. You should also use screen readers and other tools to test how easy it is for people with disabilities to navigate your site.

One way to improve navigation on your site is by using landmark features like headings and lists. Using these features will make it easier for people who are blind or have low-vision conditions to find what they’re looking for quickly and without difficulty.

Another way to make navigation easier is by using external links rather than internal links. This makes it easier for people using screen readers to tell where they are on a page because the word “external” tells them that they’re moving away from the current page as opposed to staying within the same page.

You should also use alt tags when adding images to your website. The alt tag describes an image in the text so that those who cannot see the image can still understand what it is and its context within a web page or document. The alt tag also helps search engines index and rank images so that people searching for specific images can find them more easily if you include descriptive words in the alt tag such as “dog” or “mountain”.

Conclusion

The Web has made so many things in life easier. It’s easy to find information, buy products, and network with people in ways that were never possible before. But with so many benefits, it’s important to remember that not everyone has equal access to all of the Web’s great features.

Accessibility is the practice of making content available to people who have different abilities or disabilities.

Creating an accessible website can be hard work. But it doesn’t need to be. With the right tools and some knowledge about website accessibility, you can make sure your website is easy for everyone to use.

About Mobio Solutions

Mobio Solutions is a Business Technology Solutions Company. Focused on creating technology solutions for real-life business problems. Our UI/UX design and development services are focused on creating interfaces that make every digital interaction a delightful user experience. We work as an extended UX team for companies and startups, bringing an in-depth understanding of the business, design and technical aspects so as to build digital products with a great user experience that affirms the business goals