Accessibility and your website

Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act lays out guidelines for businesses in order to make their services and locations accessible to those with disabilities. Obvious examples include providing ramp entrances and Braille signs as alternatives to stairs and text signs, but what about your website’s accessibility?

Your website holds no immunity to these standards. Failing to accommodate these users can open your business up to lawsuits.

Eliminate risk and better serve your customers with these five tips for making your website more accessible:

• Image Content: Those who are vision-impaired cannot view image content. Images should have a textual description, usually called ‘Alt Text,’ appended so screen readers can process and adjust content in accordance with the user’s needs, translating content to Braille, voice or even a larger font size.
• PDF Content: Screen readers cannot access the image-based content within a PDF. If PDFs are in use, alternative versions using HTML or Rich Text Format should also be readily available.
• Design Considerations: Ensure that the visionimpaired can distinguish text colors from background colors by including an option to adjust font size and color.
• Video Content: Videos must include audio and accompanying text content to ensure that the hearingimpaired and the vision-impaired can access it.
• Repetitive Window and Page Titles: Window titles and page titles (also known as heading tags) both serve to describe the contents of a page while also helping users determine what page they are on within a website. Redundant or vague titles can make it difficult for those who are hearing- or vision-impaired to locate needed information.

Accessibility is a process requiring many, many considerations. Contact Global Reach if you are needing guidance as you make your website more accessible. www.globalreach.com/contact