The Importance of ADA Compliant Websites
At Roos Advisors, one thing we ensure when creating our websites is that each website is ADA—The Americans with Disabilities Act—compliant. Why do you need an ADA compliant website? In the United States, with the exemption of federal, state, and local government websites, there is no enforceable ADA legal standard to follow for website accessibility. Web content must be accessible to the blind, deaf, as well as to those who must navigate by voice, screen readers, or other assistive technologies.
The Americans with Disabilities Act was developed in 1990 to ensure that people with disabilities are granted equal opportunities. Websites are legally mandated to be at least grade A compliant, but offering the triple AAA compliance can effectively boost your website’s accessibility options, which can greatly increase your customer base. If businesses are mandated to have fully ADA compliant buildings, websites should be, too.
Why are ADA compliant websites so important?
A few years ago, there was a ruling that declared Title III of the ADA stating, that “all places of public accommodation are required by law to remove any access barriers that would inhibit a person with disabilities from accessing the business’ goods or services.” It should be second nature to ensure your company provides access for disabled individuals, because doing so brings countless advantages to your business.
ADA compliance website accessibility increases your target audience and improves your brand’s Search Engine Optimization efforts. Websites that meet the standards of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines are more likely to appear in searches done by those using assistive technology.
According to Mohammed Saad, “A successful website does three things:”
- It attracts the right kinds of visitors.
- It guides visitors to the main services or products offered.
- It collects contact details for future ongoing relations.
How do I make my website ADA compliant?
We recommend those who question their website’s capabilities to start evaluating their current site for perceivability, operability, understandability, and robustness. Minimal changes can also be made if you don’t have the time or budget to completely redo your website right now. These changes include choosing the right graphics, specifically photos that don’t flash excessively, as this can induce a seizure.
Once those graphics are updated, pair each image with an alt-text caption, which allows site readers to pronounce your graphics loud and clear via audio. The coding must be readable by an assistive reader, and in order to do so, the code on your site must be standard HTML. PDFs may provide a more convenient way of uploading information to your website, however, these types of documents cannot be read by an assistive reader. Be sure that when you upload a PDF, there is a compatible text-based format, as well.
Building an ADA compliant website? We can help
If you’re planning on making your website 100% ADA compliant, don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions you might have. Here at Roos Advisors, we are eager to help you make your website more accessible to open up a whole new audience pool for your brand.
