How do I design a website that is accessible to people with disabilities?
Accessibility is important in improving the experience of using a website to ensure even the disabled can use your site. They can be visual, hearing, cognitive, or motor impairments. Here are some Web Design guidelines that will help make a website more accessible; some of these are supported by WCAG while others are best practices:
1. Use Semantic HTML
- Structure Your Content Properly: It is important to find out which HTML tags are applicable for example
h1 Tag for the main headings,h2 Tag for the subheading, and p Tag for the paragraph. This aids screen readers in getting the feel of the HTML layout of your page. - Define Sections Clearly: To designate parts of your page you should use HTML5 related tags such as header tag, nav tag, main tag, footer tag, and aside tag. This makes those assistive tools to be in a position to maneuver your site in a particular manner.
2. Merge with non-text standards
- Add Alt Text for Images: Summarize an image description that can be read by a screen reader so the visually impaired person gets the image description.
- Transcripts and Captions for Media: For those with hearing difficulties, ensure you give the audio file in written form or subsequent videos that have subtitles.
- Use ARIA Labels: The buttons and forms that have been created ease their usage for individuals with disabilities by adding ARIA labels.
3. Ensure Keyboard Accessibility
- Allow Keyboard Navigation: All links, buttons, menus, and forms should be operable with the keyboard alone. This will assist users who cannot use a mouse.
- Set a Logical Tab Order: If possible, correctly rank the order of the tab so that it has to be in a reading pattern like going down or across.
- Highlight Focused Elements: Place a highlight outline of the chosen element which needs to be focused.
4. Design for Screen Readers
- Use Descriptive Link Text: Avoid dull link labels such as ‘click here’ and replace them with titles that are more helpful such as ‘Download Guide’ and so on.
- Add Skip Navigation Links: Also add a ‘ skip to content’ link at the top of your pages so that timely your control can go straight to the content without moving through unnecessary OL and UL.
- Label Form Fields: Make the field labels for form using the
5. Color and Contrast
- Ensure High Contrast: Ensure text is not overcoated with the background so that text color is highlighted. For instance, you use a black font color on a white background.
- Don’t Rely on Color Alone: Use something other than color to represent information, if possible, such as adding tags that have text, or different patterns.
- Offer Color Options: There should be an option where users can enable a switch of the color or apply a high contrast mode if they wish.
6. Make the Content as Readable as Possible
- Use Simple Language: Do not use large words, write in a simple manner.This makes your content easier for everyone to understand.
- Choose Readable Fonts and Sizes: When choosing fonts it’s better to make them easy to read and set the size of the text no less than 16 pixels. Users should have an option to change the size of text if they need to.
- Space Out Text: It is necessary to use spacing between the lines and paragraphs. This becomes easy for the user to read and understand.
7. Ensure Part of a Page or Content is Clickable
- Label Buttons and Controls: Ensure that buttons, controls, and forms have title attributes since screen readers will read the title out to the user.
- Make Touch Targets Large: Make button or link sizes 44×44 pixels so that motor-impaired can easily use them.
- Keep Layouts Consistent: Make sure you stick to one design throughout your site to give the users a good feel about them.
8. Ensure Flexible Timed Duration
- Allow More Time: In case of things like forms of quizzes, or anything of that nature, provide the user with enough time or give them an option to add a few more minutes to it.
- Control Moving Content: Do not use auto-play on videos or animations such as gifs. Offer choices regarding the suspension or cessation of such suggestions as well as preventing their display.
9. Try out the following features of assistive technologies
- Try Screen Readers: To do this, navigate your site with JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, or any screen reader, only to see if they run smoothly.
- Navigate with a Keyboard: Take a tour of your site using only a keyboard to look after any problems.
- Use Accessibility Tools: One can use WAVE, Axe, or Lighthouse to look for accessibility issues.
10. Follow WCAG Guidelines
- Understand WCAG Levels: At least, you should strive for Level AA compliance that stabilizes most of the problems associated with website accessibility.
Follow POUR Principles: Ensure your content is:
- Perceivable: All users can view the content or listen to it in case it is an audio piece of content (e.g. using the description for images).
- Operable: They can also engage with your site (how it responds to inputs, say, through the keyboard).
- Understandable: It does not matter how many instructions are given; the language used is simple.
- Robust: Its interface interacts with present and future utilities such as screen readers.
11. Educate Your Team
- Train Your Team: Make your designers, developers, and writers more aware of accessibility and its use in creating designs.
- Make Accessibility a Priority: Having accessibility as part of your website development strategy is important.
It’s important to do so and following the above tips, you can make a website that is quite accessible to everyone. This not only increases customer satisfaction but also extends your target market.
To learn more about our website design service, give us a call at 046 9241535 or email hello@flowebdesign.ie.