Accessibility is not black and white.
For an industry which constantly obsesses over reaching external standards of accessibility, it can be easy to forget this crucial fact. By constantly focusing on technical compliance within legal frameworks, we can neglect the real value of building more inclusive products and services. At AccessPoint, we believe that there is always a case for improving the accessibility of digital platforms, regardless of compliance concerns. The end goal should remain the same; improving the user experience for all of your users.
Levels of success
Firstly, it's worth noting that the guidelines of accessible design are more flexible than they often appear. The gold standard in this regard are the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which provide three levels for the accessibility of a digital interface. While accessibility teams often focus on WCAG AA and WCAG AAA (the two highest levels), we can forget the value of improving an experience to the basic standards of WCAG A. Completely inaccessible designs completely exclude many users, and even basic edits can make dramatic improvements to the experience of your audience.
The intangibles
Conversely, even websites which reach WCAG AA or AAA standards can fall short on the less technical areas of accessibility. After all, these are only guidelines, and should not serve as the perfect measurement of an interface’s inclusivity. Take colour blindness for instance, which WCAG only indirectly accounts for. Building a truly accessible interface means thinking directly about the experience of disabled users, not just ticking a series of boxes. At AccessPoint we integrate these considerations throughout our entire process, creating a thoughtful and comprehensive solution for clients and their users.
The human factor
Finally, we need to constantly consider the end user while designing and testing for accessibility. If we resolve an accessibility audit by fulfilling the technical requirements at the cost of the overall user experience, have we really made our content more inclusive? Disabled users, like all users, want to interact with beautiful, efficient, and carefully built digital content. Accessibility work needs to respect this basic demand, and should prioritise win-win solutions between the inclusivity and aesthetic value of a design.
Accessibility guidelines are important, but they do not represent the be-all and end-all of inclusive design. By remaining focused on the end-user, and refusing to compromise between accessibility and the user experience, we can help you build a genuinely inclusive interface, which works for every user.