The Importance of Website Accessibility Audit + How to Do It
The internet has revolutionized the way we communicate, conduct business, access education, and engage with the world. However, this digital revolution has also brought to light a crucial challenge – ensuring that the vast digital landscape is accessible to everyone, regardless of their abilities.
The significance of website accessibility lies in its capacity to bridge the digital divide and ensure equitable access for all users, including those with disabilities. Thus, conducting a website accessibility audit is a must.
In this article, you will learn the importance of website accessibility audits and how to conduct one. To get the practical steps, read the following article.
What Is Website Accessibility?
Website accessibility, often referred to as web accessibility, is the practice of designing and developing websites in a manner that ensures equal access and usability for individuals with disabilities.
In this measurement, it has key elements that could define how easy a web to access. Ranging from perceivable, operable, understandable, to robust elements.
Recognizing the importance of digital inclusivity, legal requirements, and compliance standards have emerged to guide organizations in their pursuit of website accessibility. One of the guide examples is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which is a globally recognized set of guidelines for web accessibility.
The Importance of Website Accessibility
You might wonder why we have to build a website with a certain accessibility key. Here are the reasons:
1. Equal Access for All
It ensures that individuals with disabilities, who may rely on assistive technologies like screen readers or voice recognition software, can navigate and engage with online content just as effectively as those without disabilities. By ensuring equal access, we honor the principles of inclusivity and diversity.
2. Legal and Regulatory Compliance
Legal requirements mandating website accessibility have been enacted worldwide. Failure to comply with these laws can result in costly lawsuits, penalties, and damage to an organization's reputation.
3. Enhanced User Experience
Web accessibility doesn't solely benefit users with disabilities. It leads to a better user experience for all visitors. Clear navigation, well-structured content, and concise descriptions benefit everyone, making websites more user-friendly and appealing.
The Role of a Website Accessibility Audit
A website accessibility audit is key to achieving digital inclusivity. It serves as a systematic evaluation of a website's design, content, and functionality to identify and rectify accessibility barriers. Here's why it's indispensable:
1. Identifying Barriers
An audit uncovers accessibility issues that may go unnoticed, from missing alt text on images to poor keyboard navigation. By identifying these barriers, organizations can take targeted steps to remove them.
2. Reputation and Brand Integrity
Being committed to accessibility enhances an organization's reputation and brand image. It signals a dedication to inclusivity, social responsibility, and ethical business practices. Conversely, a lack of accessibility can lead to negative publicity.
3. User-Centric Approach
Website accessibility audits prioritize the user experience. By addressing accessibility concerns, organizations demonstrate their commitment to providing a user-friendly environment for all visitors.
4. Ongoing Improvement
An audit is not a one-time effort but a catalyst for continuous improvement. Regular audits ensure that websites stay accessible amidst evolving content and technologies.
How to Conduct Website Accessibility Audit in Sequence Stats
Conducting a regular website audit is not a daunting task as you can use Sequence Stats to schedule it automatically. Here is the step by step to get the audit result regarding website accessibility in Sequence Stats.
1. Access your Sequence Stats account, and go to the Site Audit menu.
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| Picture 1: Site Audit menu in Sequence Stats. |
2. Settup your audit starting from the domain, the pages, use the Lighthouse, and other settings.
3. Run or schedule the site audit.
4. Open the result and see the score or your website accessibility.
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| Picture 2 - The result of the site audit. |
Here, you might get recommendations for the concerns. Next, you should build up the strategy to fix the issue immediately.
Conclusion
Website accessibility is not a checkbox to tick once and forget. It's a continuous effort, a commitment to equal access, and a reflection of an organization's dedication to inclusivity. Thus, you need Sequence Stats to help you schedule it automatically.
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