How to Design a Great Accessible Design That Boosts UX in 2024
Web accessibility ensures all users, regardless of their abilities or disabilities, can interact with and comprehend digital content. It plays a critical role in creating an inclusive digital world.
Unfortunately, we are a long way toward universal accessibility, with 90% of websites inaccessible to people with disabilities who rely on assistive technology.
And these aren't niche websites, either. 92% of federal websites fail to meet basic standards of accessibility, according to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation.
Accessible design benefits not only people with disabilities but also those in challenging situations, like bright sunlight or noisy environments. It even aids older users and those with temporary impairments.
In this blog, we'll:
Explore accessibility principles and guidelines.
Offer nine practical tips to enhance user experience, particularly for those with visual disabilities, through implementing accessible features.
Explain four ways to integrate accessibility into the design process.
Understanding accessibility principles and guidelines
Web accessibility follows four foundational principles:
Perceivable
Operable
Understandable
Robust
Collectively known as POUR, these principles form the backbone of inclusive design, ensuring that digital experiences cater to diverse user needs.
Perceivable
Content must be perceptible to all users, regardless of their abilities. Users should be able to perceive information through various senses with ease.
Here are a few examples:
Make audio and video content accessible with captions or transcripts
Use text that contrasts sharply with its background
Provide text alternatives for non-text content
Operable
Users must be able to navigate and interact with a website using various tools and devices.
An example of an operable website includes keyboard accessibility and designs that avoid flashing lights (to reduce the likeliness of seizures).
Understandable
Information and the operation of the user interface must be clear.
Use straightforward text, consistent navigation, and input assistance to avoid and correct mistakes. Users shouldn't find your website puzzling or complicated.
Robust
Content must be robust enough to be reliably interpreted by various user agents, including assistive technologies. Validate and clean your code — thorough testing with assistive technologies achieves this.
9 Website design accessibility tips
Now that you know the principles that govern accessibility let's explore the nine ways to put these into practice.
1. Color, contrast, and font size
A 2023 report by WebAIM surveyed 1,000,000 web pages and found that contrast was the most common reason for a website's inaccessibility.
Enough contrast between text and background colors is crucial. It guarantees that users with low vision or color blindness can read content without strain.
Using scalable units for text size, such as rem or em, allows users to resize text according to their needs. This flexibility is vital for those who require larger text for better readability.
Every color, font choice, and interactive element in your design should cater to a wide range of users, including those with disabilities. It's not just about looking good — it's about creating a personalized, universal experience.
Incorporating adaptive technologies and features that ensure your website or app is accessible can significantly elevate the user experience.
Here's where email marketing consultants can become an invaluable asset. They don't just focus on email content — they also consider how emails are designed and accessed.
By integrating their insights on accessibility and user engagement, you can refine your design and color scheme to be more user-friendly. The extra effort provides seamless, easily consumable content for everyone.
2. Images
Every image on the site should come with alt text, a written description explaining the image's content or function. Screen readers use alt text to convey the information in images to users who can't see them.
Beyond images, all non-text content should have text alternatives — including charts, graphs, and other visual elements.
3. Consistent navigation
Consistent navigation is a cornerstone of accessible and user-friendly web design. It involves creating a uniform and intuitive structure that guides users through a website. The goal? They can find what they need quickly and effortlessly.
You should evaluate whether:
Apply common web conventions, such as ensuring the main menu is at the top of the page.
The navigation menu follows a logical order.
Create logical categories to group content.
4. Focus indicators
Visible and clear keyboard focus indicators are essential. They guide users, relying on keyboards to navigate, showing them exactly where they are on the page.
5. Avoidance of color-only information
Avoid using color as the sole means of conveying information. Users with color blindness or other visual impairments may miss these cues.
Here's where dark mode can help to reduce glare and make screentime a more comfortable experience.
6. Large click targets
Large click targets are vital for key features for building an accessible website.
They cater to users with motor disabilities and those using touch devices, ensuring ease of interaction. A generous size for buttons and clickable elements reduces errors and enhances user experience.
7. Clear labels
Users relying on screen readers, as well as those with cognitive disabilities, benefit significantly from straightforward, descriptive labels.
Plus, clear labels provide context and guidance, especially for form fields and interactive elements.
8. Responsive design
One of the critical aspects of accessibility is website responsiveness, particularly mobile responsiveness.
With many users accessing content from their mobile devices, a responsive design is a must-have — especially for e-commerce websites where people explore and buy products.
Take the example of StudioSuits, a brand specializing in suits, jackets, and high-quality tailored pants for men.
StudioSuits has recognized the importance of catering to users on various devices, ensuring that their website seamlessly adapts to different screen sizes and resolutions.
This approach provides mobile shoppers with a consistent and visually appealing experience, making exploring and purchasing products easier.
Secondly, a mobile-responsive design improves site performance and load times, which is crucial for keeping users and reducing bounce rates.
9. Cross-browser compatibility
Ensuring cross-browser compatibility means a website performs consistently across different browsers.
Users have varied preferences and accessibilities for browsers, and a uniform experience across them is fundamental for inclusivity and user satisfaction.
How to integrate accessibility into the design process
To build an accessible design, you need to consider accessibility elements when planning the design. It can't be an afterthought.
Here are four things to consider:
Self-education
Design teams must understand accessibility principles and their relevance to user experience. This foundational knowledge guides informed design decisions.
Know the law
In the United States, key legislation mandates website accessibility to protect those individuals with disabilities. For instance:
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates accessible digital content from both public entities (Title II) and private businesses open to the public (Title III).
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires federal agencies and organizations receiving federal funding to provide accessible electronic and information technology.
Regular accessibility checks
Accessibility checks should begin at the earliest design stages. Evaluate wireframes and prototypes for accessibility. Make sure that these preliminary designs adhere to recognized standards.
User-testing
The user-testing phase must include users with disabilities. Their firsthand experience provides valuable insights, helping to identify and address potential accessibility issues. Take advantage of usability testing tools to test your website’s efficiency.
Everyone deserves a good online experience
Adopting the principles and practices mentioned in this blog allows designers to uphold the principles of inclusivity while fostering innovation and excellence in digital design.
Accessible design transcends being a mere requirement or additional step — it represents a mindset and an integral part of thoughtful, user-centered design.
Every designer should remain committed to accessible design and strive for a more inclusive digital future for every user.