Digital accessibility: Where companies are going wrong and how to fix it

Digital accessibility refers to designing and developing digital products, such as websites, mobile apps, and electronic documents, so all users can easily use and interact with them — including users with disabilities. For example, developers provide alternative text for images for visually impaired users, place captions on videos for hearing-impaired users, and ensure those with motor disabilities can navigate websites using only a keyboard.

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are a comprehensive set of digital accessibility standards published by the Web Accessibility Initiative and the World Wide Web Consortium. These guidelines are the foundational benchmark against which digital accessibility is measured. WCAG consists of thirteen guidelines organized around the four principles that web content must be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable and Robust for users with disabilities. 

These principles and resulting checkpoints provide the basis for three tiers of conformity to its standards: A, AA, and AAA. The A level is the minimum level of conformance, AA is the standard for most websites, and AAA is the highest level of conformance. The criteria for each rating are cumulative, meaning that products must fully adhere to A requirements to be considered AA, for example.

Only one part of the picture

However, digital accessibility guidelines like WCAG are only one part of the picture. As digital interactions become increasingly integral to our lives, companies must do more for ethical, legal, and practical reasons. WCAG should be seen as the floor not the ceiling in terms of building accessible applications. The best brands go beyond compliance and strive for true inclusivity, understanding that features designed for accessibility can significantly enhance the user experience for everyone, not just those with disabilities.

This focus on inclusivity matters because an estimated 1.3 billion people, or 16% of the world’s population, experience significant disabilities, according to the World Health Organization. These disabilities include a wide range of conditions, including vision impairment, mobility, auditory, neurological, cognitive, medical, and psychological, all facing unique challenges regarding digital accessibility.

The Olympic Games in Paris featured 329 events across 35 venues, all streamed live, making it essential that the games were inclusive for everyone. That said, NBCUniversal led the way in Olympic accessibility coverage by including features such as enhanced closed captioning, extended audio descriptions, and improved digital content accessibility. This implementation set a new standard for the Games and raises the bar for inclusive broadcasting year-round.

Despite these efforts, individuals with disabilities continue to face significant digital accessibility barriers in their daily lives that hinder their ability to participate fully. From inaccessible mobile login portals to filling out electronic documents, the challenges are endless and highlight the urgent need for continuous improvements in accessibility.

Know your customer

Developers cannot create great user experiences by reading guidelines and standards. Especially when it comes to creating truly inclusive products, success starts by talking to Persons with Disability (PwD). Enable teams to communicate with and gain an understanding of PwD, be they sight, hearing, or mobility impaired, in both the design and testing phase of projects. This is not just a good practice, it's a necessity for creating truly inclusive digital products. Including all voices in design and implementation are a source of innovation to design products better.

Also, more and more companies are implementing empathy labs, but are forgetting to recognize that these simulations are not an adequate substitute for engaging with PwD. Empathy labs, which aim to simulate various disabilities through interactive experiences designed to help people better understand and empathize with the challenges faced by PwD, often fall short of capturing the full spectrum of these challenges.

While building empathy labs is a good step for companies, involving PwD in every stage of the software development cycle to directly hear and involve them is highly recommended. It’s a way to directly work with them instead of attempting to walk in their shoes. Integrating lived experience feedback into the product design process gets to the point quickly in terms of product decision making.

Empower your teams

Companies that excel in delivering quality digital experiences for PwD have established a culture of inclusivity by making accessibility an operational priority. They are committed to continuously educating developers about best practices for accessibility. They may ask simple questions, like how often developers think of accessibility and how much they already know, before investing in the training needed to fill the gaps. 

Part of this involves making sure developers recognize the need for an ongoing program for accessibility testing rather than thinking of accessibility as a box to tick when convenient. Regular testing of digital products for accessibility should use multiple tools, including automated and manual testing and user testing with people with disabilities. It also means maintaining an ongoing commitment to accessibility by regularly reviewing and updating digital products to ensure they remain accessible as technologies and standards evolve.

Creating digitally accessible content

The post-COVID shift toward delivering digital-first experiences, where digital platforms and tools are the primary means of interaction, made digital accessibility more of a priority than ever — and improvements still need to be made. Digital accessibility requires an ongoing commitment to building inclusive experiences, starting in the product development and code-writing phase. Most importantly, it requires input from PwD in design and testing, without whom truly inclusive digital experiences are unattainable.

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