Why ADA Compliance Matters for Your Website
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was established in 1990 to guarantee equal opportunities for people with disabilities. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice implemented the ADA Standards for Accessible Design. This requires all electronic and information technology, including websites and applications, to be accessible to individuals with disabilities, such as those with hearing loss and vision impairment.
How ADA Compliance Can Improve Your SEO and Protect Your Business
Making your website ADA-compliant is crucial for establishing an inclusive brand and safeguarding your business. The ADA ensures that all websites are accessible to individuals who require accommodations.
Being ADA compliant not only ensures your website is accessible to all visitors but can also improve your search engine rankings, helping you reach your target audience if your site meets the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Taking the correct steps to become ADA-compliant can protect your business from future legal action.
Achieving ADA Compliance
To make your website ADA-compliant, consider these steps:
- Create an accessibility statement that describes your effort to meet guidelines and provides contact information
- Include accessibility widgets such as UserWay and accessiBe
- Conduct an accessibility audit by a third party like Starkmedia
- Perform site corrections found during the audit, such as:
- Proper meta tags that describe each page
- Alternative image text
- Text transcripts for video or multimedia content
- Size, scaling, and legibility of fonts used
- Colors and backgrounds with proper contrast
Accessibility Audits
During audits, the most common issues identified for correction are structural and markup issues within the code. These issues could include navigation, page content, or form fields that need to be more accessible for site visitors. Making changes related to style and content, such as addressing contrast issues with text and backgrounds and ensuring proper heading organization, would also improve the visitor’s experience. By meeting these standards, your company shouldn’t have any issues with ADA compliance.
If you are uncertain whether your website is ADA-compliant, please contact Starkmedia today. We are here to help you make any necessary changes to ensure ADA compliance.
