Web Accessibility: Why Inclusive Design is Good for Everyone

When we talk about web accessibility, we're not just discussing compliance checkboxes or legal requirements. We're talking about creating digital experiences that welcome everyone, regardless of their abilities. And here's something many business owners don't realize: accessible design makes your website better for all users, not just those with disabilities.

Accessibility is often treated as an afterthought or a burden. In reality, it's good design practice that benefits your entire audience while expanding your potential market. Understanding accessibility transforms how you think about creating websites.

What is Web Accessibility?

Web accessibility means designing and developing websites that people with disabilities can use effectively. This includes individuals with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive impairments. But the benefits extend far beyond these groups—accessibility improvements help everyone.

Types of Disabilities to Consider

Visual impairments:

• Blindness (users rely on screen readers)
• Low vision (need larger text, high contrast)
• Colour blindness (can't distinguish certain colours)

Auditory impairments:

• Deafness (can't hear audio content)
• Hard of hearing (need captions or transcripts)

Motor impairments:

• Limited fine motor control (difficulty with precise mouse movements)
• Unable to use mouse (rely on keyboard or alternative input devices)
• Tremors or limited mobility

Cognitive impairments:

• Learning disabilities (need clear, simple language)
• Attention disorders (distracted by complex layouts)
• Memory issues (need consistent, predictable navigation)

The Curb Cut Effect

Consider sidewalk curb cuts—those ramps at street corners. They were designed for wheelchair users but benefit parents with strollers, travelers with luggage, delivery workers with carts, and anyone who'd rather roll than step.

Web accessibility works the same way:

Captions on videos help deaf users, but they also help someone watching in a noisy café or a quiet library, or a non-native speaker following along.

Clear navigation assists users with cognitive disabilities, but it also helps everyone find what they need faster—especially on mobile devices.

Keyboard navigation is essential for users who can't use a mouse, but it's also a productivity tool for power users who prefer shortcuts.

High contrast text helps users with low vision, but it also helps everyone read in bright sunlight or on low-quality screens.

Simple, clear language helps users with cognitive disabilities, but it helps everyone understand your message quickly.

Accessibility improvements benefit your entire audience.

The Business Case for Accessibility

Beyond doing the right thing, accessibility makes solid business sense.

Expanded Audience

Approximately 15-20% of the global population has some form of disability. That's a significant market segment you could be missing. In Canada alone, over 6 million people identify as having a disability.

But it's not just permanent disabilities:

Temporary impairments: Broken arm, eye surgery recovery, ear infection

Situational limitations: Bright sunlight, loud environment, one hand occupied

Aging population: Vision, hearing, and motor skills change with age

Your accessible website serves all these situations—dramatically expanding who can effectively use it.

Improved SEO

Many accessibility practices directly boost your search engine rankings:

Proper heading structure: Screen readers need hierarchical headings; so do search engines.

Alt text for images: Provides context for screen readers and helps search engines understand image content.

Descriptive link text: "Learn more about our services" tells both assistive technology and search engines what the link is about (unlike "click here").

Video transcripts: Provide searchable text content from video material.

Clean, semantic code: Helps both assistive technologies and search engine crawlers.

Accessibility and SEO are natural allies.

Legal Protection

Accessibility lawsuits are rising, particularly in North America. Companies of all sizes face legal action for inaccessible websites. Beyond direct legal costs:

Regulatory requirements: Many jurisdictions have web accessibility requirements for certain businesses and organizations.

Government contracts: Public sector work often requires accessibility compliance.

Industry standards: Some industries have specific accessibility requirements.

Proactive compliance is far cheaper than defending against lawsuits or losing business opportunities.

Enhanced Brand Reputation

Companies that prioritize accessibility demonstrate social responsibility:

Inclusive values: Shows you care about all potential customers.

Quality signal: Attention to accessibility suggests attention to quality generally.

Employee pride: Teams are proud to work for inclusive organizations.

Customer loyalty: Accessible businesses earn loyalty from disability communities and their networks.

Accessibility can be a meaningful competitive differentiator.

Understanding WCAG Guidelines

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide the internationally-recognized standard for web accessibility. Understanding its principles helps you create accessible websites.

The Four Principles (POUR)

WCAG is organized around four principles. Content must be:

Perceivable: Users must be able to perceive the content. This means providing alternatives for non-text content and making content adaptable.

Operable: Users must be able to operate the interface. This means keyboard accessibility, adequate time for interactions, and navigable structure.

Understandable: Users must be able to understand the content and interface. This means readable text, predictable behaviour, and input assistance.

Robust: Content must work across different technologies, including assistive technologies.

Conformance Levels

WCAG defines three conformance levels:

Level A: Minimum accessibility. Basic requirements that must be met.

Level AA: Addresses major accessibility barriers. This is the most commonly targeted level and is required by many regulations.

Level AAA: Highest level of accessibility. Not always achievable for all content but represents the ideal.

For most websites, Level AA is the appropriate target.

Common Accessibility Issues and Fixes

Many accessibility problems are straightforward to fix once identified.

Images Without Alt Text

The problem: Screen readers can't describe images without alternative text.

The fix: Add descriptive alt text to all meaningful images. For decorative images, use empty alt text (alt="") so screen readers skip them.

Good alt text: Describes what the image shows and its purpose. "Team members collaborating in our Toronto office" not just "photo" or "image123.jpg".

Poor Colour Contrast

The problem: Low contrast between text and background makes content hard to read for users with visual impairments—and for everyone in challenging viewing conditions.

The fix: Ensure sufficient contrast ratios. WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text, 3:1 for large text. Use contrast checking tools during design.

Testing: Free online tools can check contrast ratios instantly.

Missing or Incorrect Heading Structure

The problem: Screen reader users navigate by headings. Skipped levels or decorative use of heading tags creates confusion.

The fix: Use headings hierarchically (H1, then H2, then H3). Don't skip levels. Don't use headings just for visual styling.

Structure example: One H1 per page, followed by H2s for major sections, H3s for subsections within those.

Keyboard Inaccessibility

The problem: Some users can't use a mouse. If your site can't be navigated by keyboard, it's inaccessible to them.

The fix: Ensure all interactive elements (links, buttons, forms) are reachable and operable via keyboard. Visible focus indicators show users where they are.

Testing: Try navigating your site using only Tab, Enter, and arrow keys.

Missing Form Labels

The problem: Form inputs without proper labels leave screen reader users guessing what information is requested.

The fix: Every form input needs an associated label. Use the <label> element properly connected to its input.

Bonus: Clickable labels also help all users by expanding the click/tap target.

Auto-Playing Media

The problem: Auto-playing video or audio with sound disorients users and can be distressing. Screen reader users may struggle to find and stop the media.

The fix: Don't auto-play with sound. If auto-play is necessary, start muted with easy controls to pause or mute.

Missing Video Captions

The problem: Deaf and hard-of-hearing users can't access video content without captions.

The fix: Provide captions for all video content. Auto-generated captions are a start but usually need editing for accuracy.

Bonus: Captions help anyone watching in sound-off environments and improve comprehension for all viewers.

Links That Say "Click Here"

The problem: Screen reader users often navigate by links. A list of "click here" links provides no context.

The fix: Use descriptive link text that makes sense out of context. "Download our pricing guide" not "click here".

Missing Skip Links

The problem: Keyboard users must tab through your entire navigation on every page before reaching main content.

The fix: Provide a "skip to main content" link as the first focusable element. It can be hidden until focused.

Time-Sensitive Content

The problem: Automatic timeouts, carousels, or session expirations may not give users with disabilities enough time to complete tasks.

The fix: Give users control over time limits. Allow pausing, stopping, or extending timeouts.

Implementing Accessibility

Accessibility is most effective when built in from the start, but existing sites can be improved.

Start with an Audit

Automated testing: Tools like WAVE, axe, or Lighthouse catch many issues automatically. They're a good starting point but don't catch everything.

Manual testing: Keyboard navigation testing, screen reader testing, and cognitive walkthrough reveal issues automation misses.

User testing: Real users with disabilities provide insights no tool can match.

Prioritize Fixes

Not all issues are equally severe. Prioritize:

1. Issues blocking access entirely (keyboard traps, missing alt text on essential images)
2. Issues causing significant barriers (poor contrast, missing form labels)
3. Issues causing inconvenience (suboptimal heading structure, minor contrast issues)

Build Accessibility Into Process

Design phase: Consider accessibility in wireframes and mockups. Check colour contrast before development begins.

Development phase: Use semantic HTML, test keyboard accessibility, implement ARIA correctly.

Content creation: Train content creators on writing alt text, using headings, and creating accessible documents.

Quality assurance: Include accessibility in testing checklists.

Ongoing Maintenance

Accessibility isn't a one-time project:

Regular audits: Check accessibility periodically, especially after major changes.

Training: Keep team members current on accessibility best practices.

Monitoring: User feedback can reveal accessibility issues you've missed.

Accessibility and Mobile

Mobile and accessibility share many concerns:

Touch targets: Large enough for motor-impaired users and for finger tapping.

Responsive text: Resizable without breaking layouts for low-vision users and for different devices.

Simple navigation: Essential for cognitive accessibility and for small screens.

Performance: Fast loading helps users with older devices and those with cognitive impairments who may lose focus during long waits.

Mobile-first design often naturally supports accessibility.

Learn more about mobile-first design strategy.

Common Accessibility Myths

"Accessible sites are ugly": Modern accessible sites are visually beautiful. Accessibility is about how things work, not how they look.

"We don't have disabled users": You likely do—and may not know it. Plus, situational and temporary impairments affect everyone.

"Accessibility is expensive": Building accessibility in from the start costs little extra. Retrofitting is more expensive, but often less than imagined.

"Screen readers will handle it": Screen readers can only work with what you provide. They can't invent missing alt text or fix broken navigation.

"Compliance tools give us a pass": Automated overlays and widgets often don't provide true accessibility and can actually create new problems.

Ready to Make Your Website More Accessible?

At Getwebbed, we believe every visitor deserves an excellent experience on your website. Our team builds accessibility into every project from the ground up, ensuring your site welcomes all users while meeting modern standards.

Accessibility isn't just compliance—it's better design for everyone. Let's make sure your website works for all your potential customers.

Contact us today for a free consultation and let's discuss how we can make your website more inclusive and effective!