E-commerce Website Accessibility
E-commerce Website Accessibility Guide
Web accessibility is not anymore a privilege, but a common need. In times when everyone is shopping online, the e-commerce experience should be provided equally for all. This includes people with disabilities, visually impaired users, and other vulnerable categories!
Nowadays, two of the biggest web standards organizations are supporters of E-commerce Website Accessibility. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is the major standards organization, and its WCAG guidelines offer designers and developers many tips and advice on making sites accessible!
Below, we are showing you the ways you can make your website and online store accessible for people who use screen readers and other forms of assisted technologies!
What Is Web Accessibility For E-Commerce Websites?
First of all, you should know that web accessibility is an initiative that demands that all web content on your online store is coded and designed so that individuals with disabilities can interact with it. The range of disabilities is wide, including users with sight, movement, and cognitive impairments!
The website accessibility standards are mandatory according to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) which are currently at version 2.1 and focus on certain principles to address all accessibility issues people have!
The guidelines are divided into four main categories, where content must be:
Why Is Web Accessibility Important In Online Stores?
Statistics show that more than 1 billion people all over the world and almost 57 million Americans have certain forms of disabilities, and over half of them are experiencing severe disabilities. While they are not the same, all disabilities demand certain modifications so that everyone can use the Internet freely and shop from e-commerce stores!
Aside from meeting the regulations and addressing e-commerce website accessibility for people with disabilities, an optimized e-commerce website will prevent driving away visitors and is likely to improve (otherwise lost) revenue. The user experience on accessible websites is cleaner and much better for everyone, addressing all challenges and meeting all accessibility standards!
All of these people use assistive technologies like screen readers, screen magnifiers, text-to-speech systems, special browsers, and more. In the next part, we will break down all of these categories and their limitations, as well as the actions needed to address them!
Common Shopper Limitations And The Best Solutions For Ecommerce Website Accessibility
We all know that web accessibility is a form of optimizing your website to comply with regulations but also address user challenges. The best way to do it is by understanding the various shopper limitations and modifying your e-commerce website according to them!
1. Visually impaired and blind shoppers.
3. Users who are deaf or hard of hearing.
5. Users living in developing countries and regions.
What Are The Simplest Steps To Making Your Ecommerce Website Accessible?
Addressing accessibility has never been so important. If you want to make your store accessible and address WCAG compliance, here are some of the best manual checks that you need to consider:
Start using your store but keep the shoppers with limitations in mind;
Look for any images, buttons, video, and other elements that might appear weird if you take colors out of perception;
Investigate for potential processes that might affect accessibility and are tedious to perform;
If you are using media files, check if all of them can be accessed from blind, color blind, or people with other disabilities;
Check if you have alternate texts that describe each media to an impaired customer;
If you are using video, check if the subtitles are aligned and clear enough for people with hearing impairments;
Keep the wording to each text link simple, and avoid using links on words like “here”;
Build a visual approach that goes beyond pages on your store. For example, you can make your emails and customer support more accessible;
Position your navigation bar so that it always appears in the same location relative to other elements;
Use a search bar that is visible and sizeable enough so all customers can use it.
There is also another approach to addressing accessibility for each customer with disabilities. You can use tools like the following:
All of these tools are essential and can help you see who can access your sites. They are a great way to ensure that you are meeting all of the compliance requirements!
In the end, accessibility is of big importance nowadays. Making your site accessible for all of the vulnerable categories of customers is important, and following the WCAG guidelines can help you set an example in your industry and attract more users. Now is a great time to start doing this and directly attract people who search for accessible online stores!
For more information on accessibility for e-commerce websites, get in touch with us today!
