More and more, our world is becoming digitally dependent. Many services are now exclusively online. It makes sense, as going digital is a no brainer for businesses! Operationally, being online is way more efficient and cost-effective. Customers have more self-service opportunities and can enjoy instant access to the information they need. In context of the narrative surrounding environmental issues at the moment, going paper-free is a big tick in the ol’ sustainability box!

But, despite all of the innumerable benefits, progress in all of these areas cannot come at the expense of progress in another. With so many of life’s essential tasks now reliant upon you being able to browse the internet, it is imperative that everyone can access and use the world wide web with ease. In a nutshell, that is web accessibility.

In this blog, we are going to give you a brief overview on how to make your Squarespace website more accessible. But before we do that, let’s first discuss in more detail what web accessibility is and why it is so important.

What is web accessibility?

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international, non-profit organisation. It was founded back in 1994, with a mission to "lead the web to its full potential”. In collaboration with the W3C Community (a collective of 350+ member organisations and 14,700+ web developers), the W3C achieves its mission by developing web standards. 

As with many things in life, there are multiple ways you can build a website. Web standards are blueprints, guidelines and protocols that clearly lay out the best way to do it. But isn’t “best” a matter of opinion? Well, yes. However, the process the W3C uses to establish these web standards is a highly collaborative and rigorous one. It seeks to “maximise consensus” and promote “fairness, openness” and that which is “royalty-free,” with a view to “make the web work, for everyone.”  

Web standards cover a multitude of topics from interoperability to security and privacy. However, in 1997 – with full backing from The White House – the W3C launched the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). The WAI is a series of guidelines, resources and materials that look to increase the understanding of web accessibility and provide guidance on how to implement it. Their most notable output is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). We will talk more about them later.

So what is web accessibility? The WAI defines it as follows:

“Web accessibility means that websites, tools, and technologies are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them. More specifically, people can: perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with the Web; and contribute to the Web.”

Accessible web design takes into account all disabilities – auditory, cognitive, neurological, physical, speech and visual – that hinder a user’s ability to access the web. It also improves the user experience (UX) for the neurodivergent among us. That includes those with a diagnosis of autism, ADHD, ADD, dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia.

There are many others – who don’t fit into either category – who can also benefit from accessible website design. For example, anyone living with a temporary disability. Perhaps they have a broken arm and cannot move the mouse, or have mislaid their glasses and whilst waiting on a replacement, are navigating the web with impaired vision. 

Beyond disability, accessible web design can also improve the browsing experience of those limited by their environment or the equipment available to them. Picture a student who needs to watch a video for research. In a noisy cafe, they play it but can’t hear it. In the silent library, they cannot press play because if they do, they will be forced out of the vicinity, to escape the intense glares of their fellow students! 

Other limitations include working remotely, with a dubious internet connection or limited or expensive bandwidth. A highly interactive website with an abundance of images and video will simply not load in this scenario!

So we have discussed what web accessibility is and who it is for, but why is it so important for businesses?

Why is web accessibility so important to businesses?

Before we get into why web accessibility is so important, here are a few statistics for you:

In the words of the UK government, “you’re disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities.”

According to latest estimates from the 2023 Department for Work and Pensions’ Family Resources Survey, “16.0 million people in the UK had a disability in the 2021/22 financial year. This represents 24% of the total population.” This is not accounting for those who are undiagnosed; the stats could be even greater!

In this article submitted by Dr Nancy Doyle to the British Medical Bulletin, she writes that “a reasonable estimate of all neurominorities within the population is around 15–20%.”

The Right Thing to Do

First and foremost, designing with web accessibility in mind is the ethical and right thing to do. As we mentioned in our intro, the world is moving full steam ahead into a digital age, with many services now exclusively online. It is important to bring everyone along for the ride. 

As website designers and business owners presiding over these digital decisions, we have the choice to design with empathy. Who are we to deny a significant proportion (24%) of our society the same access and opportunities? We actually have a huge responsibility on our hands. With the power to shape our future digital landscape, through design, we can make a significant impact in cultivating a culture that is inclusive to all. 

A Legal Requirement

Secondly, web accessibility is a legal requirement. Any business that does not comply with the relevant legal requirements, does so at their own risk and could find themself entangled in a lawsuit.

Back in 2018, the UK Government introduced new regulations stipulating that all public sector websites and mobile apps must:

• meet the WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standard 

• publish an accessibility statement that explains how accessible their website or mobile app is.

Now that doesn’t mean that all private companies don’t need to bother when it comes to web accessibility! On the UK Government website, they also state that, “all UK service providers have a legal obligation to make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 or the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (in Northern Ireland).” 

Therefore, it is a website owner’s legal duty to make reasonable adjustments (steps to reduce or remove barriers) to make their website accessible to those with disabilities, irrespective of whether they work in the public or private sector. 

If you are not sure what is expected of you and your business legally in terms of web accessibility, this guidance from the UK Government website goes into more depth about who and who doesn’t need to meet the 2018 regulations. There are some exemptions. However, if you are still unsure, it would be best to enlist the services of a legal advisor.

For our American friends, you must ensure your website is accessible in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA applies to “state and local governments (Title II) and businesses that are open to the public (Title III).” Here is some helpful Guidance on Web Accessibility and the ADA from their website. 

Beneficial to Business

Finally, web accessibility is beneficial to businesses! It…

• Improves SEO

In this Google SEO office-hours hangout, John Mueller – Search Advocate on the Search Relations Team for Google Switzerland – says that web accessibility isn’t currently a direct ranking factor but that could change when it becomes more quantifiable. However, he goes on to explain that if you are “driving users away with a website they can’t use then they are not going to recommend it to other people.” 

Inaccessible web design will increase your website’s bounce rate, which negatively affects your Google ranking.

• Saves Costs

Web accessibility saves on maintenance costs. This article by W3C clearly puts forth a case, so rather than regurgitate it, go and have a read. 

• Increases Reach

Accessible web design increases your reach. In light of the above statistics, these supposed minorities are incredibly significant ones! A quarter of the population has a disability and up to a fifth is neurodivergent. By not opting into a web accessible design, you are alienating 24% of the population, who could be potential visitors to your website and customers for your business.

Top Tips to make your Squarespace website more accessible

As with any guidelines, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) contains rules, principles and advice detailing how to make a website more accessible. It is the “universally accepted set of technical standards.” Furthermore, as discussed above, many disability-rights laws specify compliance with WCAG directly. Therefore, it is an essential part of the toolkit for all website designers, developers and content authors.

Top tips for you

Our checklist of top tips below contains some of the rules and advice given in the WCAG. Each item discussed on the list can – and should – be applied to all websites, whether they are built on Squarespace, Wordpress or any other website builder. 

But let’s wait no more and explore some of the practical ways you can make your website more accessible:

• Add Alt Text

• Contrasting Colour Palette

• Closed Captions and Transcripts

• Easy-to-Read Fonts

• Seamless Navigation

• Structured, Clear Content

• Include Page Titles

• Bold, Descriptive links

• Limit Auto-Play

• Employ an Accessibility Aware Designer

Feeling overwhelmed? Meet AccessiBe

Having read the above list of top tips for web accessibility, some of you may be feeling incredibly overwhelmed at the prospect. You don’t know where to start or you simply don’t have the manpower or time to implement it all. Well do not fear! We have the perfect solution for you. 

Made by Dave are proud partners of AccessiBe. AccessiBe have taken the large and fairly daunting topic of web accessibility, digested, streamlined and simplified it, to create an AI-powered solution that “empowers businesses of all sizes to take the inclusive approach.”

Enter the accessWidget.

Using AccessiBe with Squarespace

With AccessiBe, Squarespace users don’t have to choose between beauty and accessibility. AccessiBe’s AI-driven, automated solution makes existing websites ADA compliant by remediating the website’s code according to the WCAG 2.1 AA. accessiBe’s solution is session-based, meaning only those with disabilities will see adjusted design elements, leaving your design completely intact.

Is AccessiBe right for you? 

Well, you can see it in action on our very own website. In the bottom right-hand corner of this screen, there is a little stick person icon. Click on that and a web accessibility dashboard will pop up. 

First thing to note, right at the top of the dashboard is a button with the word “Statement” on it. Click on it and an accessibility statement will be revealed. We mentioned earlier that publishing an accessibility statement, explaining how accessible your website is, is one of two actions that need to be taken to meet legal requirements. AccessiBe have got you covered. An Accessibility Statement & Certificate is automatically built into the widget and a PDF copy will be sent to your inbox. 

Moving further down the accessWidget… with the simple slide of a toggle, users can opt into pre-made accessibility profiles to meet their specific needs. For example, there is a Seizure Safe Profile, an ADHD Friendly Profile, a Cognitive Disability Profile and more. Alternatively, users can have more control and adjust individual settings within the categories of content-, colour- and orientation adjustments, to create the optimum experience.

By adding AccessiBe’s accessWidget to your Squarespace website, your business will automatically comply with all the relevant ADA and WCAG requirements. To add it, all you have to do is enter one line of code. One line of code – genius! The accessWidget will instantly appear on your website and the AI will get to work straight away, scanning and analysing your website daily and fixing any inaccessible code along the way. 

Conclusion

Web accessibility is about making the internet works for everyone, regardless of their abilities. Making your website more accessible isn’t just a legal box ticking exercise, it is a savvy business move. But above all, it is the right thing to do!

In order to make your website accessible, work through our list of top tips. Ensure your website has: alt text, a contrasting colour palette, closed captions, transcripts, limited auto-play, easy-to-read fonts, seamless navigation, clearly structured content, page titles and bold, descriptive links. If you don’t have the time, resources or know-how to implement all of these, do check out and consider the option of our partners AccessiBe’s accessWidget.

If you are looking to take a more bespoke approach to accessible website design and would like assistance from accessibility aware designers to implement that, the team at Made by Dave would love to hear from you.

Get in touch and let’s discuss how we can make your Squarespace website a truly inclusive experience for all.