The results of the 2024 Disability Equality Index (DEI) released by Disability:IN, revealed while progress has been made, significant work is needed to improve accessibility for people with disability worldwide, especially within the area of digital accessibility.

This comprehensive report evaluates hundreds of companies worldwide on their disability inclusion policies and practices.

In the report, Disability:IN has identified five measurable actions that companies, and individuals can take to continue to work towards sustainable and inclusive change toward accessibility.

One of these key actions is the need to conduct accessibility audits for websites, apps, and digital content (both internally and externally facing) for compliance under the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

This article will explore the reasons why digital accessibility is essential, why accessibility audits are beneficial, as well some best practice guidance on completing a WCAG audit.

It is important to note that an audit is one part of your digital accessibility journey, however it is not the only part. There are several key areas of focus that will support your teams to progress in maturity and learn more!

Why Digital Accessibility is Essential

Digital accessibility ensures that websites, applications, and digital tools can be used by people with disability. In an increasingly digital world, the importance of this cannot be overstated. Here are a few reasons digital accessibility is so important:

1. It is a fundamental human right. Ensuring that everyone can access the same information regardless of disability or impairment is enshrined within Article 21 of the Convention on the Rights Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). This includes information provided online, via apps and other digital products.
2. Without it, it is a legal and compliance risk: Compliance regimes across the globe operate requiring companies and those offering goods or services to provide an accessible experience. For instance, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the United States, Disability Discrimination Act in Australia, and the recent European Union’s Accessibility Act, require services to be accessible and in some cases mandate accessibility standards for websites. Non-compliance can result lawsuits, fines, compliance costs and involvement mediation and conciliation processes.
3. It creates better products: Accessible design often leads to a better overall user experience for everyone – TTC Global’s mantra of “what is essential for one is good for all” rings true when it comes to digital accessibility. Features like easy navigation, clear headings, keyboard accessibility, captions and alternative text for images not only help users with disability but also improve usability for all users, including those with temporary and situational impairments.
4. Without it, you’re missing out on a huge market: By making digital platforms accessible, businesses can expand their reach. According to the World Health Organisation, over 1 billion people, or about 15-20% of the global population, live with disability.[1] Collectively this represents, $8 trillion disposable income controlled globally.[2] A large number of people with disability felt their purchasing choices were limited due to online barriers.[3]
5. It enhances Corporate Social Responsibility: Embracing digital accessibility reflects a company’s commitment to inclusivity and social responsibility and can be an essential foundation of a company’s CSR strategy. Research shows younger generations of consumers have a strong preference for engaging with companies who show themselves to be socially responsible.[4]

The Importance of Digital Accessibility Audits

We can see digital accessibility is important and beneficial – so the question becomes how to best start (or continue) an accessibility journey? One avenue is to undertake a digital accessibility audit of your website, app, or digital technology.

Accessibility audits can be done at any stage of a company’s digital accessibility journey and often provide a benchmark from which to work from. For those further along in their accessibility journey, a regular or annual audit provide important checks and balances to ensure that accessibility is maintained.

What is an accessibility audit?

Think of an accessibility audit as a map showing your current location and where you need to go to get to your destination, in this case, an accessible website or digital product. Without this map, identifying the necessary accessibility improvements and working out how to fix them can be challenging.

An accessibility audit provides an in-depth analysis of your website's accessibility issues, usually against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). An accessibility audit report through TTC Global’s Digital Accessibility Practice provides a detailed list of these issues along with an analysis of their severity and how the issue can be fixed.

Top Tips for Accessibility Audits

1. Find a skilled professional – undertaking accessibility testing is a highly specialised skill, and whilst there is a plethora of automated tools out there, automated tools capture no more than around 30% of issues[5]. These automated tools are no substitute for a skilled professional who can complete the required manual testing but also provide specific remediation advice for your situation. Reach out to our Digital Accessibility Practice here at TTC Global for guidance and support.
2. Know your goal – what level of compliance are you wanting to achieve? WCAG sets out three levels, A, AA, and AAA. The generally accepted standard is Level AA using WCAG 2.2 as the set of guidelines. You may have legislated or other mandated requirements to adhere to a certain level, so be aware of where your end point is.
3. Don’t feel overwhelmed by the number – often people are concerned by the number of issues found, especially when it is the first audit. This is understandable, but also very much expected. The purpose of a report is to identify current issues and provide a roadmap toward accessibility conformance, not to merely identify the current issues.
4. Think about the broader team – accessibility is everyone’s responsibility and issues identified in an audit will span team roles from development to design to procurement and the executive leadership. It is important that all areas of the business are aware of the report and any actions that they must assist with.

Conclusion

The release of the 2024 Disability Equality Index is a reminder of the ongoing importance of continuing to improve business structures and processes towards building an inclusive experience for all.

Digital accessibility is a cornerstone of these efforts, ensuring that everyone can participate fully in the digital world. By understanding the importance of digital accessibility and conducting regular audits, businesses can create a more accessible experience for its customers and reap the benefits of digital accessibility.

About TTC Global’s Digital Accessibility Practice

TTC Global’s Digital Accessibility Practice guides and supports organisations on their digital accessibility journeys.

We manage accessibility for you through comprehensive accessibility audits and monitoring. We also support teams to develop an accessibility mindset that crosses the full software development lifecycle. Supporting you to embed accessibility into your day-to-day is important to us. This means shifting accessibility left and factoring accessibility in earlier.

You can find out more about us at https://accessibility.ttcglobal.com/ or reach out for a discussion at australia@ttcglobal.com

References

[1] World Health Organization, Disability: https://www.who.int/europe/news-room/fact-sheets/item/disability

[2] The Valuable 500, The Valuable 500 releases new data on Global Accessibility Awareness Day. https://www.thevaluable500.com/press-release/the-valuable-500-releases-new-data-on-global-accessibility-awareness-day

[3] Scope UK: Research: frustrated, the ‘F’ word of inaccessibility https://business.scope.org.uk/article/frustrated-the-f-word-of-website-inaccessibility-for-disabled-consumers

[4]Gritsenko et al, Corporate Social Responsibility and its Influence on Millennials’ and Gen Z’s Loyalty to Brands, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357087821_Millennials_and_their_attitudes_to_the_corporate_social_responsibility_of_global_brands_The_case_study_of_Slovak_Republic

[5] UK Government, Accessibility tools: Automated testing https://accessibility-manual.dwp.gov.uk/tools-and-resources/automated-accessibility-testing