Accessibility refers to ensuring there are no barriers that prevent people from interacting with websites and other digital experiences due to physical and situational disabilities and other restrictions. At 22squared, our goal is to design and develop experiences that all users can enjoy, regardless of the situation. But we didn’t have a process in place to make sure we were meeting that mark.
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards have been developed to ensure that experiences comply with American with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. Meeting WCAG standards has become a concern and mandate from more and more of our clients, and doing so is one way of ensuring that our agency and our clients are building experiences that can be enjoyed by the widest range of users.
I have taken the lead at the agency on developing an approach that incorporates accessibility into our thinking and project planning. We’ve been building out an ever-evolving cross-functional approach that bridges design, UX, development, project management, QA testing and legal functions, something that we’re continuing to build upon for each and every project we undertake, as our understanding of what it takes to create truly accessible experiences deepens.
We’ve built processes to make sure that there is sufficient contrast between foreground and background images, and background images and text, to meet WCAG guidelines.
We’re taking into account elements like focus and aria that provide vital information and context to users trying to navigate an experience using voice-guided navigation or keyboard-only controls.
We’re making sure that our alt text will prove truly helpful for users needing that copy to provide information and navigational and functional cues.
We’re making use of developer and third-party tools to provide additional cues for accessibility issues that need to be addressed.
It all culminates in an accessibility report we prepare for every project that helps guide our QA and bug-fixing efforts.
Deque is a company that specializes in making digital experiences accessible to everyone. In 2022, I completed Deque University accessibility training, including the following certifications:
Accessibility Fundamentals - Disabilities, Guidelines, and Law
Designing an Accessible User Experience
Semantic Structure and Navigation (WCAG 2.1)
Visual Design and Colors (WCAG 2.1)
Device-Independent User Input Methods (WCAG 2.1)
Form Labels, Instructions and Validation (WCAG 2.1)
Semantic Structure and Navigation
Images, SVG, and Canvas
Responsive Design and Zoom
Multimedia, Animations, and Motion
Dynamic Updates, AJAX, and Single-Page Apps
Custom JavaScript/AREA Widgets
Web Accessibility Testing: Basic Methods and Tools
Web Accessibility Testing: Screen Readers
WCAG Conformance Testing, Detailed Methodology
Usability Testing for Accessibility
