ADA Compliant Web Design: What is it & Why is it Important?

When you are beginning to consider building a new website or updating an existing one, talking about how you will make your website more accessible is an important conversation you should be having. Web accessibility standards aren't just a legal requirement today — they're crucial to building a user-friendly and inclusive website.

ADA compliance ensures that people of all abilities can navigate and interact with your site. Beyond avoiding potential lawsuits, making your website accessible broadens your audience, improves SEO and strengthens your brand’s reputation. In this post, we’ll explore the importance of ADA-compliant web design and provide practical steps to ensure your website meets these standards. 

What Is ADA Compliance in Web Design? 

ADA compliance refers to the practice of ensuring your website adheres to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which mandates that digital platforms be accessible to all including individuals with disabilities. This extends beyond physical spaces into the digital realm, meaning your website must accommodate users who rely on assistive technologies like screen readers, voice navigation and keyboard-only navigation.

Failing to meet these guidelines can result in lawsuits and penalties, not to mention alienating a large segment of your audience. Ensuring your website is accessible protects you from legal risks while fostering inclusivity and enhancing user experience. 

Key Principles of Accessible Web Design 

To create an accessible website, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) have laid out four main principles website designers and developers need to follow. Those principles are that your site should be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. 

These principles ensure that websites are functional for people with a wide range of disabilities because, as of 2021, around 13.5% of the U.S. population (42.5M people) live with some type of disability. This can include those living with both easily identifiable conditions like many motor impairments and unseen conditions such as varying degrees of color blindness, auditory impairments that may affect certain frequencies or volumes and learning disabilities like dyslexia. 

Designing a website for everyone requires careful consideration to ensure inclusivity. By addressing these diverse needs, websites become more accessible and user-friendly for everyone, regardless of ability. 

To better understand what these four principles cover, here’s the breakdown. 

Perceivable

Your website’s content must be presented in a way that all users, regardless of their abilities, can understand and interact with. This includes ensuring that visual, auditory and other sensory information is accessible to everyone. Examples include:

• Text Alternatives for Non-Text Content: Provide alt text for images, captions for videos and transcripts for audio files. For instance, an image of a customer interacting with your product should include alt text describing what’s happening. 

• Adaptable Content: Allow users to customize how they perceive content. This could include enabling users to adjust font size or contrast or providing options for viewing content in simplified or magnified formats. 

• Distinguishable Design: Ensure content is easy to distinguish. For example, sufficient contrast between text and background colors helps users with low vision or color blindness to read your content. 

Operable

Every user should be able to interact with your website’s features. Whether through a keyboard, mouse or assistive technology, your site must be designed to accommodate a wide range of inputs and actions. Examples include:

• Keyboard Accessibility: All interactive elements, such as forms, buttons and menus, must be fully navigable via keyboard commands. This is essential for users who cannot use a mouse due to mobility impairments. 

• Navigable Structure: A logical, easy-to-follow structure helps users find and interact with your content. Features like clear headers, skip navigation links and descriptive page titles allow users to efficiently move through the site. 

• Adequate Time: Ensure that interactive content (such as timed quizzes or purchase windows) gives users enough time to respond. Alternatively, offer controls to pause or extend timed interactions. 

Understandable

A website should be intuitive and predictable. This means creating content and navigation that are clear, straightforward and easy for users to follow, ensuring a positive experience for all visitors. Examples include: 

• Readable Content: Use simple, clear language and provide definitions for any industry-specific jargon or abbreviations. This helps all users, including those with cognitive impairments, to follow along. 

• Predictable Navigation: Keep navigation consistent across the site. Avoid unexpected changes in page layout or functionality, as these can confuse users. For example, if clicking a logo on one page takes a user to the homepage, it should behave the same way on all pages. 

• Input Assistance: Offer guidance for completing forms, such as automatically identifying errors or providing suggestions. For instance, if a user enters an invalid email address, provide a clear error message explaining what went wrong and how to fix it. 

Robust

Your website must work reliably across different platforms and devices, both now and in the future. This requires adhering to modern coding standards to ensure compatibility with current and emerging assistive technologies. Examples include:  

• Compatible with Assistive Tools: Your website should be compatible with screen readers, voice control software and other assistive technologies. This requires adhering to proper coding standards (like using HTML5 for semantic structure) to ensure these tools can interpret the content accurately. 

• Resilience to Updates: As browsers and technologies evolve, your website should remain accessible. Regularly audit your site’s functionality across multiple platforms and devices to identify any issues caused by updates.  

By following these four principles—perceivable, operable, understandable and robust—you can ensure that your website provides a seamless, accessible experience for all users. These principles not only help individuals with disabilities but also create a more intuitive, user-friendly experience for everyone. 

How to Check if Your Website is ADA Compliant 

Ensuring that your website meets accessibility standards is a critical first step toward making your site more inclusive. Fortunately, there are several tools and methods you can use to evaluate the accessibility of your site. Here's how to get started:  

It Boosts User Experience for All Visitors 

Many features of accessible design, such as clear navigation, simplified forms and alt text for images, enhance the overall usability of your website for all visitors. For example, keyboard-friendly navigation isn't just beneficial to people with disabilities - it also helps power users who prefer quick shortcuts. A well-organized, easy-to-navigate site keeps users engaged longer and encourages repeat visits. 

Accessibility Can Play a Role in Improving SEO 

While SEO and web accessibility are two distinct areas in the development and maintenance of a website, certain improvements in accessibility could also enhance your search engine optimization efforts in the long run. Two solutions may include:  

• Alt Text on images provides context for screen readers but can also help search engines better understand your content. 

• Structured HTML helps assistive technologies interpret the page's structure while also allowing search engines to crawl your site more effectively. 

That said, a fully accessible website doesn't guarantee high search rankings. True SEO requires focused keyword strategies, well-optimized content and implementing good technical SEO practices. However, building an accessible site often lays the groundwork for a more optimized, user-friendly experience. 

Legal Protection and Risk Mitigation 

Non-compliance with ADA regulations can expose your business to legal risks including lawsuits, fines and settlements. In recent years, there's been a significant rise in website accessibility lawsuits, particularly targeting businesses whose sites are not easily navigable by people with disabilities. Ensuring your site meets accessibility standards protects your business from these risks, saving you costly legal expenses down the road. 

Strengthen Brand Reputation and Trust 

Consumers are increasingly loyal to brands that demonstrate inclusivity and social responsibility. A commitment to accessibility shows that your business cares about providing an inclusive experience for all users, not just those without disabilities. This can build trust with your audience, enhance your brand's reputation and create positive word-of-mouth, positioning your business as forward-thinking and customer-centric. 

Accessible Website Projects We’ve Worked On

At Swanson Russell, we take pride in working with our clients to design and build websites that adhere to AA compliance, making it easier for individuals of all abilities to engage with our clients’ brands. Here are a few examples of websites we've recently designed or built that ensured these compliance standards were met: 

E-Commerce Overhaul for Badlands

We worked with Badlands Gear to redesign their entire digital shopping experience, focusing not just on improving the shopping experience, but improving how users were able to shop easily no matter what. By optimizing for screen readers, improving keyboard navigation and making visual adjustments like enhanced color contrast, we helped ensure their site will be accessible to all users.  

These efforts not only ensured a seamless shopping experience but also drove higher user engagement (+61% increase in Adds to Cart) and conversions (+8% Conversion Rate). 

Brand Update with Cushman