mdolla: 5 Things You Can Do To Improve Website Accessibility

The World Wide Web is developing on a daily basis. It has become the most powerful and vital resource of information. Websites offer countless possibilities, which is why they are considered the best source of exchanging information. It is much more convenient and efficient as compared to traditional media channels like television and radio.

If you want to take the best advantage of websites, then it is important that you utilize its power properly. You need to make sure that the information you are sharing is easily accessible. There is no point is sharing information if people cannot reach it.

If you are going to make a website today, you should remember these tips.

1. Choosing Right Management System

Some content management systems (CMS) will allow you to create your website. While choosing the CMS for your site you need to take a look at all the features that it has to offer. It will let you know whether it is perfect according to your requirements. After choosing the right CMS, you need to select the template or theme that is easy to navigate. You need to keep the needs of the website in mind while selecting widgets, modules, plugins, etc. When it comes to editing toolbars and video players, you need to make sure that they allow you to create accessible content.

2. Properly Organizing the Structure of the Content

The accessibility of the material depends on the structure of the content. You should make sure that structure is simple and properly organized. You should use headings so that the content is readily available to all audiences. It is important that you stick to the correct order of the headings. You should separate the presentation of content from the structure; you can do that by using cascading style sheets. Give each page of the site a title so that it is easy for the visitors to navigate it.

3. Choosing the Right Colors

The color of the website is also a decision that should not be taken lightly because it can impact the readability of the site. There are a lot of people who suffer from color blindness of some form. You should be aware of common forms of colorblindness so that you choose colors that are easily comprehensible to most people. While designing and coding the website, you should always keep the factor of colorblindness in mind. You can use free utilities such as color filter, Etre, etc., to test colors of the website. It is better to use high color contrast because it will not only be right for colorblind people, but also for everyone else.

4. Giving Descriptive Names to the Links

When you include links in your content, you should give them unique names. The names should be descriptive so that reader knows the purpose of the link. Try to avoid using just “click here” because it is not descriptive at all, which makers it ineffective as well. If you want readers to pay attention to the link, then you use text that gives a good explanation of the link along with its context. If you are adding a link to share information about the company then you should choose the title, “To learn more about the company, go to About Us,” instead of just saying click here.

5. Adding alt Text to the Images

When you are adding images, especially informative images such ad info-graphics, then it is important that you create alt text for pictures. The text should be able to convey the meaning and purpose of the image. If there is text in the picture, then you should include it in the alt text as well. Alt text is critical for images that are used as links so that they are readily available to the readers.

If you are using images just for decorative purposes, then you do not need to add alt text. You should leave the alt text section empty so that the readers are not distracted by the image, and their focus stays on the relevant content.

Featured photo credit: UiPservice via uipservice.com

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