Accessibility Testing and Development
What is Accessibility Testing
Accessibility Testing is divided into a series of processes Addictive Media consultants will conduct to analyse how difficult or easy it is for users with specific needs to access the content and functionality of your website.
Some of the methodologies we use to test a website's accessibility are:
- Technical Analysis of the site's compliance with recognised accessibility guidelines (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines - WCAG)
- Expert Review of the website's structure, content and functionalities
- User-based testing with representatives of groups with special needs(e.g. people with disabilities)
Importance of Accessibility
The obvious reason for accessibility is to increase the number of users to a website. Every visitor to a website is generally a potential customer. If there is a group of users that cannot access your website they may take their business to a competitor.
One of the biggest groups of people to take advantage out of the accessibility of a website are users with disabilities. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics 20% of Australian citizens have a reported disability. Many of these users will have specific requirements in a website to allow them to successfully access the content and functionality. These requirements may include:
- Users with a visual disability may access a website via screenreaders (software that reads out the content of a page)
- People with a physical disability may utilise assistive technologies to navigate a site (e.g. headwands and mouth sticks instead of a mouse)
- People with mental disabilities may require a different structure of content or navigation to assist in finding information
- and others
In addition to losing potential customers, there are legal reasons that require Australian companies to comply with accessibility standards. The Australian Disability Discrimiation Act specifically outlines regulations towards making websites accessible to people with disabilities in the document World Wide Web Access: Disability Discrimination Act Advisory Notes (2002).