Web accessibility
Web accessibility
is good for business.
Whether you have an existing site that requires accessibility help or are building a new site, we have you covered.
What is web accessibility?
Web accessibility means that websites, tools, and technologies are usable by people who have visual, auditory, cognitive, physical, speech, and other disabilities which impact how they are able to access the internet. In many cases, people with disabilities employ additional technology such as screen-readers to enjoy the web. The worldwide standard for accessibility is WCAG 2.0 and 2.1, published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Accessibility is a legal requirement in many countries including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the United States, EU Web Accessibility Directive in the EU, Accessible Canada Act in Canada and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) in Ontario.
What we do
Our knowledgeable team will work with you to ensure your existing or new site is accessibility compliant.
Accessibility review
Our design and development teams will review your site and use specialized tools to measure WCAG accessibility compliance. Our team will review elements such as contrast ratio, image alt text, content labels, link text, iframe titles, navigation, scrollability and other items. We will provide a report outlining areas of concern and the seriousness of the issues. The report will include which pages have issues and where on the page those issues exist. We will also provide a recommended course of action to address our findings.
Accessible website design and development
We ensure that the websites we build are WCAG 2.0 AA compliant. We weave accessibility best practices into every step of the process, including information architecture, design and development. This means that we take into account elements such as contrast, navigation structure, hyperlink behavior, content tagging and a host of other factors when designing and building a website. You can rest easy knowing that your site is not only legally compliant, but also usable by people with disabilities.
Accessibility implementation
Based on the outcome of the accessibility review, our team will work with you to resolve the identified issues. This typically involves a combination of user-facing, technical and content modifications. User-facing modifications can include changes such as background/foreground colors, hyperlink behavior and navigation modifications. Technical changes typically include adding metadata to page elements such as forms, links, icons and iframes. Content updates usually include adding alt text to images and videos. Once we have completed our modifications, we will conduct a post-implementation review and provide you with a written report outlining the changes.
Third party software
It is sometimes difficult or costly to bring existing websites into compliance with accessibility guidelines. It could be that achieving sufficient contrast is difficult, or elements of the site are built in a fashion that would require substantial effort to modify. In these cases, we are able to install a third-party accessibility compliance application to assist. There are a number of software products available that are able to modify the contrast ratio, text size and other website elements to bring them in-line with accessibility standards. Although the website itself is not accessibility compliant, you are providing the ability for people with disabilities to use your site.
"We are extremely pleased with the work and dedication shown by the team at Reshift and their understanding of our needs and objectives."
Shane Bennett
Vice President, Bennett Insurance
Accessibility and SEO go hand-in-hand
Although ensuring your web properties are accessible is a legal requirement in many jurisdictions, it is also a best practice. The internet, by its very nature, removes barriers to interaction and communication that many people face in the physical world. By ensuring that your website and other digital properties are accessible by everyone, it ensures you are able to reach all the prospective customers who may be interested in your products and services.
Another benefit is that there is a strong overlap between SEO best practices and the WCAG guidelines. Ensuring your site is accessible via screen readers and other assistive technology also means that your site is more easily crawled and understood by search engines, which can provide your company with a boost in search rankings.
