It’s equally important to offer an uninterrupted user experience for all the internet users across the globe, which includes catering to the differently-abled customer base as well. If you’re running an eCommerce store, Digital Accessibility is essential, which makes it easy for someone with disabilities to navigate through the site with ease.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law in 1990 to emphasize equal rights for disabled users. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that 26% of adults in the United States have some disability, among which 82% of these users have access to the internet. If your website is not ADA compliant, you’re going to lose those potential customers to a competitor of yours, and this for sure is not sweet news to swallow.
With the market influence of over a trillion dollars in disposable income, this is an untapped market for every business owner.
Large corporations like Microsoft, Bank of America, Delta are already being compliant, and now is the time for every small to medium online business owners to lead the change and make the website accessible for all.
Today’s Guest
Sivaranjani Ramamoorthy
In our latest episode, I sat down with Ranjani, one of DCKAP’s Digital Accessibility Specialists. Her previous roles as a Quality Assurance Architect and a Project Manager, helped her to understand the complete flow of ADA compliance. She shared her latest insights on diverse topics that include: what is the disabilities act, what it means for the brands, how and why every brand can and must make their site accessible for all, and many more happenings around the world of Digital Accessibility have been discussed.
You’ll Learn
- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 replaced WCAG 1.0 in December 2008, followed by WCAG 2.1 was issued in June 2018.
- WCAG 2.2 and WCAG 3.0 (referred to as Silver) is already in development. For now, WCAG 2.0 is grouped into three levels, A, AA, and AAA.
- With Level A being the basic, AA deals with the most common and most significant barriers; AAA is considered to be the most complex and highest level of accessibility.
State and local governments, business and non-profit organizations that serve the public, restaurants, theaters, and schools that fall under “Title III Regulations” are the organizations that need to have this ADA compliant.
So, go ahead, listen, and let us know how it is. Share, if you’ve loved and found it useful. If you have any comments on the show, just send them over to me.
Show Notes
- [3:45] What is ADA Compliance?
- [4:51] How is this related to eCommerce?
- [5:56] How differently-abled people find it difficult to access the online store?
- [9:24] The revenue impact of differently-abled people in the market
- [11:22] Levels of Compliance
- [15:48] The steps to make your website ADA Compliant
- [19:35] Is the current COVID situation the right time to take a break and make your website ADA compliant?
- [21:46] While ADA is focused on the USA, what are the web accessibility compliance laws in other countries?
- [23:10] How Non-ADA compliance impact your business
