Build Better Websites with Inclusive Design
TL;DR:
- Accessibility features improve your site's performance and user experience
- Clear layouts, readable fonts, and proper colour contrast help everyone navigate better
- Search engines favour accessible websites, boosting your content visibility
- Inclusive design expands your audience and strengthens your brand reputation
- Small accessibility improvements can deliver significant results
Making your website accessible isn't optional anymore. When you build with clean layouts, readable fonts, and proper colour contrast, you're not only meeting accessibility standards but actively improving how your content performs.
This approach benefits everyone who visits your site and makes your content work better with search engine algorithms.
Why Accessible Design Improves Performance
Accessible websites perform better across the board. When you design for people with different needs, you create cleaner code, better structure, and clearer navigation. Search engines can read this content more easily, which means better rankings.
Your visitors get a smoother experience too. Whether someone's using a screen reader, browsing on a mobile device in bright sunlight, or simply prefers larger text, accessible design removes barriers that might otherwise drive them away.
Key Benefits of Inclusive Web Design
Better User Experience for Everyone
Accessible design helps all users navigate and understand your website more easily. When you add proper headings, clear navigation, and sufficient colour contrast, you're making life easier for everyone, not just users with disabilities.
Improved Search Engine Performance
Google and other search engines now prioritise websites with good accessibility features. Your content becomes more discoverable when it's properly structured with semantic HTML, alt text for images, and clear heading hierarchies.
Legal Compliance and Brand Reputation
Meeting WCAG standards keeps you compliant with legal requirements while showing visitors you care about inclusive experiences. This builds trust and demonstrates social responsibility.
Simple Changes That Make a Big Difference
Start with these straightforward improvements:
Typography and Readability
Use font sizes of at least 16px for body text. Choose fonts that are easy to read and avoid decorative typefaces for main content areas.
Colour and Contrast
Ensure sufficient contrast between text and background colours. Tools like WebAIM's contrast checker help you verify your colour choices meet accessibility standards.
Navigation and Structure
Create logical heading hierarchies using H1, H2, H3 tags in order. Add skip links to help keyboard users jump to main content quickly.
Images and Media
Write descriptive alt text for images that convey important information. For decorative images, use empty alt attributes to prevent screen readers from announcing unnecessary details.
FAQs
What's the easiest way to check if my site is accessible?
Use free tools like WAVE or axe DevTools to scan your pages for common accessibility issues. These highlight problems and suggest fixes.
How much does accessibility impact search rankings?
While Google doesn't directly rank on accessibility features, many accessibility improvements (like proper headings and alt text) are also SEO best practices that do influence rankings.
Do I need to redesign my entire website for accessibility?
Not necessarily. Many accessibility improvements are small tweaks to existing design elements. Start with the most impactful changes like colour contrast and heading structure.
What's the difference between WCAG A, AA, and AAA compliance?
These are different levels of accessibility conformance. WCAG AA is the most commonly targeted standard and covers the majority of accessibility needs for most websites.
Jargon Buster
WCAG: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines – international standards that define how to make web content accessible to people with disabilities
Alt text: Short descriptions of images that screen readers can announce to users who can't see the images
Screen reader: Software that reads website content aloud for users who are blind or have low vision
Semantic HTML: Using HTML elements for their intended purpose (like using heading tags for headings) rather than just for styling
Wrap-up
Building with inclusive design principles creates websites that work better for everyone. You'll see improvements in user engagement, search performance, and overall site quality when you prioritise accessibility from the start.
The changes don't need to be overwhelming. Focus on the fundamentals first – readable text, proper colour contrast, and logical navigation structure. These improvements compound over time, creating a better experience for all your users while strengthening your site's technical foundation.
Ready to dive deeper into web design best practices? Join Pixelhaze Academy for comprehensive training on building better websites.