Five ways to improve your event website ’ s accessibility
ASP frontend developer Giulia Broli on the importance of making sure your event website is accessible for everyone
W hen creating an event website , it is easy to focus on what it looks like , the UX and SEO . But how many of us stop and think about our event website ’ s accessibility ? Website accessibility means websites are designed and developed so that people , no matter their mobility , can use them .
Accessibility is not just about disabilities . Anyone can benefit from good accessibility . A setting that helps somebody with poor vision can also help somebody with tired eyes . An example of this is zooming into a page so you can read text more clearly .
However , currently many websites both in and out of the events industry are developed without a thought for accessibility . This means that instead of those event websites being year-round shop windows for a show , for people who need accessibility tools those shop windows are boarded up permanently .
The upshot of this is that those people who are unable to use your event website won ’ t be able to register to your event and worse still , may feel forgotten about or even shunned .
So how can you improve your event website ’ s accessibility ? Below are five ways you can make quick improvements .
Provide alt text for images and other non-text content All images and other non-text content like graphs etc . on your website should have a text alternative available . This should be descriptive text so someone using a text reader understands what is being depicted on screen .
Use closed captions and provide video transcripts Closed captions are text alternatives for video content - essentially subtitles for a website . Both closed captions and transcripts are vital to the accessibility of media and multimedia , like videos .
Make sure your event website is readable when zoomed in Carry out a simple check to your event website by zooming in by 150 % and see if it still works without assistive technology . It is also important that zooming in doesn ’ t cause other accessibility issues .
Ensure there is sufficient colour contrast For digital accessibility , colour contrast is critical . Colour
Giulia Broli
“ Instead of event websites being yearround shop windows for a show , for people who need accessibility tools those shop windows are boarded up permanently ”
contrast refers to the difference in light between any element on the website , i . e . the font and its background .
Visitors to your event website who have low vision , low-contrast vision , colour vision deficiency or frankly even people with 20:20 vision , will really benefit from content that has pronounced colour contrast .
It ’ s worth remembering that most people with colour vision deficiency have difficulty distinguishing between shades of red , yellow and green . This is known as ‘ redgreen ’ colour vision deficiency . It ’ s a common problem that affects around 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women .
Make sure your event website is keyboard-friendly Many people can ’ t use a mouse or prefer not to use one so instead use a keyboard , keyboard emulator , or other alternative mouse-free devices . That ’ s why it ’ s essential that every link and feature that can be operated with a mouse is accessible using only a keyboard . Testing to see if your event website is keyboard friendly is easy .
Try out some common commands like holding down Shift and Tab to see if you can move freely through your website ’ s content . If they don ’ t , speak to ASP or your website developer for assistance .
l For more information on Accessibility , check out The Web Accessibility Initiative ’ s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines . https :// www . w3 . org / WAI / standardsguidelines / wcag /
l Contact ASP : team @ asp . events
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