Getting support for accessibility efforts isn’t easy. There are many accessibility myths, wrong assumptions, and expectations that make accessibility look like a complex, expensive, and time-consuming project. Let’s fix that!
Below are some practical techniques that have been working well for me to convince stakeholders to support and promote accessibility in small and large companies.
This article is part of our ongoing series on UX. You might want to take a look at Smart Interface Design Patterns 🍣 and the upcoming live UX training as well. Use code BIRDIE to save 15% off.
Launching Accessibility Efforts
Contents
- 1 Launching Accessibility Efforts
- 2 Useful Templates To Make A Strong Case For Accessibility
- 2.1 1. “But Accessibility Is An Edge Case!”
- 2.2 2. “But There Is No Business Value In Accessibility!”
- 2.3 3. “But We Don’t Have Disabled Users!”
- 2.4 4. “Screen Readers Won’t Work With Our Complex System!”
- 2.5 5. “We Can’t Win Market With Accessibility Features!”
- 2.6 6. “Our Customers Can’t Relate To Accessibility Needs”
- 2.7 7. “Let’s Add Accessibility Later”
- 3 Building Accessibility Practices From Scratch
- 4 Wrapping Up
- 5 Useful Resources
- 6 Meet Smart Interface Design Patterns
A common way to address accessibility is to speak to stakeholders through the lens of corporate responsibility and ethical and legal implications. Personally, I’ve never been very successful with this strategy. People typically dismiss concerns that they can’t relate to, and as designers, we can’t build empathy with facts, charts, or legal concerns.
The problem is that people often don’t know how accessibility applies to them. There is a common assumption that accessibility is dull and boring and leads to “unexciting” and unattractive products. Unsurprisingly, businesses often neglect it as an irrelevant edge case.