The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires websites to follow specific guidelines to increase viability and accessibility. Ensuring a site is ADA compliant might seem complicated, with guidelines that are hard to follow, but that is not true. Advice on how to follow ADA guidelines is easy to find, and, with a proper IT expert at the helm, getting a website compliant is not difficult.
First, it is essential to understand what the guidelines to be ADA compliant are in the first place. Though they might seem complicated at first, the basics of an ADA compliant website are rather simple. The content of the site should be easy to view regardless of any potential disabilities. A site’s content should be easy to understand, as well. Various devices and platforms should be able to access the site.
Though the guidelines are admittedly vague, the key is to ensure a robust website that can interact and interface with a multitude of devices designed to assist the disabled. Audio technology, easy keyboard access, and transcripts for audio files are relatively easy steps a website can provide to be ADA compliant.
The main issue when handling ADA compliance is making sure the site can be accessed by those alternative devices, such as keyboards designed for the blind. Having a well trained IT department is the best way to ensure a website meets the criteria as set forth by the ADA. A required site must be ADA compliant, too, because otherwise, it might be considered discrimination.
Though the guidelines for ADA compliance in the legislation are vague, many guides can be found to ensure they are followed. The Website Content Accessibility Guidelines provide a plethora of input on how to create an ADA compliant website. Any company or similar institution that supports the WCAG is sure to be considered compliant.
It can be admittedly tricky to follow the ADA guidelines, not just because of how vague they may seem, but because of the amount of coding and work that goes into such efforts. With a bit of research and tech-savvy crew, however, the guidelines become much easier to enact to ensure a compliant site.
If you need help with making your website ADA compliant, Edge Digital can help. Contact us at 919-726-4366.
A long time computer enthusiast – going back to the early 80’s learning COBOL while still in high school. He happily spends his days in front of three computer screens looking at website analytics and figuring out how to get sites to rank even higher.