ADA Compliance refers to the American Disabilities Act Standards for Accessible Design, which any website must adhere to become an ADA compliant website. This act aims to ensure that individuals with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else, an intention also translated into the digital realm. ADA compliance is about making sure websites, tools, and technologies are accessible to all, including those with disabilities.
Yes, websites need to be ADA compliant. According to ADA Title III, businesses that fall under the category of “public accommodation,” such as hotels, banks, and public transportation, are required to have ADA compliant websites. These requirements mean that websites must be accessible to people with a wide range of disabilities.
ADA compliant web design is a method of designing and creating websites that meet ADA requirements, ensuring that they are accessible to people with disabilities. This typically includes considerations such as providing text alternatives for non-text content, creating content that can be presented in different ways (for example simpler layout) without losing information or structure, and designing functionality that can be operated through a variety of user inputs, not just mouse movement. Compliance standards such as WCAG 2.2 can guide such design efforts.
Small businesses can take several steps toward ADA compliance. You can start with a site analysis for accessibility, followed by the use of an ADA compliant website checklist to identify potential issues. Accessibility testing is another critical step for ensuring compliance, and we can help by performing an accessibility audit for comprehensive assessment. If found non-compliant, we have software ready to implement compliance technology solutions.
While technically you could create an alternative website for ADA compliance, this is generally not advised. It could be seen as creating a separate but unequal solution, and it may still fall foul of the ADA Title III requirements. A better approach is to integrate accessibility into the primary website, ensuring it meets ADA requirements and WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines.
Testing for ADA compliance involves conducting an accessibility audit on your website. To ensure ADA compliance, we can conduct a comprehensive accessibility audit on your website. This methodical process involves evaluating your site against the ADA compliant website checklist and the WCAG 2.1 AA checklist. Our team looks for key elements such as website navigability without a mouse, the presence of captions for audio and video content, and ensuring your site is compatible with screen reader software. By utilizing advanced accessibility testing tools, we streamline this process and provide a
detailed analysis of areas that meet standards and those that need improvement. Contact us today so we can ensure that your site is fully accessible and compliant!