5 Quick Facts about ADA Compliance for Websites

As of early 2021, ADA is a well-known term – especially for those that own or manage a company website. If you’re here, you may be wondering about what the ADA is or what it might mean for your business.

This won’t be a comprehensive blog post about ADA web compliance, but it will give you a quick view of ADA compliance so you can take the next step to learn more. You can also find a series of ADA compliance blog posts on our website. Click here to view ADA compliance articles.

Continue reading to learn 5 quick facts about having an accessible website.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Was Created in 1990

By now, most Americans understand what is involved with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), however, it’s more so understood as it applies to physical places and spaces. In 2021 and beyond, our society relies so much on technology and the web that it would only make sense that this set of laws would be applied to the world of the web.

This is where the web content accessibility guidelines come in. These guidelines were established by the W3C, which is an international organization that sets web standards. These standards are often referred to as WCAG (web content accessibility guidelines). As of 2021, there are 2 major versions:

• WCAG 2.0 standards
• WCAG 2.1 standards

Most websites will avoid ADA lawsuits or demand letters if WCAG 2.0 standards are met, however, if you’re in a position to meet 2.1, we encourage you to do so.

WCAG Compliance Can be Costly

Achieving full compliance on your website can be a costly endeavor. I don’t say this to deter you from doing so, but this service is highly complex and technical, meaning it will cost you some money.

Why is ADA expensive? It has to do with a few factors:

• Do you need a web accessibility audit? (The answer to this is likely “yes.”)
• How old is your website?
• Has your website’s code been maintained?
• How large is your website?

These factors, and others, will affect the cost of making your website compliant.

Compliance Requires Regular Auditing & Remediation

Like SEO, achieving digital accessibility is a long-term effort. It’s not something we’d ever call a “one-and-done” type project. It first begins with an audit, then website remediation, and then ongoing monitoring.

Ongoing maintenance is crucial – especially for those websites that are managed by non-developers or non-designers. Additionally, assistive technology is changing all of the time, and as such, so will the guidelines.

Most times, we recommend monthly auditing and remediation.

Designers & Developers Are Still Learning ADA

As I mentioned above, achieving an ADA-compliant website is relatively new in the grand scheme of things. I’ve been in the digital space since 2012 and ADA has only come into the mainstream since around 2017-2018. Designers and developers are still becoming accustomed to ADA, so it’s important to vet whichever accessibility experts you plan to work with.

1 in 5 American Adults is Disabled

This fact usually surprises many. But if you think more about it, it shouldn’t. People with disabilities come from all walks of life and there’s a wide spectrum of people that you need to consider who might want to access your content.

Also, consider that some of these users might be temporarily or permanently disabled, but either way, it shouldn’t prevent them from accessing your website.

Need an ADA Audit?

We are a Florida web design and digital marketing agency that specializes in ADA website compliance audits, remediation, and monitoring.

Call us at (239) 362-1271 for more information and to get a free consultation.