A business website should be easy to access and use for everyone, regardless of their abilities, devices or browsing preferences. However, many websites contain design and functionality barriers that make it difficult for certain visitors to navigate pages, understand information or complete important actions.
Small issues such as poor colour contrast, missing image descriptions, confusing navigation and inaccessible forms can create unnecessary difficulties for website visitors.
Website accessibility focuses on designing and developing digital experiences that people with different abilities can use effectively.
For businesses, improving accessibility is not just about making a website easier to navigate. It also demonstrates a commitment to inclusive design, improves usability and helps create a better experience for a wider audience.
Here are nine important improvements businesses can implement to make their websites more accessible and user-friendly.
1. Improve Colour Contrast and Text Readability
Colour contrast plays an important role in making website content readable.
When text and background colours have insufficient contrast, visitors may struggle to understand information, particularly people with low vision or colour vision deficiencies.
Businesses should select colour combinations that provide sufficient visual contrast.
Consider these improvements:
Use dark text on light backgrounds or vice versa.
Avoid placing text over visually busy images.
Maintain readable font sizes.
Use clear typography.
Avoid communicating important information through colour alone.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) recommend a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text at Level AA.
Tools such as WebAIM Contrast Checker can help evaluate colour combinations.
2. Add Descriptive Alt Text to Images
Images often communicate important information on business websites.
However, visitors using screen readers may not understand the purpose of an image when appropriate alternative text is missing.
Alt text provides a textual description of meaningful images so assistive technologies can communicate their content.
Businesses should:
Describe the purpose of meaningful images.
Keep descriptions concise and relevant.
Avoid unnecessary keyword stuffing.
Use empty alt attributes for purely decorative images.
Avoid repeating surrounding text unnecessarily.
For example, an image showing a team developing a business website could use descriptive alt text such as “Web development team working on a business website.”
Appropriate alt text improves accessibility and helps visitors understand visual information.
3. Ensure Keyboard-Friendly Website Navigation
Not every visitor uses a mouse or touchscreen to browse a website.
Some people navigate websites entirely through a keyboard or assistive technologies.
An accessible website should allow users to access important functionality using keyboard controls.
Important improvements include:
Support keyboard navigation.
Make interactive elements reachable using the Tab key.
Provide visible keyboard focus indicators.
Ensure logical navigation order.
Allow users to operate menus and forms without a mouse.
Businesses should test their websites using keyboard-only navigation to identify elements that cannot be accessed properly.
This helps create a more usable experience for visitors with different interaction requirements.
4. Use Clear and Descriptive Headings
Headings help visitors understand website structure and find relevant information.
Poorly organised headings can make pages difficult to navigate, particularly for people using screen readers.
Use a logical heading hierarchy throughout your website.
For example:
H1 for the main page title.
H2 for major sections.
H3 for subsections within those sections.
Avoid choosing heading levels only because of their visual appearance.
Use CSS to control typography and styling while maintaining the correct document structure.
Clear headings improve content organisation and make important information easier to locate.
5. Design Accessible Forms and Input Fields
Contact forms, enquiry forms and registration pages are important parts of many business websites.
However, poorly designed forms can create barriers for visitors using assistive technologies.
Common issues include missing labels, unclear instructions and error messages that are difficult to understand.
To improve form accessibility:
Provide visible labels for input fields.
Use clear instructions.
Identify required fields.
Display understandable error messages.
Ensure keyboard accessibility.
Associate error messages with relevant fields.
Avoid relying only on placeholder text.
For example, instead of using only “Enter email” as placeholder text, provide a clearly associated label such as “Email Address”.
Accessible forms make it easier for visitors to complete enquiries and interact with your business.
6. Add Captions and Transcripts to Multimedia Content
Videos and audio content are effective ways to communicate business information.
However, visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing may not be able to access information delivered exclusively through audio.
Businesses should provide suitable alternatives for multimedia content.
Consider implementing:
Accurate captions for videos.
Transcripts for audio recordings.
Descriptive audio where necessary.
Controls for pausing and stopping media.
Accessible video player controls.
Captions should accurately communicate spoken dialogue and relevant sound information.
Providing alternative formats makes multimedia content more inclusive and accessible to a wider audience.
7. Make Website Navigation Simple and Consistent
Website navigation should help visitors understand where they are and how to access important information.
Complicated menus, inconsistent layouts and unclear navigation labels can make websites difficult to use.
Businesses can improve navigation by:
Using consistent menu structures.
Providing descriptive navigation labels.
Grouping related information.
Including a clear search option where useful.
Maintaining predictable navigation behaviour.
Providing visible links to important pages.
For example, a business website should make essential sections such as About Us, Services, Projects and Contact easy to locate.
Simple navigation improves the overall browsing experience and helps visitors find information efficiently.
8. Optimise Website Accessibility for Mobile Devices
Accessibility should extend across smartphones, tablets and desktop computers.
Visitors may use different screen sizes, magnification settings and touch-based navigation methods to access your website.
A responsive design helps ensure that content remains accessible across different devices.
Important considerations include:
Use responsive page layouts.
Avoid unnecessary horizontal scrolling.
Provide appropriately sized interactive elements.
Maintain readable text.
Support screen magnification.
Ensure buttons and links have sufficient spacing.
Test layouts across different screen sizes.
Businesses should also check that important information remains available when users increase text size or change device orientation.
9. Test Website Accessibility Regularly
Website accessibility should be reviewed throughout the design, development and maintenance process.
A website that appears accessible during a basic visual inspection may still contain issues that affect assistive technology users.
Businesses should combine automated testing with manual accessibility reviews.
Useful testing methods include:
Keyboard-only navigation testing.
Screen reader testing.
Colour contrast evaluation.
Form accessibility checks.
Heading structure reviews.
Mobile accessibility testing.
Automated accessibility scanning.
Tools such as WAVE, axe DevTools and Lighthouse can help identify potential accessibility problems.
However, automated tools cannot detect every issue. Testing with assistive technologies and involving people with different accessibility needs can provide additional insights.
Why Website Accessibility Matters for Business Growth
Website accessibility improves the experience of visitors who interact with your digital platforms.
It can also help businesses create more usable websites by improving navigation, readability, content organisation and interaction design.
Important business benefits include:
Reaching a wider audience.
Improving website usability.
Creating more inclusive digital experiences.
Strengthening brand reputation.
Supporting better customer engagement.
Reducing accessibility barriers in important conversion processes.
Businesses should also consider applicable accessibility regulations and standards when developing their digital platforms.
WCAG provides internationally recognised guidance for making web content more accessible.
Conclusion
Website accessibility is an important part of modern website design and development. Businesses should ensure that their digital platforms are usable by people with different abilities and accessibility requirements.
By improving colour contrast, adding descriptive alt text, supporting keyboard navigation, creating accessible forms and conducting regular testing, organisations can remove common barriers and provide better online experiences.
Accessibility should not be treated as a one-time design adjustment. It requires continuous evaluation as websites evolve and new content and features are introduced.
At Futurios, we believe effective website development combines modern design, functionality, performance and accessibility. Creating inclusive digital experiences can help businesses build stronger connections with their audiences and establish a more accessible online presence.