How can webshop owners start improving accessibility on their sites?
Start by testing with a keyboard, fix issues that stop you from purchasing. Embrace accessibility as it helps your brand and SEO.
The easiest first step is keyboard testing. Try ordering from your webshop without a mouse. This quickly reveals critical barriers. From there, you can learn accessibility best practices or work with experts. Importantly, treat accessibility as a business advantage: it improves SEO, builds brand trust, so it attracts new customers, not just disabled ones.
To recap and give a list of things to start working on:
- DIY Testing:
- Try the keyboard test (Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter). If you can’t navigate checkout smoothly, users with disabilities will struggle. You can even fire up VoiceOver on Mac and try to read your page.
- Use free tools like WAVE or axe DevTools to catch basic accessibility errors.
- Training Your Team:
- Familiarize your developers with WCAG 2.1 AA.
- Train content teams to add alt text, write clear product descriptions, and structure content properly (headings, lists).
- Expert Audits:
- Hire accessibility consultants for manual testing with assistive technologies like screen readers (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver).
- Manual testing is crucial because automated tools WILL NOT CATCH all of the issues.
- Shift from Compliance to Value:
- Accessibility is not avoiding fines. It is empathy and also business value. More accessible sites rank better on Google, convert more users, and reach wider audiences.
