Accessibility is the way of the future whether we like it or not
Designing for Accessibility will be a trend for 2024 leading up to 2025, and the demand for it will continue for the years to come.
Let's face it, Accessibility Design isn't the priority for most designers. It's not the sexiest, it’s not the prettiest, nor does it encourage thinking-outside-the-box.
It is the opposite. You are given a set of rules to follow, and there is a checklist that dictates whether your design is accessible or not. Hence, designers typically just ignore it either because they are not trained to consider it, or they ignore it because they don’t know much about it.
As technology advances over time, and assistive devices become more available, the demand for accessibility design will rise with it.
The time is now, and the ball will keep rolling whether you like it or not. Accessibility is a requirement now for businesses moving into 2024 and into the future. According to Ontario.ca:
“The deadline to file an accessibility compliance report was December 31, 2023. Filing your report is a legal obligation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).”
So what does this mean for businesses and their brands moving forward? It means, that brands must consider a way to integrate accessibility into their branding very soon.
But why do we need to do it?
We all know technology grows faster and faster each day. Change is coming. And It's only a matter of time before hardware and software collides with each other in the accessibility space. That is a good thing.
What's not good is that typical human behavior says that we are afraid of change.
The truth is, people are afraid of change. Yet, here we are, craving for innovation. And the irony is that innovation IS change.
2024 marks the last year for companies to follow web accessibility guidelines. Anything past the month of July will face the possibility of fines from the government.
And with the rise of AI. Accessibility is among the only things that keep the human connection together.
Technology is developing at a rapid pace. The gap between the digital world and users with disabilities are closing thanks to assistive devices. Assistive devices has allowed people with disability to participate and interact with the digital world conveniently.
The WCAG outlined all the necessary requirements to meet an accessible design. The basic principles are Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, Robust. What exactly does this mean?
Perceivable—means you have to make sure that elements in your content, interactive and non-interactive, should be distinct and discernible among each other.
Is there enough contrast between your background, foreground and adjacent content? Are your links easily recognizable? Are buttons easily recognizable? Do your images and multimedia content have alternate texts available? Are there subtitles in your videos? These are some of the common questions of content perception you need to go through in order to make sure that your design is accessible.
Operable—means that your content is easily navigable across all types of assistive devices. A product with an operable design allows for easy and logical navigation between key information. The design needs to be accessible by keyboard-only users and other non-pointer type devices. Time-based media that requires time to read or interact should have an option to control time.
Understandable—means that your users understand what is happening as often as possible. Are your icons and navigation consistent? Do you have clear error and feedback loop that is not confusing or vague? Are your typesettings: font selection, colour, font weight readable and understandable? Are the actions from interactive elements predictable? These are some of the questions you may need to answer in order to make sure that your design is accessible.
Robust—means that your design can be reliably and continuously used by assistive technologies as technology advances. Continuous testing and updates, making sure that your design is always up-to-date, ensures that your product is robust.
What we already know about accessibility design today
It is usually applied on website interactivity
Accessibility design, as it is marketed today, is known as a set of rules published by WCAG that impacts websites and web applications. By simply following these rules you create a more accessible and inclusive product. But what is underestimated is that the product can be broader than a website or a web application. I believe accessibility design can be applied to Branding as well.
What are the types of disabilities our internet users have?
There are many types of disabilities that are identified today; however, I will list the ones that get impacted by user experience the most:
- Reading Disabilities (Dyslexia)
- Visual Disabilities (Color Blindness)
- Cognitive Disabilities.
- Motor Disabilities.
- Hearing Disabilities.
…
What are the different assistive devices that they use to participate in the internet?
Assistive devices help users interact and navigate through your product. An accessible design makes it easy for these assistive devices to do what they’re supposed to do. There are many types of assistive devices today; however, I will list the ones that get impacted by user experience the most:
- Screen readers
- Speech recognition
- Trackball
- Color modification
- Speech input software
- Ergonomic keyboard
- Braille
- Switches
- Motion tracker
- Eye tracker
- Head pointer
How is accessibility design implemented within branding?
Accessibility design can be implemented within branding by actively considering the 4 key principles: Perceivability, Operablability, Understandability, and Robustness.
How does your visual identity system hold up to these principles?
Colors
How thoughtful was the planning for your colour system? Does your brand colours meet the contrast requirements when tested against each other? Does your brand colours take into consideration the digital implications of the palette (i.e. if your brand colour is read, what will now be your error state colours?) These are important questions that you need to simulate when it comes to brand colours.
Typography
When it comes to your type systems, have you considered the visual impact of the font you select for the brand? Is it readily available and accessible on the web across all devices regardless if it is needed by an assistive device or not? Is the form of the type easily perceivable in small and large formats?
Brand Experience
How does your brand react to inquiries? How does your brand plan for producing time-based media? (i.e video and audio-only content) Are there alternate texts and scripts available for contents that may require it?
Photo & Video
Does your brand identity system account for colour grading, styling and composition to make sure that all media has enough contrast for visually challenged or impaired users? Are your photos & videos responsive in the way they are displayed on websites or mobile applications?
I know it adds up more complex work into an already complex brand development. But these are small simulations that make your brand more human in the finer details. These are not set rules; however, these are guidelines of how I would plan for an accessibility-driven brand identity system.
As simple as I may make it sound, accessibility-driven design is not as simple as it looks
What’s happening in the accessibility design sector so far…
As simple as I may make it sound, accessibility-driven design is not as simple as it looks to implement on the web. You have many individually unique factors to consider. Disabilities and their respective assistive technologies have to match the accessible design catered to them. And sometimes there are users with a combination of disabilities that require a more complex solution. Which means, inevitably, you will have to create more layouts than typically is required.
This part, I have no answer. What I can suggest is for us to try and tick all of the boxes in the accessibility standards guideline. Jakob Nielsen has a solution for this using A.I accessibility.
A simplified flow of a non-accessible UI / UX would follow a straight line: from data & research into GUI, straight to its users.
A simplified flow of an accessible UI / UX would split into a fork: from data & research, into GUI, and split to either the sighted user or towards a layout for a blind user, a audio-only user, or a user using an assistive device.
It is clear that with a simple accessible user flow we can determine how to approach a more responsive design for a more accessible design.
For comparison, here’s how the old internet looks like and their archaic websites. Layout was not easy to follow, a lot of content was squeezed into a single page instead of being split comfortably into multiple pages.
Remember that there are users that do not share the same experience as the rest of the world
The internet is highly adaptive and beautiful. Technology is moving faster in developing and providing assistive devices to users who need them. But the design process for more accessible web products is moving at a snail’s pace. We can help push it forward by spreading awareness and by actively advocating for accessibility design.
On the other hand, we can begin integrating accessibility design into brand identity design by following the four principles of accessible design: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. A brand identity that has roots in accessibility will ensure that it has future-proofed itself in preparation for the new wave of accessible design.
There are movements around the globe that push for a more accessibility-driven design. Knowbility’s Accessibility Internet Rally (AIR) has been teaching web pros how to design accessible websites for over 25 years. WCAG was initiated in 1995 and has consistently been adding onto the development of their accessibility guidelines. This year, they actually redesigned their website and it looks incredible.
All in all, these principles of accessibility design are available for everyone to use. We just have to remember that there are users that do not share the same experience as the rest of the world. By being proactive in our design approach to implement accessible design we can ensure that the brands we develop and the products we design are more inclusive and more user friendly.
All in all, as A.I. continue to develop at a rapid pace, and their practical uses become more intertwined into the internet, there will come a time where everything will be done by A.I.. This includes, development, design and deployment. It will be very difficult to determine which projects are done by A.I. or by humans. Accessibility design is among the only web practices we can adopt to retain humanity across the web.
