Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities
It is wonderful to see the buzz around this day. Gradually, the mainstream media is beginning to realise how important this issue is. I saw an interview on the BBC this morning with the head of an organisation that is as passionate about website accessibility as I am, particularly with regard to e-commerce.
The guidelines for ensuring websites meet the needs of disabled people have been around since 1999. At Access by Design, we have made sure that every website we have built, since we started in 2006, meets the needs of as many people as possible. We also built the world’s first website that was both fully accessible and fully responsive for mobiles and tablets, in 2011.
Access to goods and services is not just a fundamental right but it also makes economic sense. The combined spending power of disabled people across the planet is simply huge (estimated at $3 Trillion, apparently) and yet, according to the WHO, over 90% of the world’s websites fail to meet basic accessibility standards. As a business, if you cater for the needs of your disabled customers, they will spend their money with you and their loyalty is guaranteed. Why? Because you can be certain that most of your competitors will not have a website that meets their needs, so do your business a favour and make your website accessible!
If you would like to find out more about this issue, why not get in touch for a free 15-minute consultation by following this link? https://calendly.com/cliveloseby/accessibility-audit-free-initial-consultation
Alternatively, we run a free monthly workshop dedicated to explaining more about website accessibility, please follow this link to book yourself in: https://webaccess.live
I am also giving a TedX talk on Wednesday March 2nd 2022 at the Quay Arts Centre, Newport, Isle of Wight. Please follow this link to find out more: https://www.tedxlukelybrook.com/talks/
I am just so happy that the message about website accessibility is gaining ground all the time. The title of the TedX event is appropriately titled “If not now, when?”. Getting websites made accessible for disabled people makes them more accessible for everyone!
Clive Loseby
Access by Design. Beautiful, Accessible, Web Design, Chichester.
Changing the World, One Website at a Time.
