Since Congress added websites to Title Three of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that everyone had equal access to the web, there has been a surge of website-related ADA lawsuits. According to Seyfarth Shaw LLP, there has been a 177% increase in web-related ADA lawsuits from 2017 to 2018 and it’s expected to rise. Although businesses are often left vulnerable to these lawsuits, fear of a lawsuit shouldn’t be the only reason to have an accessible website.
Here are five unexpected benefits of ADA compliant websites and why it should be at the forefront of your mind when creating and maintaining a website:
Your website will be more user-friendly.
When making your website accessible, you are improving your website usability for not only the disabled but for all your visitors. Easy-to-read and navigate websites results in more return visitors. You’ll also help mobile phone users and people with age-related issues to access and view your site more easily. These are both rapidly growing segments that you want to capture.
You will reach a wider audience.
According to the United States Census Bureau, 12.8% of the U.S. population has a disability. If your website isn’t accessible, you’re missing out on those 40.7 million people. This market segment has the power to increase sales and brand awareness on the web.
You will build positive PR.
We live in an era of activism. Consumers are more likely to support companies that have the same beliefs, ideals and values as they do. You will stand out among the competition by being usable for everyone while also demonstrating social responsibility.
You will improve in SEO.
Website accessibility and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) go hand in hand. By having accessible features such as a properly marked up semantic structure, well-labeled images, captions, and transcribed videos, your SEO will improve. It’s a win-win situation!
Accessibility helps build a better society.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was first put in place so that everyone could have equal access and equal opportunities for everything in the physical world. It makes sense that it would spread over to the digital world. Making your website accessible removes barriers that exclude those with disabilities from utilizing the web like everyone else.
These unexpected benefits of ADA compliant websites prove that an accessible website is not only for the disabled. Contact Electrum Branding to learn how you can make your website ADA compliant.