Digital accessibility can seem a little tricky, especially with all the acronyms and technical talk out there. Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be so confusing.
Simply put, these terms revolve around one central idea: ensuring that everyone, regardless of their ability, has access to your digital content.
Let’s dive deeper into what these terms mean, why they’re a good thing, and what you can do to make your organization more accessible.
These globally recognized standards are your “how-to” guide for web accessibility. Thankfully, they receive updates to keep pace with ever-changing technology. That means the higher the version number, the newer the update. Each WCAG version has 3 levels of compliance: A, AA, and AAA. The more “A’s” there are, the more criteria you need to meet.
We asked our Subject Matter Expert to explain the WCAG 2 versions:
WCAG 2.0 was published in 2008 and is the original 2.x standard. It has a total of 61 success criteria, 38 of which are required to meet Level AA. This version focuses on general accessibility, like keyboard navigation, color contrast, and screen reader functionality.
WCAG 2.1, released in 2018, added 17 new success criteria that address mobile accessibility, low vision, and cognitive needs. With this version, Level AA requires 50 success criteria.
WCAG 2.2, released in 2023, added 9 more criteria, as well as removing 1. This brings the total Level AA requirements to 55. The new success criteria focus primarily on users with cognitive and motor disabilities.
The overall goal of the 2.2 update was to make web content easier to understand and use for a larger group of people. Some examples of the updates include: eliminating the need to rely on memory or solve complicated puzzles to log in and requiring larger buttons to reduce frustration for users with motor disabilities.
We remediate to WCAG 2.2 AA, even though it’s not yet legally required. It offers better accessibility, especially for people with cognitive and motor disabilities, and helps future-proof compliance.
– Courtney Collins, Digital Accessibility & Compliance Project Manager
This portion of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires federal agencies and organizations receiving federal funding to make their website, apps, emails, downloads, and technology accessible for people with disabilities.
Section 508 points to the WCAG 2.0 AA standard as the “how-to” guide for making federal government information accessible.
Related: 508 and WCAG: What’s the Difference?
This law requires state and local governments, businesses, and nonprofits to give everyone equal access to ALL goods, services, and communications.
The ADA is broken down into Titles. Title II and Title III remove communication barriers for people with disabilities.
Depending on where you live, you may also need to comply with state-level accessibility laws.
Several states have digital accessibility laws on the books, including the following states. More are expected to follow suit.
Most of these laws require compliance with WCAG 2.0 or 2.1 AA.
Seeing a pattern yet? (WCAG. Following WCAG standards is the pattern.)
All these terms boil down to a single objective – your content should be viewable, readable, interactable, and ACCESSIBLE for everyone.
A lack of digital accessibility is similar to closing your door in a potential customer’s face. They’re denied entry, and you lose out on business.
These terms also mean you’re legally required to make your organization’s digital information accessible. (Potential lawsuits? Yikes!)
Organizations have come to us in a panic because they thought they could get away without being accessible. It didn’t work. So, instead of having a plan in place and accessibility built in from the start, they’re left scrambling, backtracking, and, in many cases, paying a lot more money.
Being forced to follow rules doesn’t sound great, does it? Well, hear us out.
While it may seem like a lot of work for little payoff, having your information digitally accessible does a lot more good than you think.
These are guidelines that ultimately help all of us!
Related: Why I Love WCAG (And You Should, Too!)
Focus on making progress, not getting it 100% correct right away. It would be great if you could flip a switch and make everything accessible, but that’s not the reality.
What does the journey look like? Here are a few tasks to get you started.
Related: The Wild West of Section 508 Compliance – Braille Works
Accessibility, especially digital accessibility, is a process. You’ll need to revisit digital accessibility regularly because new things will come up. Having a plan on how you’ll do that makes it easier to remember and more likely that you’ll follow through.
Ensuring digital accessibility may seem like a lot of work initially, because it is. But once you dive in, you’ll find it’s worthwhile. Before you know it, it’ll be a regular part of your day.
Following digital accessibility laws leads to a more inclusive experience for all of your customers. Today, tomorrow, and always.
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