Have you ever wondered if your WordPress site is accessible to everyone? If not, you should start thinking about it now. Making sure your website is accessible to everyone is the right thing to do, but it can also help improve your SEO ranking. This blog post will show you how to check if your site meets accessibility standards by using tools like accessiBe WordPress and how to make necessary changes if it doesn’t.
What is accessibility and why should I care about it?
Accessibility refers to designing products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities. The goal of accessibility is to enable all people to have equal access and opportunity to use products and services.
Why should you care about accessibility? There are a few reasons:
- It’s the right thing to do: Everyone deserves to have equal access to information and services.
- It’s good for business: Making your site accessible can help you reach a larger audience and improve your SEO ranking.
- It’s the law: In some countries, including the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, some laws require organizations to provide accessible websites.
How do you check if your site meets accessibility standards?
There are a few ways to check if your site is accessible. One way is to use an automated testing tool. These tools will crawl your website and look for any accessibility issues. Some of the most popular automated testing tools are WAVE, axe, and Site Improve.
Why WordPress sites might not be accessible (and how to fix that)
While WordPress is a very accessible platform, some common mistakes can make a WordPress site inaccessible.
One common mistake is using themes and plugins that are not accessible. When choosing a theme or plugin, ensure it has been tested for accessibility and is compliant with the latest accessibility standards.
Another common mistake is not adding alt text to images. Alt-text is used to describe an image for people who can’t see it. When adding images to your website, include alt text that accurately describes the image.
A third common mistake is not using headings correctly. Headings are used to organizing content and make it easy to scan. When creating headings, use the correct hierarchy (e.g., don’t skip from Heading Level Two to Heading Level Four).
Common mistakes people make when designing a website and how to avoid them
People make a few common mistakes when designing a website that can impact its accessibility.
One mistake is using too much color. When choosing colors for your website, use a contrast checker to make sure they pass the color contrast ratio. The WCAG recommends a contrast ratio of at least four-five for normal text and three-four for large text.
Another mistake is using non-standard fonts. When choosing a font for your website, be sure to choose a sans-serif font that is easy to read. Arial, Verdana, and Tahoma are some of the most popular sans-serif fonts.
A third mistake is not making links visible. When adding links to your website, make them obvious (e.g., don’t use the same color as the background). You can also add a link icon or underline the text to make links more visible.
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