| |
|
|
| Webmaster Resources: Web Development Information | |
|
|
|
Benefits Of Making Your Website Accessible To Disabled Users - Part 2: The Business Case
The Disability Discrimination Act states that service providers must not discriminate against disabled people. A website is regarded as a service and therefore comes under this law. Some organisations are changing to their websites, but many are seemingly not making the adjustments. Disabled people don't access their website, they say, so why should they care? There are, however, two very good reasons as to why businesses should start taking these issues seriously: There are seven reasons for this being applicable: 1. Your website will be easier to manage An accessible website separates the content (the words and images that we see on the screen) and presentation (the way that these words and images are laid out) of each page. Each web page has an HTML (HyperText Markup Language) document, which contains the words and images for that page (the content), and calls up a CSS (Cascading StyleSheets) document that includes the presentation information - this CSS document is shared by all the pages on the website. To adjust the layout of your website, you only have to make changes in one file, saving considerable time (and therefore money). 2. Your website will be compatible with new browsing technologies In the near future, the use of PDAs, mobile phones and in-car browsers will all regularly be used to access the Internet. The people making use of these new technologies are generally high-income individuals. In order to reach this lucrative target, you will need a website that can work on these machines. To test your website, try accessing it on the Wapalizer, a free program available at http://www.gelon.net, which shows how your site will look on a mobile phone. 3. Your website will appear higher in the search engines By making your website more accessible to web users, you are also making it more accessible to search engines. Search engines cannot usually understand images, JavaScript, Flash, audio and video content. By providing alternative content to each of these programs, search engines will have a better understanding of the purpose of your website. The more confident a search engine is of what your website is about, all other things being equal, the higher it will place your website in the search rankings. 4. You will not have to incur legal fees The RNIB (Royal National Institute for the Blind) and the DRC (Disability Rights Commission) have been exerting pressure on companies and the government to make their websites accessible. Indeed, the DRC is currently investigating 1,000 websites for accessibility (http://www.drc-gb.org/annualreview/foreword/index.asp#internet). If your organisation's website is on this list then you can expect to be hearing from them soon. 5. The download time of your website will be significantly improved Just 25% of UK web users are connected to the Internet via broadband (www.liquidzope.com/abc/2/4currentusage/currentstatebbd/view). You can be sure that if your website takes much longer than ten seconds to download then many of your site visitors will be clicking away and you will lose their custom. 6. The usability of your website will be enhanced There is a certain amount of overlap between web accessibility and web usability. It has been shown that a usability redesign increases the sales/conversion rate of a website by 100% (http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20030107.html). 7. You will gain good publicity Make your website accessible to everyone and you can tell the world about it. About The Author This article was written by Trenton Moss. He's crazy about web usability and accessibility - so crazy that he went and started his own web usability and accessibility consultancy (Webcredible - http://www.webcredible.co.uk) to help make the Internet a better place for everyone.
Add to these social bookmarking sites: 
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Developing A Login System With PHP And MySQL Most interactive websites nowadays would require a user to log in into the website's system in order to provide a customized experience for the user. Once the user has logged in, the website will be able to provide a presentation that is tailored to the user's preferences. Why Every Small Business Owner Needs Two Websites Every small business owner knows that they need a website, right? Well the truth is what they really need is at least two websites.One website that is specific to their business, product, service, name, etc. Website Sales: 10 Reasons Why People Dont Buy From You You've put up a website to promote a product or service.You've spent piles of cash to generate traffic. How To Get Profits From Your 404 Page Not Found File "'Page Not Found' on this Server. Check the URL and try again. Do You Really Need A Website To Succeed Rosalind wants to share her inspirational poetry with a wider community. Alas, poor Rosalind lives in a remote town. Dreamweaver 8 Preview August 8 2005, Macromedia announced a release of Studio 8. Based on the feedback of previous users, Macromedia made it's already very powerful software even better. Content Management More and more businesses are recognizing the importance of content management when it comes to their websites. Website content is more important than ever before, and as the Internet matures and changes, it is likely be become even more important. The Birth of a Professional Web Site The Internet has opened a whole New World of opportunity for all of us. With the vast amount of information available at your fingertips, it has never been easier to communicate your message to the world. Making Your Website Shine! Attract and Keep Visitors at Your Site! When you consider the billions of individuals and companies on the net who are attempting to influence visitors with their wares, it is vitally important that your site offers something out of the ordinary. An important fact to remember is that what the site says is far more important than how it looks. Link Trades That Waste Your Time Never has competition been so difficult in the Internet world. Google and Yahoo keep indexing more and more pages, into the millions upon millions, and yet more and more people are creating super quickie links pages that are supposed to get other webmasters to want to trade links with them. Server Stats - Analyzing Traffic To Your Site Analyzing traffic to a site is a key factor in tweaking search engine optimization and marketing campaigns. Determining how people get to your site is critical. What Works and What not Works for Your Internet Business "Build it and they will come."--Filed of Dreams (1989) If you are working on an Internet business, you may read a lot of information for how quickly you can make money online. How to Draw Icons or Images on a Mapserver Generated Map In this example I have used the map of the Itasca demo of the Mapserver. I have done only small changes to the map file. Benefits Of An Accessible Website: Part 2 - The Business Case The DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) states that service providers must not discriminate against disabled people. A website is regarded as a service and therefore falls under this law, and as such must be made accessible to everyone. Getting a Web Site Can Be Fast, Easy, and Inexpensive When You Know Your Options So what do you do if need to get a web site but you're not sure how to go about getting one. The good news is you have several options. Making The Business Case For Web Standards Through the explosive growth of the Web, companies have realized the benefit of building a strong online presence. By publishing a website to the Internet, companies are able to build their brand, market their products, support existing customers, release publicity pieces, and even take orders. The Secret Benefit Of Accessibility: Part 2 - A Higher Search Engine Ranking An additional benefit of website accessibility is an improved performance in search engines. The more accessible it is to search engines, the more accurately they can predict what the site's about, and the higher your site will appear in the rankings. The Internet Road Map 1) Data CaptureOne easy way to collect e-mail addresses and permission is via a signup box on your website. Place your signup box in a visible place on your homepage, and other appropriate pages, where visitors might choose to opt-in. How To Write More Powerful Online Text Although there are significant differences among the various types of online communication, there all have one critical thing in common - they're read off a screen. There are substantial benefits, too, in that while your message is on someone's screen usually it has their undivided attention. Do You And Your Website Have Credibility? I recently received an unsolicited e-mail from some company offering me their search engine optimization services for $199. Even though I had absolutely no interest in the offer, just out of curiosity, I decided to check out this company with the various search engines.
|
| Home | Site Map |
|
| © 2006 | |