The 5-step plan to building an accessibility program

You know web accessibility makes businesses and products better. You know users of all kinds benefit from web accessibility improvements. You want to see accessibility practices embedded into your work, your team and your organisation. 

How do you make that happen?

Embedding web accessibility might feel like a big, lofty goal. With so much information out there, figuring out what to do can be tricky. And you're not alone: despite the proven demand for better accessibility, only 3% of NZ and Australian organisations across all industries are successfully implementing accessibility.

We're breaking down the steps to make web accessibility practical, tangible and manageable within your organisation. We'll walk you through the key milestones that have the biggest impact on an organisation’s accessibility program. Every organisation is different, but these tips can be applied universally to set you and your team up for success.

If you know web accessibility is important but are not sure what your first - or second or third - step should be, this guide is for you.

1. Build community

Embedding accessibility into your organisation is like rowing a boat: everyone has a part to play. Some rowers may be more advanced than others but ultimately, it’s the collective effort that moves the boat forward. 

Accessibility can’t be done in a vacuum. It’s integral to have all roles in the product development lifecycle involved in preventing and remediating accessibility issues. After all, 67% of accessibility issues can be resolved in the design phase. After that, many of the issues found in audits are related to code semantics. Product owners, designers, developers and QAs must all shift their thinking and processes for accessibility to take hold.

Just as the practice of accessibility can’t be done alone, neither can its advocacy and promotion. Find allies in your organisation who feel the same way and meet regularly with them to talk all things accessibility. These meetings can be formal or informal, in person or online, and about specific accessibility issues or about accessibility at your organisation more broadly. Create a messaging channel where you can connect in between those meetings. 

Many hands make light work. Find motivation in each other, learn together and share the load of advocating for accessibility. As accessibility becomes more recognized within your organisation, the more others will want to be involved. We call these people accessibility champions because it’s a group of people who have decided to champion this cause! Building a community of accessibility champions will help you spread the word, raise the profile of accessibility within other teams and departments, and carry out accessibility-focused tasks. 

2. Create an accessibility roadmap

Studies find there is a direct link between having an accessibility roadmap and achieving accessibility results. An accessibility roadmap is a strategic plan that outlines the steps and goals you want to take to improve web accessibility at your organisation. It can be a simple list of ideas and tasks, or a more formal document. 

This should be the first step you take in your accessibility journey. Why?

• Take it from experience: According to a report, organisations that have mature accessibility programs swear by the importance of a roadmap. Industry experts say, “The single biggest step an organisation can take may simply be to build an accessibility roadmap.”

• Stay focused: There are lots of actions that can be taken towards accessibility, so it’s important to highlight the ones you’re committing to and see them through. This will make sure you accomplish tasks and will increase your chances of success. Just like directions to an address, a roadmap helps you stay on track.

• Measure success: The roadmap isn't just about setting goals; it's a measuring stick to see how well you're doing. With specific and achievable goals in place, you can check what's working and where you might need to make changes.

• Get leadership buy-in: Senior leadership investment in an accessibility initiative is key to making progress in that area. How do you get that leadership buy-in? Speak their language by showing them clear goals with measurable outcomes. When organisational leaders see a smart plan with well-developed goals, they're more likely to give you the support and resources you need. Use facts and statistics to further make your business case.

• Stay motivated: Implementing accessibility is a long and sometimes hard road. When you outline your goals and check back often, you’ll see all the progress you’ve made. This will motivate you and your fellow accessibility champions to continue pursuing this initiative.

• Documentation: It sounds dry, but writing things down is key to influencing the way an organisation works. Accessibility-mature organisations emphasise the importance of written, formal policies in their accessibility success.

An accessibility roadmap will set you up for success. Connect with other accessibility champions in your organisation to come up with your goals, and make sure they’re SMART (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Time-bound). Importantly, make sure the roadmap is written down, that it is circulated/made publicly visible, and that you revisit it every few months.

3. Use free tools

There are some great accessibility tools out there that are relatively low-barrier to implement and often free, which can really help push your accessibility journey along, especially in those early stages.

For example, automated accessibility scanners can catch as much as 57% of accessibility issues. They do miss a large number of WCAG criteria that require manual testing, however scanners can catch the more obvious accessibility issues. Plus, most offer remediation tips so you know how to fix the bugs that are found. Interpreting the results will take some effort and expertise, so we recommend playing with a few to determine which one(s) suit you best. Check out this list of some of Aleph Accessibility’s favourite free accessibility tools.

We like these tools because they support accessibility throughout the development lifecycle, from design to testing, offering quick wins early on. Building community and raising awareness will be important to encouraging your teammates to take on these tools as part of their day-to-day work. Include these tools in your roadmap and use the results from their adoption as evidence for the effectiveness of your accessibility initiative.

4. Get training

In order to implement accessibility, you (and your colleagues) need to understand the practices and techniques for it. That’s what web accessibility education and training are for. 

Formal training is really helpful to get both a broad and deep understanding of web accessibility. If you’re just starting out, there are lots of free options to explore. While they’re more general, these courses are good for covering the accessibility basics that are foundational to future learning. Create a community, at work or elsewhere, and learn together. 

Enrolling in these courses initially can also help you measure and prove to leadership how training has a positive impact on your organisation’s output.

Be careful with information overload! There is so much content out there, and evaluating different free courses can be overwhelming. Pick one thing to learn at a time, and find a way of learning that works best for you.

When you’re ready to go deeper or you’re after a more focused approach, look into paid web accessibility training and courses. These courses are more tailored to organisational needs and how people learn. They are great for solidifying foundational knowledge as well as getting into more intermediate and advanced accessibility topics.

5. Establish a baseline

Setting up a baseline for your company's web accessibility is like checking where you are on a map before going on a trip. It provides a clear starting point for your initiatives and, importantly, acts as a measure for how effective your improvement efforts are.

The baseline is often an evaluation of the level of accessibility of your digital assets, but it can also include employee engagement in accessibility activities (awareness) and knowledge of accessibility practices (training).

Start by using free tools like checklists and automated scanners to get a quick look at common issues across your webpages or design system. As mentioned earlier, while automated scanners can’t identify all accessibility issues, they can be sufficient to establish an initial understanding of your level of accessibility compliance. Moreover, automated scanners are an easy practice that can become part of your regular accessibility health check, so it’s a good place to start.

When you're ready to establish an official baseline, bring in an external auditor to assess your digital assets. Aleph Accessibility audits capture what automated scanners can’t and provide you with an accessibility score, an easy-to-understand KPI that leadership can use to measure progress. In an audit, focus on your most important pages (like your homepage), and try to include some recently built pages to get the most current reflection of your team’s skill set.

By implementing the strategies outlined in this guide, from creating a roadmap and raising awareness to establishing a baseline, you're not only enhancing the user experience of your digital products for people with disabilities but also improving usability for all your users. Remember, accessibility is not a one-time task but an ongoing commitment to creating a more equitable digital landscape. So let's continue striving towards a web that's truly accessible to all.