The Importance of Website Accessibility How to Create a Website Everyone Can Use
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Use a font color that contrasts with the background so it’s easy to read.
While most entrepreneurs are familiar with the accommodations businesses must make in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), many business owners don’t realize that ADA guidelines can apply to the virtual world as well. In theory, websites should be just as accessible to people with disabilities as ATMs, elevators, terminals, and bathrooms are. Your website should be accessible to anyone on a laptop, desktop, tablet, or mobile phone. Websites that are not accessible make for poor experiences for consumers with physical limitations. If your website isn’t accessible, you’re missing out on a large population of potential customers. Here is what you can do to increase customer accessibility on your website. VISION Use designs that are friendly to people who are blind or visually impaired. Text is generally accessible with the use of a screen reader or Braille peripheral, but if a webpage is crammed with images, screen readers have a hard time translating, and the message of your website may be lost. • Use alternative text (aka“alt text”) to describe any part of your website that isn’t text-based, such as images and videos. Keep these descriptions short and sweet. • Provide transcripts of videos. • Design your page to flow logically so that it can be interpreted correctly. Don’t be afraid to use headers!
NAVIGATION Not all consumers can (or want to) use a mouse; some people navigate websites with a touchpad, switch, or keyboard. Optimize your website design to make navigation easy with a variety of equipment. • Create clear headings with HTML tags to help users move around a page. • Use the same page structure from section to section to make navigation more efficient. • Pair hyperlinks with descriptive anchor text rather than generic phrases like “click here” or “read more.” Fortunately, testing the accessibility of a website is straightforward and usually free. The best way to test your content and structure is to have a screen reader read the pages to you. You can also use a web-based accessibility checker like WAVE to vet structural and visual issues. Designing a user-friendly website isn’t just good business; it creates a culture of accessibility and compliance. Visit w3.org to view the World Wide Web Consortium’s web content accessibility guidelines and get your site up to speed.
Take a Break!
Oatmeal Cookie
ICE CREAM SANDWICHES
Ingredients
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1 teaspoon kosher salt 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
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1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter 1 1/2 ounces store-bought waffle cones, lightly crushed
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1 large egg yolk
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1 1/2 cups oats
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 4 pints ice cream (any flavor) low. Once integrated, slowly add browned butter; blend until dough forms a solid mass around blades. and place 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten balls and bake 12–15 minutes or until edges begin to brown. 6. Let cool, then spread ice cream between cookies to make sandwiches. 7. Freeze for up to 5 days — or enjoy today! 5. Form dough into 26 balls
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350 F. While oven is heating, cook butter in saucepan over medium heat until browned, 5–8 minutes. Scrape browned butter into a heatproof measuring glass. 2. Pulse waffle cones, oats, flour, and salt in a food processor or blender. Once cones are finely ground, add brown sugar and pulse again. 3. Whisk egg yolk, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl. 4. Add egg mixture to food processor while spinning on
Inspired by Bon Appetit
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