Content provided by legal writers

When the internet was created, it was done so to be a free service for everyone in the world. A universal amenity that allowed equal access no matter your location, education, software or age. 

The boom of the internet era came at the same time that the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed, meaning that web accessibility for all became a key priority for all websites. With the ADA, websites are legally obliged to create and maintain their website as they would a physical space—and ensure that it caters to all disabilities. 

For a website to be considered accessible to all, it has catered towards those that are visually impaired, hearing impaired, cognitively impaired or physically impaired. The legal groundings for website compliance with the ADA also mean that companies become liable if they do not meet the requirements. In fact, there have been countless big brands who have lost lawsuits because their websites did not comply with ADA guidelines. 

So why is web accessibility so important in this day in age? Aside from just following the law? 

We’ve rounded up the top reasons why website compliance should be a priority for every company and show that being compliant is easier than you may have initially thought.

1. You Will Grow Your Audience

If someone doesn’t feel catered for, you won’t win their interest. So by creating a website that caters to all abilities you are capturing a larger audience pool of people who could take an interest in your company and what you do. In fact, in America alone, studies are showing that 1 in 5 people have a disability. With those odds, you can be missing out on a huge percentage of the population that you can easily win over simply by making your website accessible. If a person can navigate their way through your website easily, they are likely to follow the user experience map you had designed—which ends with a business win for you. 

2. Your SEO Rankings Will Improve

SEO seems to be the buzzword in the digital marketing world nowadays. But it is actually more than just a buzzword. It is your gateway into reaching more people online and increasing your website traffic. When your website is compliant with ADA guidelines, you will be rewarded with better SEO results and found by more people online. SEO rewards websites that use meta-tagging, alt text captions and video transcripts—which are all also guidelines for being ADA compliant. It is a double win for this! 

3. You Will Have a Better Brand Reputation

Today’s generation demands that companies be better. They hold companies in high regard for creating inclusive and diverse communities that are accommodating to all. So when you are website compliant, your brand’s reputation will automatically go up. You give yourself a competitive advantage over other businesses in your industry who may not have put as much emphasis on being website compliant, making yours stand out and even be a deciding factor for potential customers. Plus, if you impress your customers, they will likely be your biggest advocates and spread the word to their friends and family. Having an accessible website improves your brand reputation big time. 

4. You Will Protect Yourself from Being Sued

Because it is the law to be website compliant, you can risk getting sued if you haven’t followed all the guidelines. There have been too many times to count where companies find themselves in unfortunate situations of having to hire lawyers and even owe fines for missing simple steps in being compliant. No matter how big or successful your company is, you risk financial implications for not being website compliant. 

5. You Can Easily be Compliant

Being website compliant is easier than you think, especially with accessible tools designed to help you with this specifically. There is software that has been designed to continually audit your website through a simple widget. This means that within 48 hours your website will be checked, edited and updated so that you can have peace of mind that your website is in fact compliant. Then, the widget will continually scan any new content you add and check for the same criteria. Being website compliant does not get any easier than that. 

Ensuring that your website is accessible is a super important component to consider and follow. Not only will it protect you from getting sued, but it will also improve your digital marketing performance, enhance your brand reputation and grow your audience pool. 

With simple software that can make being website compliant so easy, having an accessible website is something you can easily attain.   

This content is provided by an independent source for informational purposes only and does not contain legal advice. Consult an attorney or financial advisor when making decisions. This information is provided by legal writers and does not reflect the views or opinions of The Daily Sundial editorial staff.