Web accessibility guidelines to create inclusive websites. In this lesson we
will talk about creating websites that everyone can use and enjoy, regardless of
their abilities. Let's start with the basics. Web accessibility is about
designing websites that work for everyone, including people with visual,
auditory, motor or cognitive impairments. But when we design for accessibility we're
actually improving the experience for all users. You're not only doing the right
thing but you're also boosting your site's SEO and overall usability. Plus in
many countries it is a legal requirement. WordPress has been making great strides
in accessibility. Many themes and plugins are working towards being
accessible and the platform itself aims to meet the Web Content Accessibility
Guidelines 2.2 at level AA. As designers we can take these features and elevate
them. So how do we do that? Let's break it down into some key principles. First
up is color contrast. You want to make sure there's enough contrast between
your text and background colors. There's a nifty tool called WebAIM
Contrast Checker that can help you with this. Next typography. Choose fonts that
are easy to read and aim for at least 16 pixels as your base size. Please note
this is merely a best practice guideline. Use a minimum line height of 1.5 for
optimal readability, avoid all caps and small caps and reserve underlining
exclusively for links. Also fully justified text should not be used. By
default WordPress doesn't allow justified text as it can reduce accessibility
due to irregular spacing and making it harder to read. Now on to structure and
layout. Think of your website as a well organized book. You want a clear,
consistent layout with a logical reading order. Use proper heading hierarchy as
it's like creating a table of contents for your site. Navigation is
another crucial part of your site. Design your menus so they're easy to use with
both a mouse and a keyboard. And don't forget about forms. Label everything
clearly. Every form input should have a corresponding label properly associated
with the field and all form elements should be operable via the keyboard.
Buttons should also have meaningful text that describes their action. Lastly
always include descriptive alt text for images. Alt text or alternative text is
a brief description of an image used to improve accessibility and help search
engines understand the image. Furthermore always provide video captions and
audio transcripts. All these steps help to give your visual content a voice. Now
let's get into some WordPress specific tips. When you're choosing a theme look
for ones labeled Accessibility Ready in the WordPress Repository. It will help
you to get a head start on accessibility. Next what about testing plugins? Certain
types of WordPress plugins can cause accessibility issues if they aren't
designed with best practices in mind. A good approach is to check the plugins
usability without a mouse relying on keyboard navigation alone. Additionally
you can use tools like WebAIMS WAVE to inspect the plugin for accessibility
issues. There are also some great accessibility plugins out there that
offer tools to check and improve the accessibility of your content. In the
next lesson we will explore this further. Testing is crucial. Think of it like
proofreading but for inclusivity. Always complete an accessibility audit as you
are designing your website. Don't leave it as an afterthought. Remember
designing for accessibility is an ongoing process. By prioritizing accessibility in
your WordPress designs you're not just following best practices you're creating
a more inclusive web for everyone.