Customizing Accessibility: Best Practices for Teams

26% of U.S. adults live with at least one disability. Making your designs accessible isn’t just ethical - it’s smart. Here’s how to ensure your digital experiences work for everyone:

• Start Early: Plan for accessibility from the beginning of your design process.

• Universal Integration: Build accessibility features directly into designs - like captions, keyboard navigation, and high-contrast themes.

• Continuous Updates: Use real user feedback and regular testing to refine your accessibility features.

Common Barriers to Address:

1. Visual: Low color contrast, missing alt text, and small fonts.

2. Hearing: Lack of captions or transcripts.

3. Physical: Poor keyboard navigation and time-sensitive actions.

4. Cognitive: Overly complex layouts and unclear instructions.

Quick Wins:

• Enable high-contrast modes and captions.

• Add skip links and ARIA landmarks for easier navigation.

• Test designs with assistive technologies like screen readers.

Accessibility isn’t a one-and-done task - it’s an ongoing commitment. Let’s make it easier for everyone to engage with your content.

User Accessibility Requirements

Common Access Barriers

Support teams face the challenge of addressing a wide range of accessibility needs. For instance, the World Health Organization estimates that by 2050, nearly 2.5 billion people will deal with some level of hearing loss. In the U.S. alone, about 12 million individuals over the age of 40 currently live with visual impairments.

Here are some of the most common barriers:

Visual Barriers

• Low color contrast between text and background

• Missing alternative text for images

• Fonts that are too small or hard to read

• Overly complex layouts without clear organization

Hearing Challenges

• Videos without captions

• Audio-only instructions

• No visual substitutes for sound alerts

• Lack of transcripts for multimedia content

Physical and Motor Limitations

• Interfaces that require precise mouse movements

• Gesture controls that are hard to use

• Time-sensitive actions that are difficult to complete

• Poor keyboard navigation options

Cognitive Barriers

• Overly dense or cluttered information

• Inconsistent navigation and design patterns

• Complicated language or unclear instructions

• Missing visual cues to guide users

Addressing these challenges requires a focus on user-first design to create accessible and inclusive support experiences.

User-First Design Principles

Understanding these barriers helps guide user-first design principles. Mark Shapiro, President of the Bureau of Internet Accessibility, emphasizes this point: "The guidance WCAG provides allows developers and content creators to include people who have historically been excluded from digital experiences".

"Accessibility guidelines are there to help us make websites more accessible. But they aren't the be-all and end-all of accessibility".

To bring user-first design into practice, consider these steps:

• Conduct Inclusive Research: Test your designs with a diverse group of users, including those relying on assistive technologies. Make sure testing environments are accessible too.

• Design for Flexibility: Offer customizable settings like adjustable font sizes, color schemes, and interaction methods to meet different user needs.

• Maintain Continuous Feedback: Set up channels for regular feedback and review your accessibility features frequently. This allows you to identify and fix new issues as they arise.

Understanding Accessibility: WCAG's 13 Guidelines

Setting Up Accessibility Features

To prioritize user-friendly design, support teams need to configure accessibility settings that cater to a range of user needs. Here's how to make your platform more inclusive.

Visual Display Settings

Adjusting visual settings can make content easier to read and navigate for users with visual impairments. This includes managing contrast, colors, and other display features.

Contrast and Color Adjustments:

• Activate high-contrast themes: Go to Settings > Accessibility > Contrast themes

• Customize colors for key elements like text, links, and buttons

• Use color filters to assist users with colorblindness

Audio and Text Options

Features like real-time captions can boost comprehension for a wider audience, including those with hearing impairments.

Best Practices for Captions:

• Use Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) for live captions

• Allow users to customize caption settings, such as font size, colors, and background

• Prepare scripts in advance for planned events to improve accuracy

• Offer multilingual captions for diverse audiences

Next, focus on enabling smooth navigation through interface and control settings.

Control and Interface Access

After setting up visual and audio features, ensure that users can easily navigate the platform. Keyboard accessibility is key to this process.

Keyboard Navigation Tips:

• Make sure the tab order logically follows the visual layout

• Use focus indicators that are at least 2 pixels thick and have high contrast

• Create keyboard shortcuts for frequently used actions

These steps ensure a more accessible experience for all users.

Online Meeting Accessibility

Virtual meetings have become a staple for team collaboration, with their usage jumping from 48% to 77% between 2020 and 2022. To ensure everyone can participate fully, it's important to incorporate accessibility features into these meetings. Let’s explore how to make online meetings more inclusive.

Video Call Access Features

Video platforms now include tools that cater to a range of user needs. Here are some key features to set up for better accessibility:

• Automatic captions or live transcription: Helps participants who are deaf or hard of hearing follow conversations.

• Hearing aid compatibility: Optimizes audio for users with hearing aids.

• Noise cancellation: Reduces background noise for clearer sound.

• Keyboard shortcuts: Simplifies navigation for motor-impaired users.

"As someone with severe hearing loss, captions are hugely helpful for me. Even when I don't hear a word (sometimes because my seven-year-old has come to tell me something), I can always follow the conversation without needing to interrupt and distract others." - Gideon Hoffman, founder of 4D and trustee at RNID

These features not only improve call quality but also ensure everyone can engage without barriers.

Accessible Content Sharing

Sharing content in virtual meetings should also prioritize accessibility. Here’s how to prepare and present materials effectively:

Before the Meeting:

• Convert materials into accessible formats.

• Use high-contrast colors in presentations.

• Add alt text to all images.

• Structure documents using proper headings for readability.

During the Meeting:

• Verbally describe any visual content.

• Announce when slides change.

• Read chat messages aloud for attendees who may not see them.

• Share materials through multiple channels, such as email or cloud storage.

By focusing on these steps, you can ensure that all participants stay informed and engaged.

Support Tool Configuration

To maintain accessibility, it’s essential to configure and test support tools regularly. Here’s how to get started:

Meeting Platform Setup:

• Test accessibility features ahead of time.

• Offer practice sessions for new users.

• Enable multiple communication options (e.g., chat, voice, video).

• Configure automatic meeting recordings for reference.

Platforms like Auvious Video provide advanced tools, including AI-powered speech-to-text, live captions, and screen sharing with augmented reality markers to highlight key content.

These configurations make virtual meetings more inclusive and user-friendly, ensuring everyone can participate effectively.

Testing and Updating Access Features

Regularly testing and updating accessibility features is key. Experts emphasize that automated tools and audits alone can't fully replicate how users interact with a site in real-world scenarios.

Collecting User Input

Direct feedback from users can uncover issues that automated tools might miss. Here are some effective ways to gather this input:

"While automated tools and regular accessibility audits are essential for identifying and addressing technical accessibility issues, gathering direct user feedback is equally critical." - Silktide

For example, W3C shared how a bank solved online bill payment issues by embedding a feedback form. Customers reported problems immediately, leading to quick support from the help desk and system improvements.

Incorporate this feedback into regular audits to ensure compliance is being maintained.

Reviewing Access Features

Accessibility isn't a one-time task - it requires constant evaluation. Teams should embed accessibility checks into their workflows:

1. Regular Audits

• Test for WCAG compliance and keyboard navigation.

• Check screen reader compatibility and focus indicators.

2. Performance Tracking

Track progress and document changes. For instance, a job portal found that 10% of users faced accessibility barriers. This insight led them to adopt consistent testing protocols.

"Accessibility is not a one-off project; it's an ongoing commitment."

Adopting New Access Tools

After reviews, consider implementing new tools to improve user experiences. When adopting these tools, follow these steps:

Combining manual and automated testing delivers the best results. Automated scans catch common WCAG issues quickly, but manual testing by experts identifies more complex problems.

"Involving people with disabilities throughout your design and development process can be more effective and yield better results." - Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)

For example, teams using platforms like Auvious Video should routinely test new accessibility features to ensure they meet user needs and remain compatible with assistive technologies.

Conclusion

Effective accessibility customization requires a dedicated effort from the entire team. With about 26% of U.S. adults living with at least one disability, prioritizing accessibility is not just ethical - it’s also smart business.

Creating inclusive experiences means implementing structured processes and actively involving users. Here are three key areas to focus on:

Organizations also risk steep fines - starting at $55,000 for a first violation and escalating to $150,000 for repeat offenses.

"Accessibility should be embedded as a fundamental value within your organization. Start by gaining dedicated support from top leaders, ensuring that accessibility is championed at the highest levels." - Melissa Morse, Article Author, TPGi

To succeed, teams need to embrace ongoing evaluation and improvement. Using detailed checklists, providing role-specific training, and gathering continuous user feedback are essential steps. When integrated into daily workflows, these practices help deliver the inclusive digital experiences described above.