Web Access Centre

Business benefits

Summary: The business case for accessibility outlines some of the tangible benefits for organisations as well as individual web designers.

• Increased market share and audience reach
• Improved usability
• Reduces website maintenance costs
• Greater compatibility and future proofing
• The benefits of being an accessible designer
• Facts and figures

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"With the fierce competition the internet offers, usability and the online customer experience will, for many users, become an important differentiating factor. So it makes good commercial sense to have an accessible website. I am convinced this means a win for users and a win for companies offering websites” Ian Lumsden, Chief Executive of Standard Life.

Accessibility should be a fundamental part of planning a website and generally adds only a small margin to overall cost when building from scratch. This can be offset with the potential savings in development and maintenance time, together with tapping into the increased profitability of a broader market reach. Not taking accessibility into account from the start can lead to an expensive and often painful retrofit for a site.

Increased market share and audience reach

An accessible website helps expand markets to people with disabilities as well as people using older browsers, new technologies such as mobile devices and different platforms.

Research tells us that just over 10 per cent of the population of the United Kingdom have some form of disability. That means at least one in four customers either has a disability, or is close to someone who has (source: Employers Forum on Disability). People with disabilities have friends and relatives who have the potential to become a network for positive ”word of mouth” advertising.

In a matter of years the increasing elderly community has the potential to comprise 40 per cent of the overall population This audience with accessibility needs will constitute a major community with significant spending power and influence. (Source: Employers Forum on Disability).

Websites that adopt accessibility as best practice may benefit from awards that are given to sites that meet a recognised standard. Sites may display logos as a badge of quality building public relations confidence in the organisation. Accessible websites also have a distinct advantage in terms of being more clearly identifiable by search engines.

Improved usability

A good level of accessibility can significantly enhance the usability of a website by:

• Providing clear, consistent navigation (makes finding information easier).
• Providing understandable and clear content (encourages people to stay longer and make return visits).

The easier someone finds the experience of visiting a website, the more likely they are to become both a customer and an advocate. It will also improve the efficiency of the time people spend on a site and their ability to complete tasks such as purchasing products.

Reduces website maintenance costs

Incorporating best practice and techniques that accessibility brings, can reduce the costs of maintenance of a website. Better organised, simpler, cleaner coding and content make pages easier for designers, developers and content authors to work with and maintain.

Managers can also expect improved server loading and network performance, as accessible pages tend to have reduced file sizes. This is due to efficient and effective use of technology such as Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and reduced dependence on bulky media and graphics.

The results are less strain on the web servers which host and send files over the web. This creates a better experience for the audience who benefit from improved responses and faster page loading.

Greater compatibility and future proofing

Following accessibility guidelines allows sites to “degrade gracefully” as they will remain readable and accessible as browsers and web standards change. Another major benefit is increased compatibility across different browsers, platforms and devices.

The benefits of being an accessible designer

With an increased market for website accessibility, designers and developers can sell the benefits and advantages outlined above to their clients.

Many clients rely on their designers and developers for advice and guidance on accessibility issues and compliance. This provides accessibility skilled designers with a distinct advantage over their competitors and increases the value they give to their clients.

"It is important to Standard Life that the services we offer customers on-line are accessible and easy to use. As a channel to market, the internet provides some exciting opportunities. Designing services in a way that does not exclude people means that we have an open gateway to as many potential customers as possible." Kevin Russell, Group E-commerce Development Manager, Standard Life.

Facts and figures

Below are some facts and figures regarding disabilities correct at the time of publishing:

• 59 million - The approximate population of the United Kingdom (source: ONS).
• 8.5 million - The number of people with some form of disability in the United Kingdom (source: ONS).
• 2 million - The number of people with sight problems (source: RNIB).
• £40-50 billion - The combined estimated spending power of disabled people (source: Employers Forum on Disability).

Laws and standards

• The Web Accessibility Initiative
• UK law
• The Disability Discrimination Act
• Business benefits
• The ethical case

For Web Access Centre updates email webaccess@rnib.org.uk

Content author: webaccess@rnib.org.uk

Last updated: 07/01/2009 14:17