by Ravi Venkata –
Namaste! According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 26% of adults (1 in 4) in the United States has some form of disability. These people use screen reader software(s) & other assistive tools to access, interpret, and transact on web & mobile apps.
Post COVID-19, many people/organizations have opted to work remotely resulting in an exponential increase in the usage of digital apps/platforms. A sizeable population of these people has disabilities, and companies must build accessible apps to cater to them or risk losing their business & face a lawsuit for ADA violations.
Over the years, there’s been an uptick in the number of accessibility lawsuits being filed in the courts. On October 7th, 2019, in the case of Robles v. Domino’s, The Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of the blind man Guillermo Robles, who sued the pizza chain after he was unable to order food on Domino’s website and mobile app despite using screen-reading software.
Accessibility testing helps reduce the risks associated with ADA violations. In a nutshell, Accessibility testing is a type of QA testing using screen readers to run tests on the UI screens/pages. It checks for compliance to internationally accepted Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
While there’s some cost involved, companies benefit a lot from Accessibility testing. Some of the benefits include increased usability of apps, increased revenue, added SEO value, positive PR value for the organization, which offset these costs.
RCG Global Services have worked with many of our clients to offer these services and helped build an ecosystem of accessible apps. We have IAAP certified resources on our team, which guide our clients on best practices, design solutions, and newer guidelines to adapt and stay ahead of the curve.
