Web accessibility allows everyone to have a seamless experience on your website

Stores, restaurants and especially medical practices include features like accessible bathrooms and parking spaces so that everyone can use them. However, have you thought about whether your website is accessible, too? If you haven’t considered web accessibility, your site could be difficult for visitors with disabilities to use.

Not only does an inaccessible website drive away potential patients with disabilities, but it can affect your website’s search engine optimization (SEO). However, before you panic, know that Catalyst Healthcare Marketing can make changes to help your site become more inclusive for all.

What is web accessibility and why does it matter?

When we talk about making your website accessible, we’re referring to design and development changes that make your site usable for all visitors. The goal is to ensure that everyone who visits your website has the same experience, including people with disabilities.

This is important because the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that about 16% of people around the world have “significant disability.” Without an accessible website, part of the population might have trouble fully viewing and using your site.

On the flip side, accessibility allows everyone to visit and navigate your site. It shows you’re committed to inclusivity, which can build trust in your practice and help encourage more website visitors to become patients.

Having a website that everyone can easily use can also help your SEO efforts. Google considers both user experience and engagement when deciding how to rank websites. If people with disabilities can use your site, they tend to stay on it longer. The result is a lower bounce rate and higher engagement, which can help your site’s search engine optimization.

How can we help make your site more accessible?

At Catalyst Healthcare Marketing, we believe that web accessibility is important. When working on any site, our website development team carefully considers the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

• Perceivable means users must be able to perceive or understand your website’s content.
• Operable means visitors should be able to navigate your website without disruption. Simplicity is one of the best ways to satisfy this principle.
• Understandable means the words, graphics and navigation of your website are organized and easy to understand.
• Robust means your site’s content can be consumed by people using different assistive technologies, such as screen readers.

Additionally, we collaborate with our SEO content team to ensure all web content is easy to understand, whether someone is reading it with their eyes or a screen reader.

While we strive to build websites that are accessible, accessibility tools and standards are constantly evolving. As a result, a website that was built a few years ago might not meet all accessibility standards. The good news is that we can make updates now that can help more people make the most of your website.

These might seem like small changes, but enhancing web accessibility can make a huge difference for those who have disabilities – and for your practice. If you’d like to learn how the Catalyst team can give you an accessible website, contact us today.