How Law Firms Can Make Their Website Accessible to Those With Disabilities

According to the Census Bureau, 25% of adults in the U.S. live with a disability.

That means that a fourth of your target audience may have a disability hindering them from using your site effectively.

Start taking the steps to make sure your website is accessible to everyone. It’s the right thing to do, and it’s the law.

Fortunately, website accessibility isn’t difficult for law firms to implement. Here’s how your law firm can make your website accessible to the disabled, and avoid a web-accessibility lawsuit:

6 Ways Law Firms Can Make Their Website Accessible for the Disabled:

1. Ensure all forms and CTAs are accessible

Online forms are the key to your lead generation funnel. Having forms that are not only accessible but functional will ensure more users are able to enter their information. 

1. 1. Add clear and short instructions.
   2. Label all fields in a form appropriately. 
   3. Make button instructions clear – for example, “Submit consultation request” instead of just “submit”. 
   4. Test to make sure your forms are fully keyboard-operable (try moving across fields using the TAB key).

2. Visual and video assets need text explanations

Infographics have become more popular in recent years and for good reason. That being said, they can make information inaccessible to some people with visual disabilities (who use a screen reader software that cannot “read” these images). Use visual aids to turn image-based content into text such as detailed alt and title tags, labeled tables, and bulleted or numbered lists. Image alt text is important for this step as well as SEO. 

3. Be descriptive when creating links

Using links to move from page to page is a critical part of SEO strategy and also a great way to get eyes on more of your content. That being said, it can become confusing for the screen reading software we mentioned. It’s important to use descriptive language when creating links, not just linking to something that says “more” or “click here”. 

4. Write in the clearest way possible

Overall, this is one of the best things you can do to ensure that your content is reachable by people with vision, cognitive, or learning difficulties. Keep quality and clarity in mind as you develop content for your site. You can use tools like Text Optimizer to perform an audit that will suggest areas for improvement. 

5. Focus on usability across platforms and technologies

Current guidelines suggest that websites are expected to change with the times. While you want to keep your website robust, you also need to ensure that the content present is actually helpful and serves a purpose. Generally speaking, making your website user-friendly is one of the most important areas to focus on when doing any work to your site. Make sure to review your site across devices and platforms periodically to ensure performance is still high. 

6. Test, test, test

As with most digital initiatives, you’ll get the best results if you test and then optimize based on results. Tying into the point above, if you are using any new functionality, adding widgets, etc. – then you need to test. Try accessing the site using different operating systems and devices. Fill out forms, push each CTA button, etc. You may also want to try using screen reader software as well. Never stop testing in order to ensure that all of your content on your law firms website is accessible and usable. 

Takeaway

Law firm website accessibility and usability are helpful for SEO and lead generation, but essential for making sure all of your website’s visitors have a great experience. 

Not sure where to start? We have the tools and technologies readily available to convert your website into an ADA-compliant and totally accessible website. The best part? We can turn your website ADA-compliant in a matter of days quickly and provide a monthly audit verifying compliance. Contact us today to learn more.