Creating Inclusive and Accessible Software: Best Practices

In the world of software development, inclusivity and accessibility are more than just buzzwords — they’re essential components of creating software that serves all users effectively. Inclusive software takes into account the full range of human diversity, ensuring that people of all backgrounds and abilities can use and benefit from it. Accessible software, on the other hand, is designed with the needs of people with disabilities in mind, ensuring that they can use the software just as effectively as anyone else. In this article, we’ll explore best practices for creating inclusive and accessible software.

Understanding User Needs

The first step in creating inclusive and accessible software is understanding the needs of your users. This involves conducting user research to understand the diverse range of abilities, backgrounds, and experiences of your user base. This research should include people with disabilities, people from different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and people of all ages.

Understanding user needs also involves considering the different ways people might interact with your software. For example, some users might rely on screen readers or other assistive technologies to use your software. Others might interact with your software using a keyboard rather than a mouse. By understanding these different user needs, you can design your software to be flexible and adaptable to a wide range of user interactions.

Designing for Inclusivity and Accessibility

Once you understand the needs of your users, the next step is to design your software to meet those needs. This involves following best practices for inclusive and accessible design.

Inclusive design involves considering the full range of human diversity when designing your software. This means ensuring that your software is usable and effective for people of all backgrounds and abilities. For example, you might include features that make your software usable in different languages, or you might design your software to be easy to use for people with varying levels of technical skill.

Accessible design involves designing your software to be usable by people with disabilities. This means following accessibility standards and guidelines, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). For example, you might ensure that your software is compatible with screen readers, or you might include features that allow users to adjust the size and contrast of text.

Testing for Inclusivity and Accessibility

Once you’ve designed your software, it’s important to test it to ensure it’s inclusive and accessible. This involves conducting usability testing with a diverse range of users, including people with disabilities. This testing can help you identify any issues or barriers that might prevent certain users from using your software effectively.

Testing for inclusivity and accessibility also involves using automated testing tools to check for accessibility issues. These tools can help you identify issues such as missing alt text for images, insufficient color contrast, or inaccessible form controls.

Continuous Improvement

Creating inclusive and accessible software is not a one-time effort — it’s a continuous process of improvement. This involves regularly reviewing and updating your software to ensure it continues to meet the needs of your users. It also involves staying up-to-date with the latest best practices and standards for inclusive and accessible design.

Creating inclusive and accessible software is essential for serving all users effectively. By understanding user needs, designing for inclusivity and accessibility, testing your software, and continuously improving, you can create software that is truly inclusive and accessible. This not only benefits users — it also benefits your business by expanding your potential user base and improving user satisfaction.

Creating Inclusive and Accessible Software: Best Practices was originally published in SyconX on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.