Why accessibility is important at Good Grants

This post was written by Rachel Martin, the product manager at Good Grants.

I’m the accessibility “champion” at Creative Force (the makers of Good Grants and Award Force). It’s not an official role; it’s something I fell into accidentally rather than planned but I have embraced it to the point where I now wonder whether my boss regrets giving me this responsibility.

For example, I’ve become the annoying colleague saying, “Why haven’t you got captions for that video?” and “That colour contrast is insufficient” or “Your images have no alt text”. 

It started because whenever one of our users reported accessibility issues the problem landed on my desk. In fixing these problems I have come to realise that it’s not enough to be reactive and fix things when they’re reported. 

Accessibility needs to be adopted company-wide from the ground up. We now have an accessibility strategy which includes training for all employees and encompasses not just our products but our marketing sites, demo sites and help centre. We’ve come a long way already. But there’s always lots of work to do. 

Why is accessibility important?

To create better products

Good Grants is for everyone. Accessibility is closely linked to usability for all as accessibility improvements benefit everyone.

Closed captions are useful to everyone whether it be as a way to access content in different languages, or when you’re in a noisy environment with lots of background noise or when accents are difficult to understand.

Meeting minimum colour contrast requirements benefits not just the visually impaired but anyone looking at their device in places where there’s lots of glare such as on a bus when the sun is streaming through a window. 

Voice control was originally implemented for users with physical impairments but now has widespread adoption by millions of other people. 

Audio descriptions are useful for anyone who is watching TV while doing something else, like cooking dinner. It doesn’t matter if you miss a facial expression or a non-verbal interaction because the audio description will keep you informed.

To reach more users and increase revenue

At least 15% of the world’s population have a recognised disability and they have an estimated annual disposable income of $6.9 trillion. It is simply good business to be inclusive of these individuals and increase market reach. 

To drive innovation

Accessibility drives innovation because it seeks to dismantle barriers created by disabilities. For instance, the first commercial email service was created by Vint Cerf who is hearing-impaired and wanted an alternative to telephone communication. Now it is used universally throughout the world. Accessibility makes us think beyond traditional solutions demanding flexibility and a more human-centred approach. 

To reduce legal risks

Accessibility is a legal requirement in many jurisdictions throughout the world to ensure people with disabilities have the same digital access to information as everyone else. In the United States, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act 1973 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. In UK the Equality Act 2010 also prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability and explicitly applies to websites. The EU adopted the Directive on the accessibility of websites and mobile applications in 2016 which ensures the 80 million people in the European Union with a disability are not excluded from accessing digital content.

If you’re still not convinced then consider this: as we age we become more likely to acquire a disability as almost half of people aged 60 and over live with a disability. That’s a 50% chance that one day it could be you.

More on accessibility

Learn more about our accessibility features at Good Grants.

Learn how to make your grant program more accessible.