FUSE Search and Web Accessibility Compliance: Why It’s Important and How We Help

At FUSE Search we take web accessibility seriously. It’s native to our platform so all search-related content on our clients’ sites is compliant with international guidelines. This means we’re providing an intuitive user experience, proper color contrast with web-ready fonts, and navigation of the page that is screen reader-friendly and more.

What is Web Accessibility?

Web accessibility is the practice of designing and developing your website so that it can be easily navigated by anyone, including people with disabilities.

The Importance of Web Accessibility

According to the Pew Research Center, 75% of Americans with disabilities report using the Internet on a daily basis. Those are some high numbers and you would think the online business community would be doing its part to make the web more navigable for all.

Sadly, the numbers say otherwise.

WebAIM did a study in 2021 of the home pages for the top one million websites on the Internet. Over 51 million accessibility errors were found across those sites. That’s an average of over 50 errors per home page.

And that’s just not good enough.

Here are 3 primary reasons why it’s important for you to not just consider web accessibility, but implement it today:

1. You’ll be providing equal access to your website’s content for disabled visitors.

2. You’ll be creating a better experience for all users by following compliance guidelines.

3. You’ll be avoiding any potential legal issues that can arise for non-compliance.

The Benefits of Web Accessibility

Your first instinct may be to assume that accessibility standards are designed for those with more severe setbacks like vision impairment or hearing loss, but even disadvantages like color blindness and dyslexia can hamper proper website experiences for many as well.

So this isn’t about programming your website to just accommodate a small, select group of users, but instead to leave no one behind and, in the process, make the Web a better place for everyone.

Here are 5 benefits of having your website accessible in 2023 and beyond:

• All users will have a better experience, not just the disabled.

• Google will rank your site higher if your site is compliant.

• Your brand reputation will shine by showing you're aware and inclusive.

• Site traffic will increase due to reaching a broader audience.

• Any legal risks will be contained when your site is compliant.

Understanding Web Accessibility Standards

When people talk about web accessibility, there are generally three compliance standards that are discussed.

1. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) Compliance

2. Section 508 Compliance

3. WCAG 2.1 Compliance
   

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) Compliance

Simply put, this is the legislation that the legal world leans into to hold organizations accountable when their site isn’t meeting even minimal guidelines. The law itself does not supply specific standards, but does recommend WCAG 2.1 compliance - which you’ll read about below.

Section 508 Compliance

These guidelines apply specifically to U.S. government-run websites and any website that may serve government agencies. In years past, there was a separate set of guidelines that websites were required to meet to maintain their 508 status, but after a revision to the rules in 2018 the government chose to use the established international standards of the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Access Guidelines, known as WCAG.

WCAG 2.1 Compliance

As mentioned, WCAG compliance is the recognized standard for web accessibility. There are three levels of compliance: A, AA and AAA. The A level is the base minimum compliance while AAA is for sites that explicitly serve disabled persons. WCAG 2.1 AA is the generally accepted level that you should look to achieve on your website.

What We’ve Done at FUSE Search

Studies show that nearly 70% of people with disabilities will leave a website immediately if it appears to be inaccessible. With that in mind, we’ve designed all of our FUSE Search products to meet WCAG 2.1 compliance standards.

Here’s what that means:

• Avoid auto focus on input fields so as to not be jarring for screen reader users.

• Include <label> and <button> elements for screen readers. [WCAG 2.0 - 3.2.2 (level A)]

• Group listings and results as <li> items within <ol> tags which gives them context inside the accessibility tree and group taxonomy chips within <ul> tags.

• Links open within the same tab by default. Opening search results in a new window/tab automatically can be disorienting, especially for users with cognitive disabilities or difficulty perceiving visual content.

• aria-label provided for result counts, identifying the text as “{X} results” to screen readers.

• Wrapping <input type="checkbox"> with <label> implicitly associating them together. A name (identifying the facet) and a value (identifying the filter) are also provided to the <input> element.

• Filters text is wrapped in an <h3> tag as it describes all of the components that follow.

• A <fieldset> element surrounds the facet, and a <legend> element containing the facet name provides a description for the grouping.

• An aria-label is applied to the ‘More’ and ‘Clear’ buttons to provide more context to what these buttons do.

• The markup for each filter checkbox includes an aria-label that denotes whether clicking the item will add or remove that filter.

• The markup includes a role="dialog" to identify it as a dialog in the accessibility tree. [WCAG 2.0 - 1.3.1 (level A)]

• Color is used to show which filters are selected or unselected and show which buttons are disabled (lighter) and which page is currently selected (includes a background). [WCAG 2.0 - 1.4.1 (level A)]

• The search box inside of the ‘more filters’ dialog automatically receives focus when the dialog is opened. [WCAG 2.0 - 2.4.3 (level A)]

• The markup includes a <nav> element (tagged with aria-label="navigation") to give more context in the accessibility tree. [WCAG 2.0 - 1.3.1 (level A)]

• An aria-current="page" attribute is added to the current page so that this information is exposed to the accessibility tree. [WCAG 2.0 - 2.4.8 (level AAA)]
  

It’s crucial not to underestimate the importance of web accessibility and in turn invest in creating accessible digital spaces for all users.

Highly accessible content means excellent usability for all. And that’s what we’re all about.