How Crucial Is Accessibility Testing For The Growth Of Business Application
Technology is changing the way we live, but it needs to change how we access it, especially in the digital age that provides innovation and new opportunities to everyone who consumes it.
It requires a lot of effort in creating a technology that can be used by ‘everyone’. For instance, if a product is released in the market, it is important that the product is used by every individual, even those with special needs. If a technology empowers people who are underpowered or with special needs, it can inspire their lives in many ways they never imagined. This is where Accessibility Testing is needed!
The Need For Accessibility Testing According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 15% of the population have a disability, which is the reason Accessibility Testing has become important. It is important that product innovations are delivered to people with special needs as well. They require the implementation of special technologies in products. Some of these technologies include, screen magnification software, screen readers, speech recognition software, special keyboards to work and for communication, and more.
However, there are various innovative products, applications and websites that are not user-friendly and accessible to everybody. Accessibility Testing is geared towards normal users as well as users with different types of disabilities. Accessibility Testing not only focuses on verifying usability, but it makes sure that an application can be used by people with many disabilities, including visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilities.
How to Perform Accessibility Testing? Accessibility Testing of a website, product or an application usually involves extensive manual examination of individual pages, along with testing individual functions like product searches and online form submissions. Accessibility can be achieved using both manual and automated testing of specific elements of the digital technology.
Overview of Accessibility Testing Guidelines Whether the testing is automated or manual, it is important to check for compliance with specific accessibility testing guidelines.
There are several standards for accessibility such as W3C’s WCAG 1.0/WCAG 2.0, BITV 1.0, Section 508 & Stanca Act, etc. out of which Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 ARE ACCEPTED WORLDWIDE. These standards provide details and standards on how to make a website or application accessible. An application or website having the right knowledge of these standards and abiding by these standards has a high rate of being successful in the market.
The Four Primary Principles On Which The WCAG 2.0 Is Based On: • • • •
Perceivable information and user interface Operable user interface and navigation Understandable information and user interface Robust content and reliable interpretation
Conclusion Making Accessibility Testing a regular part of the software testing process, and implementing the necessary checks early and often can help improve the overall experience of using an application or website. As the world is moving towards, World Health Organization improving the customer experience, it is important that an application is tested for its accessibility. Good accessibility is directly proportional to good user experience. Although the methodologies to accessibility may vary, the trend towards IT consumption patterns that focus on users will continue to drive consumer and enterprise IT requirements for the predictable future. With the drift towards more accessibility, human-centric design and overall usability will become more important.
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