Embed accessibility into your development process

Embedding accessibility into your development processes is key to ensuring an accessible site in both the short- and long-term. Building web pages and then checking them at the end for accessibility is nonsensical as you’ll of course have to re-hash work you’ve already done. If instead you embed accessibility into the development process then you’ll get it right first time. Here are a few ideas for getting started with this…

1. Explain what accessibility isThe first stage in getting accessibility embedded within your organisation is to ensure everyone knows what it actually is. Running seminars internally and/or having web managers and developers go on accessibility training courses is a great start. There’s also a wealth of free information online so if you read anything that you find interesting and educational then send the link over to your colleagues to encourage knowledge sharing.
2. Wins hearts & mindsThere’s no point in people knowing what accessibility is if they’re not bought into it. Explaining its many benefits and how implementing accessibility won’t significantly add to anyone’s workload is a great start. The real key to winning hearts & minds though is getting support from at least one senior manager, and having them champion accessibility internally. Additionally, having a blind person come in, talk about their online experience and demo a screen reader first hand is also great for winning over sceptics.
3. Document what needs to be doneNow that everyone knows what accessibility is and is bought into it, it’s important to ensure the enthusiasm continues over time. If nothing gets written down then it’s likely that the interest in accessibility will soon wane. In particular, you should document why you’re embedding accessibility into your development processes, how you’ll be doing this and who’s responsible for what.

[Source: Webcredible.com - April 2008]