Accessibility basics that also improve conversion
Accessibility work is usually framed as compliance. In practice the same fixes make pages easier to scan, easier to tap on a phone, and more likely to convert.
Contrast and type
Body text below a 4.5:1 contrast ratio is hard for everyone in daylight. Grey-on-white placeholder copy and light text over photography are the two most common failures on business sites.
Set body text at 16px or larger, keep line length between 60 and 75 characters, and avoid light weights for paragraph text.
Keyboard and focus
Tab through your own site. If focus disappears, if a menu cannot be opened without a mouse, or if a modal traps focus without an escape, keyboard users are locked out. Visible focus outlines are not optional decoration.
Forms
Every field needs a real label, not just a placeholder. Errors need to be announced and described in text. Required fields need a marker beyond colour. These changes reduce support requests as much as they satisfy audits.
Common questions
- Do we need a full WCAG audit?
- If you serve public sector clients or operate in a regulated market, yes. Otherwise start with the four fixes above, which address most real-world barriers.
- Does accessibility slow a site down?
- No. It generally forces simpler, lighter markup, which helps performance.
Next step
If this question is live in your business right now, describe the situation and you will get a written view on the options, including whether you should build at all.
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