Izz Whizzdom: Learn from the Experts series. Digital Accessibility: What Online Business Owners Need to Know
Introducing the first guest blog in my new regular feature.
Learning from and working with others is invaluable which is why I have put together the snappily entitled Izz Whizzdom: Learn from the Experts to shine a light on the incredible expertise and knowledge by which I am fortunate to be surrounded.
Kim Scotland, a web designer is passionate about building accessible websites with a strong focus on inclusion. This topic means a great deal to us at Izz Whizz VA since we advocate for an accessible and inclusive world for all and strive to do our bit to become better every day. Reading Kim’s blog below will help us all to do just that in our online presence.
Digital Accessibility: What Online Business Owners Need to Know
If you run an online business, your website should be doing a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to growing your audience.
It attracts people. It builds trust. It explains what you do. It should turn visitors into clients.
But here’s a question that often gets missed: can everyone actually use it?
And that’s where digital accessibility comes in.
It’s not about ticking a box or adding a widget to your footer. It’s about whether real people, with real differences in their abilities see, hear, move, or process information, can fully access your content and services.
So what is digital accessibility?
Digital accessibility means designing and building websites, content, and online systems so that as many people as possible can use them, including people with disabilities.
Before I go on I will say that it’s almost impossible to make something 100% accessible. Different people have different needs and some of those might conflict with the needs of other users. So the goal here isn’t to make your website, content and systems accessible to everyone, it’s to make them as accessible as possible for as many people as possible.
That includes people who:
Use screen readers because they have a visual impairment
Use a keyboard instead of a mouse
Are deaf or hard of hearing
Have dyslexia or other cognitive differences
Are neurodivergent
Have temporary impairments, like a broken arm or migraines
Accessibility is about removing unnecessary barriers. It’s about making sure people can understand your content, navigate your pages, and take action without friction.
It overlaps heavily with good user experience. In fact, accessible websites usually mean a better experience for everyone.
Why Digital Accessibility Matters for Online Business Owners
If you’re a business owner, digital accessibility isn’t just a technical issue, it’s a business issue.
It’s About Real People
When someone lands on your site from Google and the text is tiny or using an intricate script font, the colour contrast is low, and the headings are unclear, they might struggle.
If they use assistive technology like screen readers and your site isn’t structured properly, they may not be able to get around it at all.
That person might be a perfect-fit client, they just can’t access the content on your website.
Inclusive design makes space for more people. It shows that you have thought about them and the barriers they face.
It’s About Business Sustainability
Many online businesses rely on their website to bring in new enquiries and sales. So if parts of your audience can’t use it, you’re missing out on sales.
Accessible websites also tend to appear more in search engine results. Clear headings, descriptive links, structured content, and meaningful alt text all support SEO because they help search engines understand your content.
So digital accessibility and visibility compliment each other.
It’s About Reputation and Trust
When your site feels easy and clear to use, that builds trust. It shows that you care about different people being able to access what you do.
When your site feels easy, clear, and usable, that builds trust and adds to your brand reputation, because if someone flags that your website is difficult to use, that feedback gets around.
What Makes a Website Accessible?
This is where people think it gets complicated.
It can be technical. When actually most of it begins before you even log in.
Here are some of the core elements.
Clear Structure and Headings
Your website should have a logical heading structure. One main heading per page, followed by properly nested subheadings.
Think about it like a book. A book has one title and many chapters which usually have a name or a number at least.
Screen readers often use headings to navigate content. So if your headings are skipped, repeated incorrectly, or look like headers but aren’t structured in the code, assistive technologies like screen readers might not read the page as you intend for it.
This means using actual heading tags, not just bold text made bigger when you’re creating your web pages.
Colour and Contrast
Colour contrast is the visual difference between 2 colours. When there is a high contrast between the background and text colours the text will be easy to read, such as black text on a yellow background, otherwise it will be difficult to read.
Light grey text on a white background may look nice and use your brand colours, but if the contrast is too low, many people will struggle to read it, regardless of whether or not they have issues with their vision.
There are situations where people who don’t have any visual impairments may struggle to read content with a low colour contrast such as:
People with tired eyes. As we get tired it can be difficult for us to focus on what’s in front of us, even more so when the contrast is poor
People using screens outside in bright sunshine
Distracted parents who need to find the info they need quickly
A quick win is to test your text and background colours using the WebAim Colour Contrast Checker. It will tell you whether or not there’s enough contrast between them.
Alternative Text for Images
Alt text, short for alternative text, describes images for people using screen readers.
Not every image needs alt text, only the ones that hold information or add something useful to the content already on the page.
For example a graph or a chart which adds context to the text around it needs alt text. A headshot of you doesn’t.
It does not need to be long. It needs to be descriptive and meaningful.
Don’t be tempted to fill it with your SEO keywords, as this description will be read aloud to people who use screen readers. Random keyphrases read aloud among the rest of the text on your page does not add you user experience.
On most website platforms, this can be added in the media library for each image. It is simple, but often overlooked.
Descriptive Links
Links should be clear in where they lead without context. Many screen readers will use links to navigate through a page, and if they say ‘click here’ the user has no idea what they’re clicking on or where it’s going to take them.
Think: Download the guide rather than click here
To take it to the next level you can also add what will happen once it’s been clicked such as Download the guide (opens a new tab).
Keyboard Navigation
Not everyone uses a mouse to get around a website. So it’s important that menus, links and forms are accessible using the keyboard only.
Can someone tab through your website in a logical order? Can they submit any forms without a mouse?
These are the small details that affect real users.
Captions and Transcripts
If you create video or audio content, captions and transcripts are part of digital accessibility.
Captions support deaf and hard of hearing users. Transcripts also help people who prefer reading, who are in noisy environments, or who process information better in text form.
Again, this improves user experience for many people, not just a small group.
This is a big one for me personally, I find it much easier to process written information rather than video or audio content even though I don’t have any cognitive issues.
Common Accessibility Mistakes Online Business Owners Make
Most accessibility issues are not caused because people don’t care. It’s because they don’t know about it. If you don’t have a disability then it’s something that probably wouldn’t occur to you because you’ve never needed accommodation.
Here are the most common ones I see:
Using colour alone to communicate meaning, for example red text for required fields without labels - not everyone can see colour
Uploading images with no alt text - not everyone can see them
Embedding videos without captions - some people can’t hear videos
Choosing script fonts that are hard to read - intricate fonts can be difficult for anyone to read
Where to Start Without Overwhelm
If you're reading this thinking, “I have no idea if my site is accessible”, you're not alone.
I recommend that you start small. Even the smallest change can help the people using your website.
Review your colour contrast.
Check that every page has a clear main heading.
Add meaningful alt text to images that convey information.
Ensure your links describe what they do clearly.
Turn on captions for your videos.
These are manageable steps. They won’t fix everything, but they will move the needle.
Lots of small changes compound over time to make a big difference.
Summary
Digital accessibility is about making sure your website works for as many people as possible.
It aligns with good design, good user experience, and good SEO. It will strengthen your reputation as someone who cares, broaden your reach via search engines and word of mouth, as well as removing unnecessary barriers.
You don’t have to be an accessibility expert. You just need to start thinking about how your site functions for people who experience the web differently to you.
Accessible websites are not just kinder. They're smarter business.
The Author
Kim Scotland is a web designer for service-based business owners who want more than a good-looking homepage. Through her bespoke design packages and ongoing care plans she turns underperforming sites into strategic tools that book clients, automate admin, and create smoother experiences for all users.
With over 10 years in tech as a software engineer and web designer, she builds clean, high-converting sites that do the heavy lifting so you can focus on running your business, not wrangling your website.
Kim is passionate about building websites with a strong focus on accessibility and creating inclusive digital experiences especially for marginalised people who ex