If you are interested in Accessibility and wonder where to start then check out "Inclusive Design for a Digital World" from Regine M. Gilbert.
It's written in a very friendly and approachable style - you don't have to be a technical expert, nor an accessibility one. If you care about this space or just want to be in the business of good business, give it a read.
In no particular order, i found these so interesting:
- The main types of disability are visual, auditory, cognitive and mobility. These affect the way people use a digital product or engage with your business
- Accessibility benefits EVERYONE. Let's take close captions as an example. They might be used by somebody with a visual disability. They are also used by people for whom the video is not in their native language. Alternatively the person watching it doesn't want the audio, but they still want to be able to consume the content (it's a whole trend with young people).
- Accessibility makes for GREAT business. You increase your audience and customer base. It's also the better thing to do morally and legally. The lawsuits in the US due to inappropriate technology which doesn't respect guv guidelines or laws has increased by 181%.
All of that still doesn't convince you? Then you should know that people with a disability have a combined annual disposable income of... $996 BILLION. As a friend says "We will call that a trillion for good measure."
Can you really afford to not care about a trillion when it comes to your business? Yeah, i thought so.
Lastly, here is a story for you - SMS texting was invented for deaf people to communicate. Fast forward, we know it's benefits and how it has changed communications for everybody. That's accessibility we are benefits from, again, on a daily basis.