{"id":1152,"date":"2018-04-26T17:56:27","date_gmt":"2018-04-26T17:56:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pressbooks.library.ryerson.ca\/pwaa\/?post_type=chapter&p=1152"},"modified":"2022-12-16T15:48:52","modified_gmt":"2022-12-16T15:48:52","slug":"lulus-story-begins","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/pwaa\/chapter\/lulus-story-begins\/","title":{"raw":"Why Learn About Web Accessibility Auditing?","rendered":"Why Learn About Web Accessibility Auditing?"},"content":{"raw":"

Lulu\u2019s Story Begins<\/h2>\r\n
\r\n\r\n\"\"<\/span>Lulu\u2019s Lollipops is a thriving business, with 52 employees, based out of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Lulu\u2019s business is primarily web-based and has been operating for ten years selling lollipops of various shapes, sizes, colours, and flavours. A representative of a charitable organization has approached Lulu about placing a large order for lollipops that would be part of an upcoming fundraising campaign. As part of the charity\u2019s mandate, the representative has asked about the accessibility of Lulu\u2019s website to ensure that staff from different chapters of the charity can easily place orders. Lulu realizes that she has never really considered the accessibility of her website and, based on a recommendation from a friend, Lulu decides to enrol herself and a number of her team members in Web Accessibility Auditing Made Easy.\r\n\r\nAs a business owner, Lulu understands that there are some provincial guidelines she should consider as she works to accommodate the needs of her potential client (the charitable organization), but she still wonders why it makes sense to modify the website that has already served her company so well for over 10 years. Lulu and her team need to think about three important things: \u201ccurb cuts,\u201d the business case, and the AODA. Read on to learn more about these compelling factors related to investment in web accessibility. View the Lulu\u2019s Lollipops website<\/a>.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n

<\/a>Curb Cuts<\/h2>\r\nThink about \u201ccurb cuts,\u201d a great example of what is often thought of as universal design. Curb cuts were originally added to streets to accommodate those in wheelchairs so they could get from the road up onto a sidewalk and vice versa. But curb cuts are helpful for many people \u2014 not just those in wheelchairs. A person pushing a baby stroller can now easily get to the sidewalk. A person riding a bike can get more easily onto the sidewalk where the bike lockups are located. An elderly person who may have difficulty stepping up on a curb or who may be using a walker now has a smooth gradient and can walk onto the sidewalk rather than climb onto it. Curb cuts were designed to help those in wheelchairs but have come to benefit many.\r\n\r\nFrom a web accessibility perspective, most of the accessibility features you might add to a website will have that so-called \u201ccurb cut effect.\u201d For example, the text description one might include with an image to make the image\u2019s meaning accessible to a person who is blind also makes it possible for search engines to index the image and make it searchable. It allows a person on a slow Internet connection to turn images off and still get the same information. Or, it allows a person using a text-based browser, on a cell phone for instance, to access the same information as those using a typical visual browser. Virtually every such feature that might be put in place in web content to accommodate people with disabilities will improve access and usability for everyone else.\r\n
Key Point:<\/strong> Think of accommodations provided to improve web accessibility for people with disabilities as \u201ccurb cuts.\u201d They will very likely improve usability for everyone.<\/div>\r\n

The Business Case for Web Accessibility<\/h2>\r\nKarl Groves wrote an interesting series of articles in 2011 and 2012 that looked at the reality of business arguments for web accessibility. He points out that any argument needs to answer affirmatively at least one of the following questions:\r\n
    \r\n \t
  1. Will it make us money?<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. Will it save us money?<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Will it reduce risk?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nHe outlines a range of potential arguments for accessibility:\r\n