[NFBOH-Cleveland] Are companies doing their best to make their websites accessible to all people with disabilities?

Thu Jan 2 20:32:47 UTC 2020

How Can Online Shopping Become More Accessible To Consumers With Vision
Impairments In 2020? <https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahkim/> 

Sarah Kim  <https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahkim/> Contributor

Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

 <https://www.forbes.com/diversity-inclusion> Diversity & Inclusion 

I write about diversity and inclusion in the realm of disabilities.

Are companies doing their best to make their websites accessible to all
people with disabilities?

As the bustle and hustle of the holiday season settle down, millions of
people around the world are entering the new year with all the latest
gadgets and apparel they've received. Or, they are waiting on long lines
either in stores or at post offices to return their gift mishaps. Whatever
the case might be, there's a good chance that the gift was purchased online.

More and more consumers are turning to online shopping, especially during
the holidays. In 2018,
<https://www.statista.com/statistics/241945/us-retail-e-commerce-holiday-sea
son-revenue/> holiday season e-commerce spending in the United States
amounted to 119.54 billion U.S. dollars, with the
<https://www.statista.com/statistics/861193/us-holiday-season-retail-e-comme
rce-spending-by-online-shopping-day/> most money being spent online on Cyber
Monday. Cyber Monday 2019 became the most profit-driven U.S. online shopping
day ever, with over 9.4 billion U.S. dollars in online spending.

However, in a society where online shopping is vastly becoming the norm,
people with vision impairments are continuing to be left out of this
lifestyle. According to a
<https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/15264-is-your-website-inaccessible-to-the
-visually-impaired.html> recent report by Deque Systems, Amazon, Best Buy
and Target's websites are "relatively accessible" to the blind. Still,
two-thirds of the top 10 retailers by revenue have "serious accessibility
issues." The report also states that sites that aren't accessible are
leaving $6.9 billion on the table.

Today In: Leadership <https://www.forbes.com/diversity-inclusion> 

This year, the
<https://www.forbes.com/sites/denisebrodey/2019/10/08/54-of-adults-living-wi
th-a-disability-go-online-but-dominos-pizza-is-still-fighting-change/#158e29
5f1de3> case against Dominos Pizza gained national attention, as the company
refused to make its website accessible for customers with low vision.
Dominos is undoubtedly not the first, nor will it be the last, company
failing to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act that requires
businesses that have websites or online platforms to be accessible to those
with disabilities.

Nadine Vogel, C.E.O. and founder of  <https://consultspringboard.com/>
Springboard Consulting LLC, is tackling this very issue. Springboard
Consulting is a global company working with companies to mainstream
disability in the workforce, workplace, and marketplace. One service that
the firm provides to companies is conducting accessibility and usability
audits.

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Along with those written reports, Vogel also puts a human touch on the
issues at stake. She explains, "if we give [the company] a video, it shows
someone crying because they can't decide if they've ordered this, and
they've been at it for an hour. It allows everyone to really understand the
human factors, what the issues are."

Fernando Botelho is a social entrepreneur based in Brazil and has been blind
for 30 years. Despite running his business entirely online- hiring and
managing consultants in seven countries- Botelho still hasn't had a single
positive online shopping experience.

"The most frustrating aspect of online shopping is that usually fairly small
and simple fixes to web pages," he explains, "could make the experience
dramatically better for someone blind. However, it is almost 2020, and too
many online stores have yet to integrate accessibility criteria in their
online production cycle."

Botelho relies on his wife to do most of his shopping on his behalf.
However, he is heartbroken that he can never surprise her with a gift during
the holidays.

Online shopping offers people with vision impairments to shop from the
comfort of their homes without having to worry about other logistics. Renee
Arrington-Johnston of Ohio explains, "Online shopping removes the need for
transportation and carrying packages and goods on the return trip home.
Because I do not drive if I am traveling independently, I prefer everything
that I purchase to fit in my backpack. Since I use a guide dog, I prefer my
hands to be free."

Arrington-Johnson is a retiree of a 40-year career at General Motors and has
retinitis pigmentosa, which causes night blindness and deficient peripheral
vision.

Although online shopping provides her with the independence and
accessibility that she needs, it has downsides. The most frustrating aspect
is, she says, "websites that are not easy to use due to accessibility
issues: poor contrast, graphics not identified, tabs that don't follow a
logical order. Also, if prices change while I am checking out, it is
frustrating because I take a little longer because of my low vision.
Sometimes I miss out on short term deals because I am double-checking to
make sure I did not make a mistake."

According to Vogel, many of the issues that Botelho and Arrington-Johnson
state can be easily fixed if the companies are brought aware of them and
care enough about their low-vision or blind customers. The technology is
certainly there for companies can use to make websites accessible - they
need to take the first step to care and want to fix the issue.

"People with disabilities should be viewed as customers," Vogel says. "Like
anyone else, people who want to eat pizza, buy clothes [and] wear cosmetics.
And it doesn't matter what the disability type is, it's about equal access.
It does not mean treating everyone the same. It means giving everyone the
same opportunity, in this case, to purchase a product or service."

Follow me on Twitter <https://www.twitter.com/sarahskkim> . Check out my
website <http://beingsarahkim.com/> .

 <https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahkim/> 

Sarah Kim  <https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahkim/> 

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio (NFBO)

Suzanne Turner, Ohio Affiliate Vice President

Cleveland Chapter, President

(216) 990-6199

Please click on the links below to learn more about the organization

The Ohio Affiliate

 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGe_1qGbkX8>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGe_1qGbkX8

"Live the life you want" featuring, National President, Mark Riccobono

 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DesLNDBpYVE&feature=share>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DesLNDBpYVE&feature=share

Visit and take a moment to like our Facebook Page!

<https://m.facebook.com/NationalFederationOfTheBlindOfOhioClevelandChapter/>
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The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.

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