When proposing new business initiatives, the inevitable question always comes up from the Executive Team “What’s the ROI on this?”
It may seem like an overused cliché, but ROI or the return on investment is often the measuring stick with which initiatives are measured and funded. This can be a particularly challenging question if you are embarking on a Digital Accessibility initiative within your organization. Digital Accessibility may not bring a traditional “return on investment,” but it definitely brings many benefits to any organization.
Digital Accessibility means websites, platforms, applications, tools, and technologies are designed and developed so people with disabilities can use them. Digital Accessibility assists those with impairments better perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with, and contribute to digital assets. Digital Accessibility encompasses all disabilities that affect access to digital assets, including auditory, cognitive, visual, neurological, physical, and speech.
Once you understand what Digital Accessibility is, the benefits might be obvious. Let’s focus on the 3 major benefits that the C Suite will definitely appreciate.
- Brand Enhancement: With diversity and inclusion efforts taking center stage these days, it is important for consumers to know the consciousness of the brand they are investing in. Your brand image and reputation will be improved with a clear, well-integrated accessibility commitment.
- Extend Market Reach: According to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3), the global market of people with disabilities is over 1 billion people. It is estimated that those people have a combined spending power of over $6 trillion (over $200 billion in the US alone). That is a potentially large audience with disposable income that may not be able to access your site.
- Minimize Legal Risk: Nearly every country in the world, including many states and provinces, have laws regarding digital accessibility. Organizations found in violation of these laws can face lawsuits and heavy fines. Taking an active approach to addressing digital accessibility can greatly minimize your legal risk and help you achieve compliance.
Although ROI for Digital Accessibility may be a different calculation, it’s clear that an active approach to Digital Accessibility brings impactful benefits to your organization. There are tools to help you start your Digital Accessibility initiative such as AllAccessible. AllAccessible is the world’s most comprehensive web accessibility tool, and is compatible with all content management systems.
To learn more about AllAccessible and how it addresses Digital Accessibility success criteria visit AllAccessible.org.
