🤩 Free example accessibility toolkit for product teams

Product teams can blend accessibility into the design of their products in several ways, some key point may include:

Involve people with disabilities in the design process:

1. One of the best ways to ensure that your product is accessible is to involve people with disabilities in the design process. By doing so, you can get direct feedback from users who have real-world experience with the challenges and barriers that accessibility issues can create

2. Use accessibility guidelines and standards:

3. Product managers should be familiar with accessibility guidelines and standards such as WCAG 2.1, and ensure that the product design follows these guidelines. By doing so, they can ensure that the product design is accessible to a wide range of users with different needs.

Consider multiple assistive technologies:

1. Product teams should consider the needs of users who rely on different types of assistive technologies such as screen readers, voice recognition software, and keyboard-only navigation. This means designing products that can be used by people with a range of different abilities, and providing alternative ways to access content and functionality.

2. Prioritize accessibility features:

3. Product managers should prioritize accessibility features and make them a core part of the product roadmap. This means ensuring that accessibility is considered at every stage of the design process, and that accessibility features are included in the product backlog.

Test with real users:

1. Product teams should test their products with real users who have disabilities, to ensure that the product design meets their needs. By doing so, they can identify any barriers to accessibility and make necessary changes to improve the user experience.

2. Train the product team on accessibility:

3. Product managers should ensure that the entire product team, including designers and developers, are trained on accessibility best practices. By doing so, they can ensure that everyone involved in the design process is aware of the importance of accessibility and has the skills and knowledge to create accessible products.

Photo by Life Of Pix

Here you can find a few links for an accessibility toolkit example:

Understand the basics of accessibility:

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/

• The Importance of Accessibility: https://www.w3.org/WAI/fundamentals/accessibility-intro/

• Accessible Technology: https://www.access-board.gov/ict

Conduct accessibility audits:

• Accessibility Insights: https://accessibilityinsights.io/

• Axe Accessibility: https://www.deque.com/axe/

• WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool: https://wave.webaim.org/

Develop an accessibility policy:

• Developing an Accessibility Policy: https://www.w3.org/WAI/policies/

• Accessibility Policy Template: https://www.deque.com/blog/eu-web-accessibility-compliance-and-legislation/amp/

Train your team:

• Accessibility Guidelines for Designers: https://www.w3.org/WAI/roles/designers/

• Web Accessibility Tutorials: https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/

• Inclusive Design: https://inclusivedesignprinciples.org/

Use accessible design patterns:

• Accessible Design Patterns: https://www.smashingmagazine.com/printed-books/inclusive-front-end-design-patterns/

• The A11Y Project: https://www.a11yproject.com/patterns/

• Accessibility for Teams: Digital.govhttps://accessibility.digital.govAccessibility for Teams - Digital.gov

Conduct user testing with people with disabilities:

• User Testing with People with Disabilities: W3.orghttps://www.w3.org › test-evaluateInvolving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility

• Assistive Technology User Testing: Deque Systemshttps://www.deque.com › blog › co...Considering accessibility when designing a usability test

Collaborate with accessibility experts:

• Accessible Design in Action: W3Chttps://www.w3.org › WAI › peopl...How People with Disabilities Use the Web | Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)

• Accessibility Partnerships: W3Chttps://www.w3.org › WAIHome | Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)

• The Accessibility Project: https://a11yproject.com/

Make accessibility part of your product roadmap:

• Inclusive Product Design: https://www.w3.org/WAI/fundamentals/accessibility-usability-inclusion/

• The A11Y Collective: https://www.a11y-collective.com

• Accessible Product Development: United Kingdom Governmenthttps://design-system.service.gov.uk › ...Accessibility

Create accessible documentation:

• Accessible Documents: https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/docs/

• Creating Accessible PDFs: https://www.adobe.com/accessibility/pdf/pdf-accessibility-overview.html

• Accessible Word Documents: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/accessibility/

Monitor and evaluate accessibility metrics:

• Accessibility Metrics: W3Chttps://www.w3.org › ED-metricsResearch Report on Web Accessibility Metrics

• Accessibility Testing Tools: https://www.w3.org/WAI/test-evaluate/tools/

• Accessibility Guidelines for Reporting: W3Chttps://www.w3.org › WAI › evalOverview | WCAG-EM Report Tool

Hope you enjoy 😉