Last time we blogged about the meaning of ADA compliant website. Now let's talk about how to become ADA compliant. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became a law on July 26, 1990 and from this day every company needs to fulfill a set of requirements in order to allow people with different disabilities to access their premises without any obstructions. 

The overarching purpose of this act was to enable an equal experience to all people. Because the act was signed three decades ago, many things have changed. One of these things is the Web.

30 years of ADA Act​ 

When President George H. W. Bush signed the ADA act in 1990, World Wide Web was in its infancy. On 20 December that year, the very first web site was published. Years gone by, and Internet became not only the central to the development of the Information Age but, most of all, a primary tool for interacting used everyday by billions of people around the world. In the US alone, 1 in 5 persons are disabled which means that if a website isn't properly accessible, people with different kinds of disabilities won't be able to use it. No wonder that ADA Act in the original form from 1990 needed changes.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1​

WCAG 2.1, released at the end of 2018 is a document that covers a wide range of different recommendations for making Web content more usable for people with disabilities. By following these guidelines your content will be more accessible not only for viewers with a wide range of disabilities but also elderly. WCAG 2.1 was developed through the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) process in cooperation with people and organizations from the whole world. The goal was to provide a shared standard for Web content accessibility which will meet the needs of different organizations internationally.

It's worth being ADA compliant!​

If your website isn't ADA compliant it may not be accessible to millions of people in the US. According to the CDC (Center of Disease Control) 2.0 million people are with sight impairment, 7.6 million people are auditory impaired and 19.9 people are motor-impaired and cannot use a mouse. These people will search for another service if they can't access your website. Want to be ADA compliant but you don't know what to do? Hand your website over to professionals! PERC ADA Compliance™ Plugin will do everything for you! For more details – visit the official website.