Making the web accessible for everyone: how you can help

It’s sometimes not until we experience something ourselves that we can start to understand the challenges faced by those with a disability. Whether it’s a temporary injury that gives you a better perspective, or a close friend or family member that needs your assistance, living in a modern world immersed in technology can be much more difficult for those with accessibility needs. Thankfully, companies are now taking their online accessibility more seriously, following several high-profile legal cases involving big name brands who have failed to comply with equality and disability discrimination acts.

Perhaps one of the most high-profile cases was Beyonce’s official website, which failed to meet even the most basic accessibility requirements for visually impaired users. The importance of this was heard in the courtroom, with the victim’s attorney stating: “music is the one and only form of entertainment that truly presents an even playing field between the visually impaired and the sighted.”

Despite this, Beyonce’s website was a minefield for many disabled users to navigate, with limited keyboard access and images lacking any descriptions to give context for those with visual impairments.

A lawsuit claimed beyonce.com violated the Americans With Disabilities Act

Living in a digital society isn’t just difficult for those with disabilities. Part of the UK’s ageing population and, for example, people affected by conditions like dementia also struggle with the internet-first lifestyle that has been adopted by most companies, making some products and services inaccessible to those without support from tech-savvy family members or friends.

Luckily, there is a way you can help make the web experience easier for those who feel vulnerable online, regardless of your own age, technical ability or any disabilities. People for Research are a UK agency who specialise in finding people to test out digital products and services on behalf of well-known brands, government services and charities. Paid testing can be a great way to earn a little bit of extra income and give your feedback on important products and services that we all come to rely on.

While anyone can sign up to take part in user testing, People for Research are particularly looking to hear from those who have a disability to join their newly launched Accessibility Collective. The end goal is to ensure the web is equally accessible for all users, regardless of their circumstances and, in exchange for their feedback on a company’s product or service, the participants are incentivised to say thank you for their time and opinion.

Sessions often take place in a central Bristol location (and other central locations when in other cities across the UK), or from the comfort of your own home where possible. One of the Accessibility Collective’s members, Fiona, has dyslexia and struggles to use websites because of her condition:

“Passwords for everything drive me crazy. My memory is poor due to suffering from dyslexia and passwords frustrate me. Also, if I have to fill in a form and there is no spell check on it, it drives me mad!”

Each participant’s condition affects them differently, so their feedback is invaluable. Another member of the People for Research’s Accessibility Collective, Sally, regularly struggles with the CAPTCHA security barrier:

“The biggest challenge for me are the questions you have to answer to prove you’re not a robot. They are often really difficult to manage and I get asked to do it more than once if I get it wrong the first time.”

CAPTCHA is solved by humans just 60% to 80% of the time

Sally is not alone either: CAPTCHA is solved by humans just 60% to 80% of the time, and this drops to a shocking 10% when the person has a visual impairment. It’s supposed to catch out robots and machines, but it seems even humans can’t pass these tests!

People for Research have launched the Accessibility Collective in London and Bristol so far and are looking to expand soon. If you’d like to join, please get in touch with them here, email support@peopleforresearch.co.uk or ring the team on 0117 921 0008. You can also find more feedback shared by the PFR Accessibility Collective panel members here.

Anyone can get involved with paid user testing and market research. If you find yourself getting frustrated with technology and would like to get paid for your opinion and help improve the web, join the People for Research community to find out about the latest opportunities in your area.

 Sources: The Guardian, Medium