Introduction to Accessibility
Digital accessibility is a fundamental issue for ensuring smooth and fair navigation for all users, including people with disabilities. Yet many websites still fail to address these essential needs, making access to information and online services difficult—or even impossible—for part of the population. Good digital accessibility doesn’t just benefit people with disabilities. It also helps a broader audience, including seniors, users with slow internet connections, and businesses looking to improve their search engine optimization (SEO).
In addition, making a website accessible helps comply with legal standards such as the French Référentiel Général d’Amélioration de l’Accessibilité (RGAA) and the international Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). In this guide, we’ll explore why digital accessibility is crucial and how to implement it effectively.
What Is Digital Accessibility?
Digital accessibility refers to a set of practices and standards that make websites, mobile apps, and digital services usable by everyone, regardless of physical or cognitive abilities. This means that websites must be designed so users with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive impairments can interact with them without difficulty.
Key Principles of Digital Accessibility:
- Perceivable: ensure that all content can be presented in ways that users can perceive, including through screen readers.
- Operable: enable smooth navigation using keyboards and other assistive devices.
- Understandable: make content clear, well-structured, and easy to understand.
- Robust: ensure technologies are compatible with various tools and browsers.
Applying these principles from the design stage avoids costly changes later and ensures a wider audience reach.
Why Make a Website Accessible?
The web is meant to be a universal tool, giving everyone equal access to information and services. Yet a large part of today’s web remains inaccessible to millions of people due to poor design choices. Take, for example, people with visual impairments: without alt text on images or HTML structures adapted for screen readers, they may be completely excluded from a site. Similarly, people with hearing impairments face barriers when video content isn’t captioned or accompanied by transcripts.
An inaccessible site creates digital discrimination, widening the gap in access to online information and services. On the other hand, taking an inclusive approach democratizes access to the web and opens your site to a broader audience. It also leads to higher user satisfaction, with experiences tailored to specific needs. Additionally, accessible websites improve visibility and performance in search engines—an undeniable competitive advantage.
Learn more about digital accessibility standards
The Challenges of Implementing Digital Accessibility
One of the main barriers to widespread adoption of digital accessibility is the lack of awareness and training among web developers and designers. Many are unfamiliar with WCAG standards or view them as secondary, when in fact they are essential for creating inclusive experiences. Some companies also hesitate to invest in accessibility due to perceived costs, without realizing that these investments can generate significant long-term returns. The tools and technologies exist to make compliance easier, but adoption remains too slow. Overcoming these challenges requires training teams, integrating best practices from the start, and taking a progressive approach to accessibility improvements.
The New Digital Accessibility Directive in 2025
Starting in June 2025, new European legislation will strengthen business obligations regarding digital accessibility. Building on the directive on the accessibility of public-sector websites and mobile applications, this law will impose stricter requirements on private companies offering online services. In practice, this means e-commerce websites, service platforms, and apps will need to be accessible to all—or face financial penalties. This law marks an important step toward digital inclusion and encourages companies to prepare now for the required changes.
What This Directive Means:
- Businesses will need to conduct regular accessibility audits.
- Financial penalties will apply for non-compliance.
- Better standardization of digital tools across Europe.
Learn more about this new requirement
A Smart Investment for the Future
Making a website accessible should not be seen as a constraint, but as a real opportunity. By adopting inclusive practices, businesses and institutions strengthen their brand image, reach a wider audience, and improve SEO. Digital accessibility is a major societal issue that helps make the internet fairer and more effective for everyone. By investing today in the right solutions, you’ll anticipate future legal requirements and position yourself as a responsible player in tomorrow’s web.
