There is absolutely no doubt that marketers should now be taking note of website accessibility, similarly to web owners and designers. Accessibility must now be part of a marketing plan, so we can ensure that none of it is excluding people with disabilities, even if this is unintentionally. Businesses now must ensure they are open and inclusive to all and this is where web accessibility comes in. A marketing plan is used to support and help the objectives of the business, so should now also focus on complying to web accessibility guidelines that are now set out. Whether this be paid marketing, such as PPC or social media marketing and/or content marketing.
There are now so many different reasons as to why accessibility needs to be part of a marketing plan. The first is the fact that 25.7 per cent of US adults or more than one in four people now have some form of disability. This can cover a host of different impairments, from difficulties with hearing, vision or cognition to name just a few. It is a major market of people, with Americans with disabilities also having disposable income of around $490 billion, which just shows why they should be being targeted by businesses in their marketing efforts. By not doing so, businesses are then missing out on a significant audience.
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ADA Lawsuits
Another key factor is by not ensuring website accessibility, then businesses can be open to ADA lawsuits. These have continued to rise in numbers in recent years, which is why it has never been of more importance to comply with these guidelines. You should then be looking to test your website regularly in order to ensure you do not have any website accessibility issues that can arise.
Source: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/12/10/fifty-colleges-sued-barrage-ada-lawsuits-over-web-accessibility
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Accessibility in a marketing plan
Accessibility must now be at the front and centre of the marketing plan and teams minds when they are putting a strategy in place. For example, a customer segment could focus on people with disabilities, which can really help with incorporating accessibility into the process at all times, so you do not risk coming under threat of lawsuits as mentioned above.
Getting stakeholders on board is also another very important process in creating an accessible marketing plan. The senior leadership of a business will need to be on board, so it is paramount to ensure they are convinced about how accessibility can help with building much better marketing campaigns and ultimately bringing in more revenue. There are also many other benefits from the higher customer retention, better customer service, lower bounce rates, increased usability and finally greater SEO. These metrics are all so easily measurable with the tools available today, so it is therefore an easy process when it comes to making a case as to the importance of accessibility within a marketing plan.
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