how to win the accessibility 3-legged race
DESCRIPTION
Billy Gregory & George Zamfir, Accessibility "Solutioneers", Good Wally Description: We are seeing the exciting first signs of accessibility changing the business landscape for the overall web industry. In this 2-part session we will: Talk about making the most of this change for your web projects. Moderate a round-the-room discussion around our collective experiences. We are drawing from our experience of both working for and hiring web agencies to build accessible web products. Objectives: Our objective is to help you ask for and get accessible web products from your web agency (with secret insider information). We are drawing from our experience of working for both parties: the web agencies (to deliver web products to clients) and the clients outsourcing web projects to agencies. Accessibility is a shared responsibility. In the last years it has become apparent that (both private and public) institutions are more aware of the accessibility requirements. Not surprising, this responsibility has started to transfer to the web projects outsourced to web agencies as well. For both parties the responsibility to deliver accessible web products is becoming more and more visible. This shared responsibility can be viewed as added pressure or as a competitive advantage. Either way we are witnessing important changes in the web development industry driven by accessibility. We can use this to our users' advantage and we are here to discuss how. Speaker Bio(s): George Zamfir & Billy Gregory are the accessibility "solutioneers" behind Good Wally - a digital accessibility-consulting firm based in Toronto. George also works as an accessibility consultant at Scotiabank. He builds accessibility in some of the largest web projects at the bank, the online banking website and scotiabank.com to name a couple. Wearing different hats, he develops accessible web solutions, creates test plans, performs accessibility evaluations and also coaches and trains other teams on web accessibility. Also he is passionate about organizing monthly accessibility get-togethers in Toronto with the Accessibility & Inclusive Design meetup group (meetup.com/a11yTo). In his spare time George likes to explore new techniques, like responsive web design, and use them as tools for improved accessibility. Billy is a front-end developer at CGI with over five years experience in authoring accessible HTML. As a front-end developer, Billy can relate to many of the challenges and apprehension faced by developers who are new to accessibility. He enjoys working with developers of all levels of experience to strengthen their skills and understanding of accessibility. Billy is also very active in the accessibility community as an advocate, practitioner and speaker. Contact Information: Billy Gregory: [email protected] , twitter.com/thebillygregory George Zamfir: [email protected] - twitter.com/good_wally - www.goodwally.ca Session Date: Tuesday, May 28, 2013TRANSCRIPT
Insider information!
How to get the most accessibility from your web agency
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: h'p://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/File:The_3_legged_race_S3E8.png
(or in other words)
How to win the
accessibility 3-legged race
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: h'p://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/File:The_3_legged_race_S3E8.png
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wally
How to win the
accessibility 3-legged race
HI@goodwal ly.ca
#accessconf accessconf.ca
George Billy
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Accessibility solutioneer at Good Wallygoodwally.catwitter.com/good_wally
George - Accessibility Solutioneer - Good Wally
George Zamfir
Accessibility consultant at Scotiabank slideshare.net/GeorgeZamfir
Co-organizer at Toronto Accessibility and Inclusive Design meetup groupmeetup.com/a11yTO
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wally
In my spare time...
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I dance at weddings -‐ SUCCESSFULLYjump off cliffs -‐ in the wedding tuxI drink my tea out of beer mugs
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I dance at weddings -‐ SUCCESSFULLYjump off cliffs -‐ in the wedding tuxI drink my tea out of beer mugs
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I dance at weddings -‐ SUCCESSFULLYjump off cliffs -‐ in the wedding tuxI drink my tea out of beer mugs
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I dance at weddings -‐ SUCCESSFULLYjump off cliffs -‐ in the wedding tuxI drink my tea out of beer mugs
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I dance at weddings -‐ SUCCESSFULLYjump off cliffs -‐ in the wedding tuxI drink my tea out of beer mugs
Accessibility solutioneer at Good Wallygoodwally.catwitter.com/good_wally
George - Accessibility Solutioneer - Good Wally
Billy Gregory
Member of “Team Canada” in the Knowbility 2012 Open Air Competition
slideshare.net/BillyGeek
Front-end developer with over 5 years experience writing accessible code
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wally
In my spare time...
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I am a recovering rap metal singerI have two awesome daughters that like to dress up as zombiesI have been to the future... and I look amazing
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I am a recovering rap metal singerI have two awesome daughters that like to dress up as zombiesI have been to the future... and I look amazing
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I am a recovering rap metal singerI have two awesome daughters that like to dress up as zombiesI have been to the future... and I look amazing
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wallyWednesday, 29 May, 13
HOWEVER, In my spare 2me... I am a recovering rap metal singerI have two awesome daughters that like to dress up as zombiesI have been to the future... and I look amazing
Let us help you with the handshakeWednesday, 29 May, 13
We’re here to help you make that handshake happen!
Photo: http://imgur.com/gallery/CRUvO
Let us help you with the handshakeWednesday, 29 May, 13
We’re here to help you make that handshake happen!
Photo: http://imgur.com/gallery/CRUvO
How to win the accessibility 3-legged race
Agenda
How to win the accessibility 3-legged race1. Set yourself up for success with accessibility
2. Create a strategy and stick to it
3. Be realistic about your team's accessibility knowledge
4. Use them testing tools AND test with users
5. Always be closing
Round-the-room discussionModerated discussion on our collective experiences
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
“Oh yes, it's keyboard accessible! To open the menu press
Ctrl-Shift-Alt-F2-W-O-O-T!”
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/04/08/osborne_1_teardown/page2.html
“On our website we sell [product X]. Blind people don’t use our product so, they don’t visit our site!”
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/evilaugust/3255600143/
“Accessible websites are ugly”
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?535883-Total-War-Battles-SHOGUN-out-and-Rally-Point-Episode-One-live!/page3
So is your website accessible or not?"Accessibility is not only an issue of basic human rights, but also one of citizenship. In recognition of this, and to commemorate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the [awesome organization]... We are taking part in a global Disability Community Involvement Initiative launched in association with leading advocacy groups for the disabled."
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
So is your website accessible or not?
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
1. Set yourself up for success with accessibility
Early, in that planning / budget phase.
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"We can make it accessible. And WCAG 2 AAAA compliant. And Section 508. W3C-validated. And ponies.”
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
1. Set yourself up for success with accessibility
Agency
• "We need an accessible website" is not a good requirement.
• Take it one step further, try to read between the lines. Is accessibility a legal requirement for the client? Do they have corporate buy-in?
• Hint: What if you're the only agency who is successful in delivering accessible web products?
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• "We need an accessible website" is not a good requirement. Vague is another word for future trouble, idenTfy the client's needs. Is it Sec)on 508, AODA? Is it WCAG 2? Which level?
• Take it one step further, try to read between the lines. Is accessibility a legal requirement for the client? Do they have corporate buy-‐in? Does the client have other accessible web products? The answers to these quesTons can provide extremely valuable insight for your strategy and future collaboraTon with the client.
• Hint: What if you're the only agency who is successful in delivering accessible web products? That is a differenTator for you, a compeTTve advantage.
1. Set yourself up for success with accessibility
Client
• Take extra steps to clearly set expectations: "We want an accessible website conforming with WCAG 2, level AA.".
• Any documents that are signed should clearly define what the expectation is.
• Make sure you know what you're asking for or you have someone who can help with that.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Take extra steps to clearly set expectaTons: "We want an accessible website conforming with WCAG 2. Documents accessibility and live capTons is not in scope for this projects".
• Any documents that are signed should clearly define what the expectaTon is. That can be a contract, statement of work, RFP. etc. • Make sure you know what you're asking for or you have someone who can help with that.
2. Create a strategy and stick to it
"We want GreatWebsite.com to be accessible" =
NOT a strategy
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
"We want GreatWebsite.com to be accessible" is not a strategy. Reflect the accessibility strategy in the planning documents everyone is using, usually those are "workback schedules".
"Other companies put a plugin on their website for users to download. That made their website accessible!"
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: http://cubemate.blogs.com/cubemate/page/6/
2. Create a strategy and stick to it
Agency
• You should make accessibility an integral part of your workflow - it's becoming a competitive advantage. Also, it benefits you on interoperability, SEO and mobile development.
• Your best accessibility strategy? Bake accessibility in at every stage.
• Your account / project manager needs to clearly articulate how accessibility is done, at which stage and who is doing it.
• If you made a commitment for accessibility and don't know where to start get help. ASAP.
• Example: workback schedule we amended for accessibility for one of our clients.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• You should make accessibility an integral part of your workflow -‐ it's becoming a compeTTve advantage. Also, it benefits you on interoperability, SEO and mobile development.
• Your best accessibility strategy? Bake accessibility in at every stage. Dropping accessibility on Billy the developer will get you nowhere and frustrate Billy to no end.
• Your account manager / project manager needs to be able to clearly arTculate what is being done for accessibility, at which stage and who is doing it.• Example: workback schedule we amended for accessibility for one of our clients.• If you made a commitment for accessibility and don't know where to start get help. ASAP. But get the help that will leave the accessibility knowledge
with your team.
2. Create a strategy and stick to it
Client
• Your relationship with the agency will dictate the strategy and what / how you approach accessibility.
• Ask 1 question: What's your accessibility strategy? In your strategy include accessibility at every stage: planning, design, wireframes, prototype, final product.
• Benefits: you get the agency to think and plan for accessibility before the project starts.
• Pro tip: if you gave style guides / development guidelines that include accessibility share those with the agency.
• Compromising is OK as long as it’s realistic.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Your relaTonship with the agency will dictate the strategy and what / how you approach accessibility. • Ask 1 simple quesTon: What's your accessibility strategy? You can get a lot of informaTon from this alone. If they don't have one, you make one and
get them to price it and sign-‐off on it.• In your strategy include accessibility at every stage: planning, design, wireframes, prototype, final product.• Ask the agency to report on the accessibility implementaTon strategy.• Benefits: you get the agency to think and plan for accessibility before the project starts. • Pro 2p: if you gave style guides / development guidelines that include accessibility share those with the agency. Request that all people assigned to
the project read, sign off and adhere to them.• Be ready to compromise for the greater good. Be'er to loose a ba'le than the enTre war.
Accessibility Pricing
”Average cost to fix #a11y bug: on developer's machine $25; in testing $500; once released $15,000!”
- Susann Keohane, AccessU 2013
• Some people say 30-50% increase
• How about 9.13% ?
• IBM’s Web-Costing Model [pdf]
2. Create a strategy and stick to it
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
How much does the project cost with and without a11y?
Some people say 30-‐50% increaseOur number? 9.13% (based on a recent RFP) -‐ as expensive as project management -‐ the agency’s
IBM Study
3. Be realistic about your team's accessibility knowledge
It’s a team effort, not the developer’s job.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
"Bob from IT says it works with JAWS 5"
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
Photo: http://abduzeedo.com/avengers-kickass-wallpapers
3. Be realistic about your team's accessibility knowledge
Agency
• Use your strongest HTML/CSS guy for the job, your share point guy ain't gonna cut it!
• You need your whole team to know accessibility. Teamwork not "the one guy who knows VoiceOver".
• Start small, ask your team to take the short online AODA / Customer Service course.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Use your strongest HTML/CSS guy for the job, your share point guy ain't gonna cut it! The backbone of any accessible site is solid/semanTc HTML• You need your whole team to know accessibility. An excellent content creator understands the benefit of good alt= text for SEO and accessibility, a
developer may not. You need teamwork not "the one guy who knows VoiceOver".• Keyboard accessibility doesn’t being and end with the TAB key...
• "Oh yes, it's keyboard accessible. We put in keyboard shortcuts for the navigaTon menu -‐ press Shig-‐Ctrl-‐Alt-‐F2-‐W-‐T-‐F to open menu tabs". Hint: this is not keyboard accessible.
• Start small, ask your team to take the short online AODA / Customer Service course.
3. Be realistic about your team's accessibility knowledge
Client
• Testing only with screen readers is not going to cut it.
• Make sure you're comfortable with the agency's accessibility knowledge. Don't get into meetings / calls with the sales team, ask for the PM, BAs, designers, etc.
• Ask for examples of their work with other accessible projects. If the agency has no proven knowledge of accessibility, hire a third party.
• No time to kick back and relax - help the agency.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• TesTng only with screen readers is not going to cut it. We've seen web products that were coded to work with screen readers that were completely inaccessible to other users.
• But also make sure you're comfortable with the agency's accessibility knowledge. Don't get into meeTngs / calls with the sales team, ask for the PM, BAs, designers, developers and prod the team.
• Ask for examples of their work with other accessible projects. If the agency has no proven knowledge of accessibility, hire a third party.• Do not rely on the agency alone to implement accessibility. You need to be able to confirm it.
4. Use them testing tools AND test with users
Some are manual, some are automated, some work straight in your browser - you have options.
AND test with real users!
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
"Accessibility is part of our workflow. When we do QA testing" (which is 5 days before we go live)
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
4. Use them testing tools AND test with users
Agency
• Test with users with disabilities!
• You don't need to invest in expensive testing tools. Just turn on VoiceOver on you Mac or High Contrast Mode in Windows - these come with the operating system.
• Other tools we recommend are: WebAIM WAVE, aChecker, Deque FireEyes, Color Contrast Analyzer, etc.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Test with users with disabiliTes!• You don't need to invest in expensive tesTng tools. Just turn on VoiceOver on you Mac or High Contrast Mode in Windows -‐ these come with the
operaTng system. • Other tools we recommend are: WebAIM WAVE, aChecker, Deque FireEyes, Color Contrast Analyzer, etc.
4. Use them testing tools AND test with users
Client
• Test with users with disabilities or at least simulate with assistive technologies. Gamify it!
• Use automated testing tools. Especially for regularly-posted content.
• Be smart about prioritizing: 1 big issue on 1 page vs 1 small issue on 80 pages
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Test with users with disabili2es!• Use an automated tesTng tools especially if content will be regularly posted on the newly launched website. This will provide you snapshots in Tme.• Be smart about priori2zing. Honestly, you have to look at the team’s morale as well.
5. Always be closing
Is the web product launched accessible or not?What is the remediation strategy?
Who is doing it and when?
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“We’ll just do it in Phase 2!”
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
5. Always be closing
Agency
• Always be closing: you don't want accessibility lingering after launch.
• Write a report that clearly depicts the accessibility results. High level details: it's keyboard accessible, colour contrast passes with flying colours (pun intended), it works with JAWS 13 and ZoomText 10, etc.
• Do good work and don't be afraid to show the client you can do it again, this is chance to articulate that in the report.
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Always be closing: you don't want accessibility lingering ager launch. • Write a report that clearly depicts the accessibility results. High level details: it's keyboard accessible, colour contrast passes with flying colours (pun
intended), it works with JAWS 13 and ZoomText 10, etc.• Do good work and don't be afraid to show the client you can do it again, this is chance to arTculate that in the report.
5. Always be closing
Client
• Be ready to at least spot-check. And then sign-off on it.
• It's better to launch with some accessibility issues then not launch at all. Planning for remediation is OK.
• Ask the agency to report on the results of their accessibility strategy / work completed. Hint: you don't actually care how they report.
• The Major Benefit? You flip the accessibility process upside down. You're basically asking for 2 things:
★ do the accessibility work
★ tell me about what you did
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
• Ask the agency to report on the results of their accessibility strategy / work completed. Is it accessible or not? Why not? • Hint: you don't actually care how they report, it can be anything -‐ WCAG checklist, compliance sign-‐off, developers tesTmonials, etc. The Major
Benefit? You flip the accessibility process upside down. It's not JUST your responsibility to ensure accessibility, you're transferring some of that responsibility to the agency. When you ask the agency to report on accessibility you're basically asking for 2 things: 1. do the accessibility work 2. tell me about what you did
• Be ready to at least spot-‐check or test and then sign-‐off on it. Clearly and loudly (whether it's yay or nay) so everybody knows that this chapter is now closed.
• It's hard to swallow this (especially if you are as passionate about accessibility as we are) but: it's be'er to launch with some accessibility issues then not launch at all unTl it's perfect. Just like anything else it will never be perfect.
• Planning for remediaTon is OK. But be sure the plan is in place.
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wally
Thank you!
Wednesday, 29 May, 13
goodwally.ca 🌎 @good_wally
George Zamfir
twitter.com/good_wally
Billy Gregory
twitter.com/thebillygregory
Thank you!
Wednesday, 29 May, 13