Enhancing Your Shopify Store: Why E-commerce Website Accessibility Compliance Matters

Enhancing Your Shopify Store: Why E-commerce Website Accessibility Compliance Matters

If you run a Shopify store, you're likely aware of the importance of delivering an exceptional user experience. However, one often overlooked yet crucial aspect is website accessibility compliance. According to a comprehensive study by the Baymard Institute, 94% of the largest e-commerce sites fail to meet basic accessibility requirements, specifically those outlined by the WCAG 2.1 Level AA guidelines.

Neglecting accessibility not only limits your potential audience, but it can also result in costly legal repercussions. From boosting your customer base to avoiding lawsuits, let's explore why accessibility is critical, common pitfalls to avoid, and how you can ensure your Shopify store is accessible to all users.

Understanding Website Accessibility Compliance

Website accessibility compliance ensures that your site is usable and understandable by all people, including those with disabilities. Standards like the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide a clear benchmark for creating universally accessible websites. Achieving accessibility compliance means your Shopify store's content, navigation, images, forms, and interactive elements are fully functional for everyone, whether they're using screen readers, navigating by keyboard, or employing other assistive technologies.

Unfortunately, as the Baymard Institute research indicates, many e-commerce businesses fail to consider accessibility during their Shopify development and web design processes. This oversight not only excludes potential customers but also opens businesses up to legal risks.

Key Accessibility Issues E-commerce Sites Face

1. Accessibility of Images

Images are essential elements in an e-commerce store—they influence purchasing decisions and provide an engaging visual experience. Yet, according to Baymard's research, 82% of e-commerce sites aren't compliant in image accessibility. Common image-related accessibility issues include:

• Missing or inadequate alt text (alternative text): 54% of sites have incomplete alt descriptions, hindering screen reader effectiveness.
• Embedded text in images without descriptions: 63% fail to provide adequate markup for embedded text.
• Decorative images lacking empty alt tags: 21% don't specify when images are purely decorative, causing confusion for screen reader users.

Ensure that all images on your Shopify store have descriptive and meaningful alt text. Informational images should succinctly describe the visual; decorative images should have empty alt tags to notify assistive technologies to skip over them.

2. Accessible and Descriptive Links

Links facilitate navigation and guide customers through your store, yet they often pose serious accessibility issues. Baymard found that 73% of major e-commerce sites fail to implement accessible link practices, such as:

• Inadequate or vague link descriptions: 66% of sites don't provide sufficiently descriptive link texts.
• Insufficient contrast: Poor color contrasts between links and surrounding text or backgrounds make it challenging for users with visual impairments to navigate your site.

Make sure your Shopify development team creates descriptive and distinctive links. Text should explicitly indicate the destination or purpose (e.g., "Browse Running Shoes" rather than "Click here"). Ensure adequate contrast to improve readability and usability for users with visual impairments.

3. Properly Labeled Form Fields and Inputs

Forms are crucial for customer interaction—from setting up accounts, purchasing products, subscribing to newsletters, and providing feedback. However, Baymard highlights that 58% of sites miss the mark on form field and input accessibility, with frequent issues including:

• Lack of labels for individual form fields: 37% of sites don't label fields properly, complicating site use with screen readers.
• Absence of required status or formatting instructions: 18% fail to communicate essential input instructions, causing confusion.

Ensure that your Shopify store clearly labels all form fields, indicates required entries, and provides instructions for users. Validation errors should be communicated clearly, offering adaptive validation error messages to help users complete tasks successfully.

4. Effective Keyboard Navigation

Many users rely exclusively on keyboards or assistive devices to interact with websites. The research reveals that 64% of e-commerce websites have significant keyboard navigation compliance issues, including:

• Site functionality inaccessible via keyboard: 45% of websites have interactive elements unreachable by keyboard alone.
• Non-visible keyboard focus indicators: 48% lack clear visual indicators for the selected element.
• Illogical tab orders: 30% exhibit an unintuitive navigational sequence, causing frustration.

Optimizing keyboard accessibility requires intentional design during your Shopify theme development process. Ensure all interactive elements are reachable by keyboard, and navigation follows a logical order to enhance your site's usability.

The Business Benefits of Website Accessibility Compliance

Adopting website accessibility practices comes with significant business benefits you shouldn't overlook:

• Broader customer reach: Over 15% of the global population has some form of disability. Ensuring your Shopify store is accessible expands your potential customer base considerably.
• Improved User Experience (UX): Accessibility best practices translate directly into better overall navigability and usability for all users.
• Legal compliance and risk mitigation: Aligning your store with accessibility guidelines ensures regulatory adherence, reducing risks of expensive litigation.
• Enhanced SEO: An accessible site gains SEO benefits; alt texts, accurate semantic markup, and descriptive links improve search indexing, leading to increased visibility and traffic.
• Positive brand reputation: Demonstrating inclusivity reinforces your business's credibility and builds a strong, loyal customer base.

Frequently Asked Questions About Shopify Accessibility

What are the WCAG guidelines?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are internationally recognized standards developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). They provide recommendations to make web content accessible for people with disabilities and usable for everyone, regardless of abilities.

Who should be responsible for website accessibility compliance?

Accessibility compliance is a shared responsibility. Designers, Shopify developers, content creators, and business owners should proactively collaborate to ensure adherence to accessibility best practices.

Can accessibility improvements boost Shopify store conversions?

Absolutely! Improved accessibility positively affects user experience, encouraging return visits and enhancing conversion rates as more customers can easily navigate your store and make purchases.

Where can I find resources to help improve Shopify accessibility?

You can explore professional services offering Shopify accessibility audits, utilize detailed guidelines provided by research organizations like the Baymard Institute, or partner with experienced Shopify development agencies specialized in accessibility.

Are Shopify stores legally required to be accessible?

In many jurisdictions, websites, including Shopify stores, must comply with accessibility regulations, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the WCAG standards. Non-compliance risks legal action and potential financial penalties.

Conclusion: Accessibility Compliance—A Crucial Aspect of Shopify Success

Website accessibility should not be an afterthought. The recent findings reveal significant accessibility compliance issues in even the largest e-commerce brands, highlighting the need for continued improvement and heightened awareness.

By prioritizing accessibility compliance in your Shopify store, you’ll enjoy a broader audience reach, strengthened SEO performance, improved user experience, and the peace of mind knowing you've mitigated legal risks.

Looking to make your Shopify store more accessible but unsure where to start? Contact our team of Shopify experts at Parkdale Digital to guide you through each step toward achieving full accessibility compliance. Explore our comprehensive range of Shopify Development and CRO Services designed to enhance your store's overall performance, conversions, and sustained growth.