Website accessibility means making sure that all users, including those with disabilities, can access, navigate, and interact with your website content. By focusing on accessibility, businesses can create an inclusive digital environment that benefits both the company and its customers, fostering a wider audience and promoting brand visibility and loyalty.

Key Elements of Web Accessibility

Web accessibility is built on four foundational principles: making sure content is perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust (POUR), as outlined by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Here’s how these principles play out in practice:

• Perceivable: Information and user interface components must be presented in ways that users can perceive. This means providing text alternatives for non-text content, making it easier for screen readers to describe images through alternative text.
• Operable: User interface components and navigation must be operable by everyone. Ensuring your website can be fully navigated with a keyboard allows users with mobility impairments to access your content.
• Understandable: Information and the operation of the user interface must be understandable. This can be achieved by using clear and simple language, as well as providing instructions or guidance when necessary.
• Robust: Content must be robust enough to be interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies. This means ensuring compatibility with current and future tools, like screen readers.

Website Accessibility Tools

There are several accessibility tools available on the market that ensure websites provide the best user experience for everyone. Please note, the City of Bend does not endorse any of the products, vendors, consultants, or documentation referenced within these pages. Any mention of vendors, products, or services is for informational purposes and meant to serve as examples of businesses and organizations digitally working to provide accessible outcomes. Please be a diligent consumer of information.  We recommend that you confirm the reliability and accuracy of any source of information before relying on it.

Depending on your business website and digital needs, you may elect to explore online businesses (such as Accessibe, Userway, Wave, or A11Y Project) which are dedicated to crafting solutions for digital accessibility. 

Beyond meeting legal requirements, making your website accessible has tangible benefits for your business. It expands your potential customer base to include individuals with disabilities, improves your site's SEO, and enhances overall user experience, leading to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

We encourage all business owners in Central Oregon to evaluate their website's accessibility. Together, we can ensure that our digital spaces are welcoming to everyone, reflecting the inclusivity and community spirit of Central Oregon.

Please note, the City of Bend does not endorse any of the products, vendors, consultants, or documentation referenced within these pages. Any mention of vendors, products, or services is for informational purposes and meant to serve as examples of businesses and organizations digitally working to provide accessible outcomes. 

There are many statutes, rules, and regulations that require certain disability accommodations, including Federal and Oregon State laws. This webpage is intended to provide resources and information related to such accommodations; it does not constitute legal advice.