Now that you have a better understanding of POUR, you should start to learn what criteria it takes to pass each and have your website accessible. Like I said earlier, all things in our world have layers, some complicated, some not. Within POUR, each principle has a set up guidelines that have different levels that you must reach to be compliant. Let’s talk through what each means and how to determine what is right for your website.
Layers of Guidance
Each principle has a set of guidelines and each guideline has three levels of testable success criteria: Levels A, AA, and AAA. The criteria are organized based on the impact they have on design or visual presentation on web pages, so the higher the level, the more restraining the criteria are on design.
Level A is the minimum level and it’s not too difficult for organizations to meet. Most sites following these guidelines are mostly accessible but may not be as convenient for persons with certain disabilities.
Level AA is the general standard and achievable for most organizations. These guidelines balance best between ease of use and website design and development.
Level AAA is the most stringent. These guidelines typically are followed by a select group of sites that target audiences with disabilities.
Have a lost you yet? Maybe?
First, yes, this is not an easy concept to get. But don’t fret! I have to tell you about a very handy, customizable, quick reference by WCAG 2.0. On that page, you can specifically filter by level, which really helps you see exactly what you need to do to hit that accessibility level.
Let’s say you are striving to have an “AA compliant” site. You would filter this list to show you everything you must meet and viola – there is your check list for your website! You can also filter it by specific tags, so if you are a designer, you can filter by “visual design” to see criteria that apply to your tasks at hand.
Still feeling overwhelmed? Don’t be! Our next series will talk through a few things you can be doing right now to make a big difference on your website. Accessibility is so important to your website and your audience, so these upcoming tips will help you make a big difference to the experience on your website today!