SayPro Detailed Accessibility Evaluation for SayPro Website from SayPro Monthly January SCMR-17 SayPro Monthly Inclusive Design: Ensure the site is accessible to users with disabilities by SayPro Online Marketplace Office under SayPro Marketing Royalty SCMR
To ensure the SayPro website meets accessibility standards and provides an inclusive experience, we performed a detailed review in line with WCAG 2.1 guidelines. This analysis identifies key areas where SayPro’s site is not meeting accessibility requirements, along with recommendations and prioritization for improvements.
1. Color Contrast Issues (WCAG 1.4.3)
Identified Issues:
- Several text elements, such as body text, buttons, and navigation links, have insufficient contrast against their background. This primarily impacts users with visual impairments, such as those with low vision or color blindness.
- Key areas include the primary call-to-action buttons and headings, which fail to meet the minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
Impact:
- Users with visual disabilities may struggle to read and interact with the content. This is especially problematic for critical elements like buttons or links that lead to key pages or actions.
Priority: High
- Recommendation: Update color combinations across the website to ensure sufficient contrast ratios between text and background. Use accessible color contrast tools to verify and adjust any problematic areas.
- Suggested Action: Focus on buttons, navigation links, and body text, ensuring they meet WCAG’s minimum contrast ratio requirements.
2. Missing Alternative Text for Images (WCAG 1.1.1)
Identified Issues:
- A number of images, icons, and decorative visuals lack alternative text (alt text) or have insufficient alt text that fails to describe the image’s purpose or content adequately.
- Incomplete alt text or missing alt attributes can lead to confusion, especially for screen reader users.
Impact:
- Users who rely on screen readers or other assistive technologies will not be able to understand the images or their purpose. This compromises the website’s usability, particularly for visually impaired users.
Priority: High
- Recommendation: Ensure that all images, icons, and other visual elements include descriptive alt text. For purely decorative images, use an empty
alt=""attribute so that screen readers can ignore them. - Suggested Action: Conduct a full audit to identify missing or incorrect alt text, then update images accordingly with clear, concise descriptions.
3. Inadequate Keyboard Navigation (WCAG 2.1.1)
Identified Issues:
- Several interactive elements, such as dropdown menus, form fields, and buttons, are not fully accessible via keyboard navigation.
- The Tab key navigation is sometimes inconsistent, and focus indicators are not visible or are improperly implemented on some interactive elements.
Impact:
- Users who cannot use a mouse, including those with mobility impairments or those relying on keyboard-only navigation, will find it difficult or impossible to interact with essential site components.
Priority: High
- Recommendation: Ensure that all interactive elements are fully operable using only a keyboard. This includes buttons, form fields, dropdown menus, and any other controls. Focus indicators should be clearly visible when elements are selected or active.
- Suggested Action: Test the website’s functionality with keyboard-only navigation, and adjust focus management to ensure elements are navigable and interactive via the Tab, Enter, and Space keys.
4. Incorrect or Inconsistent Heading Structure (WCAG 1.3.1)
Identified Issues:
- The website’s heading structure is inconsistent, with some pages lacking headings or improperly using heading levels. For example,
<h1>tags are missing on some pages, or headings jump from<h1>to<h3>without intermediate heading levels.
Impact:
- The lack of proper heading hierarchy makes it difficult for screen readers to properly navigate and structure the content. Users with cognitive impairments may also struggle to understand the page structure.
Priority: High
- Recommendation: Review and adjust the website’s heading structure to ensure it follows a consistent, logical hierarchy (e.g.,
<h1>for main titles,<h2>for sections, etc.). Each page should have one main<h1>heading. - Suggested Action: Conduct a manual review of all pages to ensure proper heading tag usage and structure, and test the page with screen readers to verify proper hierarchy.
5. Forms Missing Labels and Accessible Error Messages (WCAG 1.3.1, 3.3.2)
Identified Issues:
- Many form fields do not have labels or do not have clear associations with the fields. Additionally, error messages are not fully accessible for users with screen readers.
- Forms may also lack proper instructions or guidance for users with cognitive disabilities or those unfamiliar with the form’s purpose.
Impact:
- Screen reader users or those using keyboard navigation will be unable to correctly fill out forms if labels are missing or not associated properly with form fields. This can result in form submission failures, confusion, and frustration.
Priority: High
- Recommendation: Ensure all form fields are properly labeled and associated with their respective input elements. Provide clear and accessible error messages when users make mistakes. Use ARIA attributes where appropriate for custom form elements.
- Suggested Action: Review all forms to ensure each input has a corresponding label. Implement clear error messages, and ensure they are announced by screen readers.
6. Inaccessible Multimedia Content (WCAG 1.2.2, 1.2.3)
Identified Issues:
- Videos embedded on the site do not include captions, transcripts, or audio descriptions. Some videos do not have an accessible player interface for keyboard or screen reader users.
Impact:
- Users who are deaf or hard of hearing will not be able to understand video content. Users with visual impairments may also struggle to interact with multimedia controls. This leads to an exclusionary experience for certain users.
Priority: Medium
- Recommendation: Provide captions or subtitles for all video content and offer audio descriptions when applicable. Ensure that multimedia players are fully accessible by keyboard and screen readers.
- Suggested Action: Add captions to all videos and provide transcripts where necessary. Review the media player interface to ensure it meets accessibility standards.
7. Lack of Accessible Navigation (WCAG 2.4.1, 2.4.7)
Identified Issues:
- The website’s navigation system is not fully accessible to screen reader users or keyboard-only users. Important links are not clearly identified, and users cannot skip over repetitive elements easily (e.g., navigation menus, headers).
Impact:
- Users with disabilities, particularly those using screen readers or who navigate via keyboard, will find it difficult to access key pages or perform tasks on the website. The lack of skip-to-content links or logical navigation makes it harder for users to access critical information.
Priority: Medium
- Recommendation: Add a “skip to content” link to allow users to bypass repetitive navigation menus. Ensure that navigation links are clearly labeled and accessible via keyboard navigation.
- Suggested Action: Implement a skip-to-content feature on all pages, ensuring that users can easily jump to the main content. Test navigation with keyboard and screen readers.
8. Insufficient ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) Usage (WCAG 4.1.2)
Identified Issues:
- Interactive elements such as dropdowns, modals, and accordions lack proper ARIA attributes (roles, states, and properties), which help users understand the behavior of these dynamic elements when navigating with assistive technologies.
Impact:
- Users who rely on screen readers may not be able to interact with dynamic elements or understand their state (expanded, collapsed, etc.), resulting in confusion or inability to use the feature effectively.
Priority: Medium
- Recommendation: Implement ARIA roles, properties, and states for all dynamic content, such as menus, modals, and expandable sections.
- Suggested Action: Review interactive elements to ensure that appropriate ARIA attributes (such as aria-expanded, aria-hidden, role=”dialog”) are applied where necessary.
9. Mobile Accessibility Issues (WCAG 1.4.10, 2.1.1)
Identified Issues:
- The website is not fully optimized for mobile users with disabilities. Some interactive elements become difficult to access on smaller screens, and the mobile experience is not as keyboard-friendly as the desktop version.
Impact:
- Users who rely on mobile devices with assistive technologies will experience barriers to navigating or interacting with the website if the mobile version is not properly designed for accessibility.
Priority: Medium
- Recommendation: Ensure that the mobile version of the website is fully optimized for keyboard navigation, touch gestures, and screen reader compatibility.
- Suggested Action: Conduct testing on various devices (mobile, tablet) using both standard and assistive technologies (e.g., VoiceOver, TalkBack) to ensure accessibility across platforms.
Conclusion and Recommendations
The SayPro website has several areas that need improvement to meet WCAG 2.1 accessibility standards. The primary areas requiring urgent attention include:
- Color Contrast Issues – Update text and background colors to ensure they meet minimum contrast requirements.
- Missing Alt Text for Images – Add alt text for all images and ensure decorative images are properly marked.
- Keyboard Accessibility – Ensure that all interactive elements are keyboard-navigable.
- Forms and Error Handling – Implement proper labels for form fields and ensure clear, accessible error messages.
- Multimedia Accessibility – Provide captions and audio descriptions for all video content.