What is a11y? Advocacy for Accessibility

Many take access to technology for granted. Yet around the world, this access is not metered out fairly or equitably — restricted for any number of reasons.

One of the biggest injustices in fair access to technology is in accessibility. According to the World Health Organization, roughly 1.3 billion people, or 16% of the world’s population, have significant disability. That population is even greater when you account for temporary disabilities, such as those with injuries or recovering from surgery. Though not disabled, the number of people who benefit from accessible technology grows even more when you consider basic user experience preferences like closed captioning for videos or proper color contrast to make content easy to read.

In a literal sense, the definition of a11y is accessibility, which means adhering to regulatory and ethical standards for making both digital and physical experiences equitable and accessible. As a shorthand term, a11y is pronounced “A‑eleven‑Y.” The “11” represents the 11 letters omitted between the first letter “a” and the last letter “y” in accessibility — it was shortened, in part, due to some social media platform character limitations. The term is preferred with lowercase letters.

Some people choose to pronounce a11y as “ally,” specifically as a way to signal support to the community — others might not be aware it is technically a mispronunciation. The term can pose decoding challenges for readers with dyslexia or cognitive disabilities. Some screen readers might even announce the term as “A‑one‑one‑Y,” which can sometimes cause confusion. Still, the term a11y holds relevance, especially among people with disabilities and their communities of support.

What a11y means from a technical perspective varies from what it means in a cultural sense. Technically, a11y refers to the design and development of products and experiences, especially digital ones. The intention is to make all digital products, including apps, sites, software and features, usable for people of all abilities, including and especially those with specific accessibility needs. The goal of a11y is often to align with standards such as WCAG and laws like ADA or EAA.

Some practices that help enable a11y for digital products include:

• Screen reader compatibility
• Keyboard navigation
• Color contrast for visual clarity
• Alt text for images
• Semantic HTML usage

Many a11y features go beyond helping people with disabilities, fostering a more user-friendly product overall, such as closed captions for streaming videos. Promoting accessible products has become a priority for many brands for many reasons. Accessible products foster better brand reputation and equitable digital experiences, and they can also help brands tap into more revenue.

The term a11y carries a deeper cultural meaning. Many in the tech community use a11y to advocate for inclusive or universal design, which calls for changes throughout the software development life cycle to prioritize accessibility in a holistic manner. This emphasis on thoughtful, human-centered design can clash with many development teams’ preference to ship quickly and fix later. In this way, a11y serves as a reminder to put inclusivity first. In doing this, organizations undertake a powerful evolution in purpose, collaboration and outcome in products and services. 

Accessibility advocates often use #a11y in social media posts as a rallying cry for community support. These types of social posts often include particular a11y initiatives, news stories and thought leadership. 

The a11y movement is also about representation in tech. When companies hire or consult with people with disabilities in the design process, they get a deeper understanding of everyday usability barriers. It also helps organizations develop a greater sense of empathy and purpose behind the task of accessibility. 

As a whole, the core cultural meaning of a11y is to embrace accessibility as a core ethical and usability value rather than a strategic or regulatory imperative. Accessibility is the right thing to do, and a11y is a symbol of a broader commitment to digital equality.

The advocacy for a11y as a priority and practice throughout the development cycle goes beyond organizations simply achieving the bare minimum. Advocates of a11y want to see brands acknowledge and respect their community, typically through a deeper commitment to accessibility programs. Otherwise, these brands risk falling behind or underserving their customers in a world that is ever-reliant on technology for day-to-day use.

Here are some ways that organizations should strive to meet the needs of the disability community:

• Make accessibility a commitment. Treat accessibility as an enduring priority, not a project phase. Build it into sprint planning, design systems and product roadmaps, with clear KPIs and leadership support to ensure it’s never deprioritized or deferred.
• Involve people with disabilities in the design or development process. Recruiting PWD as testers, co-designers or consultants throughout the product lifecycle — or consult with experts like Applause that can source those perspectives. Insight from PWD serves as a rich source of innovation for organizations who seize the new perspectives and use them to fuel product development. The disability community is quick to recognize brands who champion inclusive experiences. The resulting loyalty spreads fast, enabling a perpetuating cycle and a valuable opportunity for customer input.   
• Avoid a simplistic definition of a11y. Go beyond automated scans or checklists that aim to satisfy only the bare minimum. Incorporate manual testing, inclusive content strategy and, most importantly, an understanding of assistive technologies and how users actually interact with them.
• Spread the a11y mandate throughout the organization. Embed a11y across all teams. Assign accessibility champions on each team and document inclusive coding and design standards. Make sure teams share accountability through shared OKRs or accessibility scorecards.

Educating everyone on an ongoing basis. Establish continuous education through quarterly a11y workshops, onboarding modules and design critiques with a focus on inclusion. Again, real user feedback is the key to build empathy and knowledge at every level of the org.

Essentially, a11y is all about building accessibility into your organization’s DNA. Accessibility needs to be a programmatic approach to building resonant products that delight your customers.

At Applause, digital accessibility is a core value rooted in our culture. We believe that digital experiences should be inclusive for everyone, including people with permanent disabilities, temporary impairments and age-related challenges. That’s why our approach is human-centered: we advocate designing with people with disabilities, not just for them. This kind of collaboration builds empathy within product teams, drives innovation and ultimately improves usability for all. Accessibility is a continuous, ongoing effort that should be woven into your company’s culture and product development strategy.

With Applause, enterprise organizations get a trusted partner with deep expertise. Our fully managed Accessibility Testing solution draws on the power of the world’s largest community of digital testers — including people with disabilities and seasoned accessibility experts — to provide real-world feedback across devices and geographies. Our services go beyond testing. We offer training for your teams, support shift-left accessibility practices across the SDLC and provide expert guidance on remediation and bug fix verification. This not only helps reduce legal risk but also expands your reach to more customers.

Brands like Sam’s Club, Cisco Webex and Microsoft trust Applause to help them deliver more inclusive, effective and compliant digital experiences. Let’s talk today about how we can help you do the same.