Accessibility inspired: the series

We began this series as a way to explore the broad and important topic of accessibility.

As human-centered design practitioners, we believe it is essential to understand the diverse needs of our users to create more enriching experiences. To explore the various aspects of accessibility, we set a goal to research and write about six topics related to our work. And here we are!

Here are the topics we focused on:

Text on photography

Using text on photography is one of the most common patterns on the web, so it made sense to tackle this one first. This post covers best practices for ensuring that text is readable and legible, such as choosing the right typefaces, using appropriate font sizes and considering the contrast between text and background.

Motion and animation

This post explores how to use motion and animation in web design while keeping accessibility in mind. We’ve highlighted the importance of using these elements intentionally to enhance user experience without causing usability issues or negatively impacting people with conditions like epilepsy, migraines or motion sensitivity.

We also emphasize the need for balance and simplicity, suggesting that less is often more when it comes to motion and animation.

Dark mode

We love that dark mode gives users an option around how they want to experience your site. When done right, dark mode can enhance accessibility. It’s not as easy as it seems, though. We also cover the history of dark mode and share best practices for creating an accessible dark mode design. Our biggest finding: if you’re going to implement dark mode on your site, plan for it from the beginning instead of making it a bolted-on experience after the fact.

Text readability and legibility

In this post, we dive into the importance of choosing the right typefaces to create a more accessible reading experience. We discuss the differences between text legibility (how easily individual characters can be distinguished) and text readability (how easily content can be read as a whole) and practical tips on selecting typefaces that enhance both of these concepts.

Inclusive language

When we create content to be both inclusive and accessible, we have the power to increase someone’s understanding of a concept, spark joy and reach a large audience. This post goes beyond technical requirements for accessibility and gets to the heart of understanding the people you create experiences for – your audiences. We explore how to write for them while understanding your biases. This one was especially meaningful to create as we collaborated with our content writer and strategist, Sandra.

Screen readers

In our last post in the series, we discuss the importance of screen readers in making digital content accessible to users with visual impairments. We also emphasize how these tools help users navigate and interact with content and provides best practices for designing accessible digital experiences that are compatible with screen readers. We even have a task for you to complete if you’ve never experienced what it’s like to use a screen reader (it’s very enlightening trust us).

Our learning journey

We’ve taken so much away from this experience. Beyond deepening our understanding of web accessibility, we see the universal themes of inclusivity in all aspects of our work. Learning about accessibility is not a stagnant thing. It's always changing and evolving which means we have to be diligent about continuing education around this topic.

Danielle Kovacic Interaction Designer Habanero

Having a better understanding of different user’s needs has made me more empathetic when it comes to design. Now when I look at designs, I’m not only thinking, “Wow this design is so cool,” I’m thinking about things like, “Is this motion really helping the user? Does this text really have enough contrast with the background? What’s the tab experience like?” It’s allowed me to go beyond the superficial aspects of design and think deeper about how others might use that experience.

Kurtis Beard Creative Director Habanero

I have a deeper and more nuanced understanding of human diversity and what that means in the context of our work. This process has helped me to confront and acknowledge the biases that I hold and how that can limit the impact of the design work I contribute to. I see how each of the topics that we’ve covered play a role in reducing barriers and that I have a role to play in encouraging others to see the impact of their choices too. While I’ve learned a lot, I’m committed to learning more and want to continue to bring diverse perspectives to our future research.

Accessibility has always been an important topic at Habanero, but this journey has helped us bring further attention and focus to this topic with our teammates and clients. It has sparked more conversations across the sales process, within our project work and has been a topic our design team regularly pools knowledge on. This has cultivated advocacy for accessibility and inclusivity as a focus across our work.

Going on your own learning journey

Just because we’ve recapped this series, it doesn’t mean that this is the end. We’ve really just dipped our toes into the ocean that is accessibility and we’re not planning on stopping, because as people who care deeply about inclusivity, we’re committed to ongoing learning to make web experiences better for everyone.

We hope that this series has highlighted something new for you and we encourage you to go on your own learning journey with accessibility. How you do it is up to you – whether it’s through established programs or courses, learning by doing or in seeking out articles like this one – whatever path you take, the journey will be a rewarding one.

Your pals at Hab,

Kurtis and Danielle