Today on Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), UsableNet is excited to announce new technology that will help companies more practically, easily and affordably test with screen readers and monitor their websites for accessibility.
GAAD was created to get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital access and inclusion for people with different abilities. At UsableNet, we work to achieve this goal every day. It’s an exciting and humbling privilege to build technology that helps makes digital experiences accessible and usable for all.
On GAAD, we are proud to launch the first-of-its kind Screen Reader Verification and Monitoring Service as a new module within UsableNet AQA. This technology will make it easier and more affordable for companies to test and monitor their websites for accessibility.
"Screen Reader Testing has become an essential part of a company's accessibility initiative. UsableNet believes very strongly that companies should prioritize inclusivity and make the digital world more accessible. Our innovation and product development is laser focused on making that easier for companies to do."-Jason Taylor, Chief Innovation Officer at UsableNet.
In the past, accessibility testing and monitoring has been costly as teams need to purchase expensive screen reader licenses and invest significant time to set up and execute the actual tests. Testing your site (and every release) with screen readers is a necessity to confirm that it can be used by people with vision disabilities but it adds overhead because it is manual, tedious and requires specialized expertise. UsableNet is changing this with technology. Powerful test creation and automation reduces the cost and time needed to test how a web site will work for screen reader users.
The new Screen Reader Verification and Monitoring Service within UsableNet AQA is the first solution an organization can use to make this activity fast and affordable in three important ways:
1) Removes the need to purchase screen-reader licenses
No additional screen reader licenses are needed. Testers don’t need to have experience with screen-readers. UsableNet AQA provides a complete recording and playback of the experience that a screen reader-user will have on a website.
2) Reduces time to create and run Screen Reader test scripts
With AQA, scripts can be created with an easy to use browser interface. No knowledge of scripting language is needed.
To create a test script, users can simply navigate to any site, including those that require log-in, and browse and use the site . AQA screen reader scripts and tests can do anything a user can do - purchase products, register for an account, or pay a bill and more. AQA can test the same user journey any time, emulating a screen reader to ensure accessibility.
3) Delivers consistent monitoring at a fraction of the cost
Once set up, UsableNet AQA can continue to test and monitor that screen readers can use a site. Test can be run every day, week, month or on demand as part of a regression test. All results are stored and can be used to document on-going accessibility success.
Summary
Screen Reader Verification and Monitoring is an accessibility best practice. With the newest innovation to UsableNet AQA, we hope to make it easier and more affordable for every company to make screen reader testing a part of their process.
If you haven't taken a look at UsableNet AQA lately, now's the time. Schedule a consultation with us today to find out how we can improve your digital accessibility.
