Why Accessibility Is A Must For Dispensary Websites – And For All Cannabis Businesses

As businesses, we’re here to serve all our customers. But are you truly serving everyone if your website is not accessible to those with disabilities?

Website accessibility remediation, the process of making your website accessible to all users, begins with a clear understanding of what “accessibility” truly entails. Then, you can outline the steps you need to take to ensure as many people as possible can order cannabis products, read about your services, or learn from your blog. It can seem overwhelming, but it all starts with taking the first step. Here’s how to begin.

What does accessible mean, and who determines what accessibility is?

An accessible website can be navigated by users with a disability that limits how they browse web pages. The main goal of accessibility is for users with disabilities to be able to use your website to its fullest. A disability can be temporary or permanent, and it can refer to any number of limitations, such as visual impairment, epilepsy, or a physical impairment that limits someone’s ability to type or use a mouse.

Accessibility is determined by a set of guidelines laid out by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The W3C develops and manages accessibility guidelines for businesses of all sizes and industries to follow, called the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

While they are not a legal body, the internet’s biggest stakeholders turn to W3C for guidance on accessibility and other important matters, like privacy and security. Therefore, they are seen as a standard to look to as companies begin working on the accessibility of their website.

Are you legally required to have an accessible website?

Yes. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) states that any business open to the public must maintain an accessible website so those with disabilities can access the information on it and enjoy the full functionalities the website has to offer. That being said, the deeper technical aspects of what it means to be accessible are still up for discussion. This is where there’s a lot of confusion and uncertainty among some cannabis businesses, and for that matter, businesses of all industries.

Compliance vs. conformance: Why we don’t describe websites as “compliant”

There is no one set standard, guideline, or checklist that turns a website from an inaccessible one to an accessible one. As a result, full “compliance” is a bit of a tricky thing. Instead, we turn to our web development partners at Shanty Town Design, who use the term “conformance.” Website conformance means you have put in your best voluntary efforts to publish and maintain an accessible website.

A, AA, and AAA criteria

Although there is no one universal standard, there are three levels used as benchmarks to determine your website’s accessibility.

• A-level criteria are the basics that remove the biggest obstacles for those with disabilities, such as having clear headings and not relying on color to convey information.
• AA-level criteria goes further, introducing concepts such as color contrast into the mix.
• AAA-level criteria are the strictest, introducing more than two dozen more aspects to meet in addition to the AA-level criteria.

Most websites should aim for AA-level, which goes beyond the basics and demonstrates that you are putting in best efforts to maintain an accessible website. However, we may not be that far from a future where AAA is the standard.

Why is accessibility relevant for dispensaries and the cannabis industry?

• It’s good for SEO. There are many areas where accessibility and SEO overlap. You’ll learn more about this later in the blog.

• It shows customers you care. Especially for medical cannabis dispensaries that serve patients, accessibility signals that you are here to serve all your customers equally.

• It keeps you out of trouble. There are opportunists out there who look to take advantage of small businesses that may not know the accessibility rules or how they apply to them. Get out in front of this.

Examples of website elements to examine

Colors

Think about highlighter yellow. You can’t stand to stare at it for more than a few seconds. So why would you put that all over your website? This is just a small demonstration of how color may affect someone’s ability to digest the information on your website.

Color contrast is a key component of this. Color contrast ensures that the text on the page is dark enough to stand out clearly from a light background, or vice versa. A light gray font on white background or a dark gray font on a navy blue button would be problematic for color contrast. 

It’s also important not to refer to things by their color alone. For example, don’t say “click on the red button to opt out of emails.” If the person visiting your website cannot see the color red, this is inadvertently discriminating against them.

Fonts

The easier it is to read a font, the more likely it is that most people can digest your writing. Accessibility advocates recommend using sans serif fonts, which don’t have “decorative” elements. Arial is a common example of a sans serif font, while Times New Roman is a common example of a serif font.

Legibility

It’s not just about what you say, but how you say it. Skip the academic language in favor of shorter sentences, bulleted lists, and digestible bites. This isn’t just good for accessibility — it’s psychology!

Forms

Take a look at the forms on your website. Are the fields empty? Meaning, does it say “first name” in the area (called a field) where you type your first name, not just above it? If it doesn’t, this could affect website accessibility. 

The relationship between website accessibility and SEO

Generally speaking, anything that’s good for accessibility is good for SEO. However, there are some clear areas where accessibility and SEO overlap.

• Alt image text: This description accompanies images that have an editorial purpose. The text allows those who use screen readers to know what’s happening in the image. This text is also incredibly valuable for SEO, as it describes to search engines what the image is about.
• Hyperlinking: Descriptive anchor text, which is the blurb that you click on to visit another page (often seen underlined or as a button), ensures that the website visitor understands the context of the link. This information is equally important to search engines.
• Header tags: Titles and subtitles are good for website visitors because they give an idea of what the content is about in a clear and concise way. This is good for search engines, too, as titles and subtitles tell search engines what the content on a given page is about.

4 actions to take today to begin website accessibility remediation

It doesn’t always take an entire website rebuild to meet accessibility conformance standards. Here are four things you can work on now to meet these standards.

1. Have a plan

The first place to start is with a plan of action. This should start with an audit, but be wary of free audits from different software platforms or companies. These are often geared to selling their own services, which could steer you in the wrong direction. Work with your existing marketing teams for a trusted and knowledgeable accessibility resource.

2. Make small changes

Accessibility is not an all-or-nothing endeavor. If you’re working with a web designer or developer, take steps as soon as possible to act on some of the easier changes that will make a big difference, like the color contrast described earlier in this blog. It’s better to do a little now than a lot later.

If you don’t work with website professionals, it’s time to contact a reputable cannabis marketing agency for help.

3. Create an accessibility policy

An accessibility policy educates visitors on what your company does to aim for conformance. It also invites those with concerns to bring them up to a designated person at your company. Similar to a privacy policy, a public-facing version of this document should be published on your website. An accessibility policy must also be updated every time you make changes to any site page. We recommend speaking with an attorney to create an accessibility policy.

4. Consider a plugin

While there’s a lot you can do with your website’s functionality with code, there are some things that aren’t possible to achieve. A plugin may help fill in these gaps, both by offering extra features and by demonstrating to the public that you are making the best efforts to ensure your website is accessible to as many people as possible.

It’s important to note that an accessibility plugin is not a hall pass. Adding the plugin and leaving the rest of your site alone is not enough to demonstrate conformance. You must do both — make efforts on your website to meet, at minimum, AA-level standards. while adding the plugin as a secondary measure. Our plugin of choice is $495 per year for websites under 1,000 pages, which is sufficient for many small businesses.

Strive for accessibility conformance

Accessibility is a spectrum — and a moral imperative. Sure, achieving a perfect 10 out of 10 score isn’t likely, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. In fact, the law says you must try. Even if you’re starting from zero, taking the right steps will get you closer to ensuring that people of varying abilities can all be your customers. To learn more, watch the accessibility livestream replay with CannaContent and Shanty Town Design.