How to Make Your Business More Accessible

If you are a business owner, how accessible is your business? As much as you focus on attracting customers and increasing sales, it is important to ensure your business is accessible to individuals with or without disabilities. This will promote a strong and increased customer base. Here are ways you can use to make your business more accessible.

1. Train Your Employees

The best way to break the barriers for individuals with disabilities and change employees’ attitudes is through sensitivity training. Train your staff on how to assist individuals with mobility issues and how to relate with service animals. This will ensure everybody knows how to include and accommodate all kinds of people.

2. Allow Service Animals

Allowing service animals is another way to make your business accessible. These animals help people with disabilities both mentally and physically.

3. Clear the Passageways

To increase accessibility and give your customers a wonderful experience, ensure the passageways are clear. Clear passageways allow for easy mobility for both the disabled and the non-disabled. This is because chances of accidents such as tripping are minimal.

4. Include Individuals with Disabilities in Your Business Marketing

Follow the best practices to ensure your business is accessible. For those running online businesses, ensure your site utilizes the latest technology and it’s fully accessible. It is also important to make individuals with disabilities aware that your business accommodates them by featuring them in the marketing materials.

5. Install an Automatic Sliding Door

To promote your company’s accessibility, install an automatic sliding door. Sliding doors promote the safe flow of customers, and accessing the offices or store is quick. This also makes it easy for individuals with disabilities to access since the door is automated and there is no force required.

6. Make Your Website accessible

To make your website accessible to everyone regardless of their abilities, name the links. With named links, anyone can use a screen reader to know what your link entails. Also, design an easy-to-navigate website such that even those who can’t use a track-pad and mouse can use the keyboard.

7. Add Captions to Your Videos

A common form of online content is videos which most businesses use as a strategy for marketing. Use closed and opened subtitles in your videos to make your business more accessible. This will not only make the content accessible but also boost the number of views.

8. Offer Access to the Print Materials

Ensure your business has Braille on menus, signage, and business cards to help blind people. Also, include images on your meal menus to make it easy for deaf-mute customers to select the meal they want to order.

9. Install the Right Lighting

To support and meet the needs of the customers, adjust your lighting. For instance, for a romantic or casual setting, ambient lighting is the best; however, the customers might not be able to read the menu, communicate using sign language, or find their way. In such cases, increase illumination by providing clip-on lights.

10. Easy Access to the Washroom

Ensure your washrooms are accessible; for instance, the door should have a minimum width of 85cm, a space of 80cm beside the toilet, a 1.2m turning radius, and a grab at the back and side of the toilet. If the door swings out, you can provide more space.

11. Create Office Space That is Accessible

If it is hard for people with disabilities to maneuver your office, you should make it more accessible. Install ramps, provide lower desks and tables, and remove every object that may get in the way.

12. Add Descriptive Texts to Images

If you add text that describes an image, you make your content more accessible. The screen reading software can describe the image, and this helps individuals with visual impairments. You might see these as minor adjustments to your website, but they increase accessibility.

13. Volunteer

Encourage your team to volunteer at events with the disabled. This will allow you to interact with them and make your brand known to them.

14. Offer Flexible Point-of-Sale

An extendable cord or portable debit machine will give your customers a convenient method of payment. This will be of great benefit to short individuals and those using a wheelchair.

15. Minimize Noise Levels

Most people with disabilities are very sensitive to noise. Ensure your business provides a calm environment, and this will increase customer and profits. Let everyone feel comfortable when coming to your company or business.

Finally, business accessibility is very vital if you want to increase your profits. It is also important to make sure that anyone can access your business regardless of being able or disabled. Also, make sure that you handle individuals with a disability with enough care and respect when they come to your business. For you to increase accessibility, employ the above-discussed ways.

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