Web Content Accessiblity Guide: Inclusive by Design

Designing for Everyone

A beautifully designed brand means little if people can’t use it.

Accessibility isn’t just a technical checklist—it’s a core part of modern brand experience. It ensures that everyone—regardless of ability—can engage with your content as intended. From a landing page to a social post to an interactive brand guideline, accessibility should be embedded into every touchpoint.

It’s also practical: accessible brands reach wider audiences, perform better in search engines, and reduce legal risk. This guide outlines what accessibility means, how it intersects with branding, and how to build it into your brand system with clarity and purpose.

What is Web Accessibility?

Web accessibility means designing digital content so that people with disabilities can access, understand, and interact with it.

That includes users who are:

• Blind or have low vision

• Deaf or hard of hearing

• Mobility impaired

• Cognitively affected

• Or simply using technology in challenging conditions—like bright glare, slow connections, or without sound

Accessible design is inclusive by default, not exception. It removes friction and invites more people into the brand experience.

Who Benefits from Accessible Design?

Accessibility supports people with permanent disabilities—but it also benefits many more:

• A parent holding a baby, navigating with one hand

• A commuter browsing on mobile in poor lighting

• A team member watching video content on mute in a noisy workspace

• A user switching to dark mode at night to reduce eye strain

Inclusive design improves usability for everyone—not just a few.

Where Accessibility Meets Branding

Brand design choices have a direct impact on accessibility. Typography, color contrast, layout structure, and motion all shape how usable a brand becomes.

A brand system that looks visually polished but lacks basic accessibility will create inconsistent or exclusionary experiences. Color combinations might look great in a presentation but become illegible on mobile. Layouts may look beautiful but break keyboard navigation.

That's why accessibility should be considered a standard part of brand guidelines—not an afterthought.

Sameness supports this by enabling users to document accessibility best practices directly within their online brand guidelines.

The POUR Principles of Accessibility

The POUR framework offers a simple, memorable structure for accessible design:

1. Perceivable

Can users see or hear the content?

• Use high color contrast between text and background

• Provide alt text for images

• Add captions or transcripts for video and audio

2. Operable

Can users navigate and interact with content using a keyboard or assistive tech?

• Ensure all functionality is keyboard accessible

• Avoid hover-only content or interactions

3. Understandable

Is the content predictable, clear, and easy to follow?

• Use consistent headings and clear language

• Avoid unexpected interactions or confusing navigation

4. Robust

Will the experience hold up across browsers, devices, and assistive technologies?

• Use semantic HTML

• Follow best practices for responsive and accessible code

• Test with tools like screen readers and browser extensions

Quick Brand Accessibility Checks

This checklist can be used when designing, reviewing, or updating brand assets:

• Typography: Are fonts legible across devices and sizes? Avoid ultra-light weights and very small text.

• Color: Does text meet a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 against its background?

• Alt Text: Are all images labelled with meaningful alternative text?

• Headings: Is there a clear structure using H1, H2, H3, etc.?

• Motion: Can animations be turned off? Are flashing or rapid sequences avoided?

• Navigation: Is all content accessible via keyboard without requiring a mouse?

Tip for teams using Sameness: Create a dedicated “Accessibility” section inside your brand guidelines to document these standards clearly for internal and external collaborators.

Tools to Support Accessible Design

These tools can help evaluate and improve accessibility at every stage of the design process:

• WAVE Web Accessibility Tool – Visual audits of accessibility issues

• WebAIM Contrast Checker – Quick contrast testing

• Axe DevTools (Browser Extension) – Deep accessibility diagnostics

• Figma Contrast Plugin – Highlights contrast issues within design files

Accessibility and SEO Work Together

Improving accessibility doesn’t just help users—it also supports performance. Many accessibility improvements directly benefit search visibility, including:

• Clear heading structures

• Meaningful alt text

• Mobile-friendly layouts

• Faster loading speeds

• Semantic HTML and metadata

In short, search engines reward content that’s built for people.

How to Document Accessibility in Sameness

Sameness allows users to add a dedicated “Accessibility” section in their brand guidelines. This helps ensure clarity and consistency across all teams and contributors. Suggested topics to include:

• Minimum text sizes and recommended type pairings

• Color contrast guidelines and examples

• Dos and don’ts for motion usage

• Best practices for alt text and descriptive imagery

• Guidance on semantic HTML usage

This makes accessibility standards easier to reference and apply—without slowing down the creative process.

Free Download: Accessibility Checklist for Creatives

A checklist (PDF + Google Doc) is available to help teams apply accessibility principles across design, content, and brand systems.

Link to the Accessibility Checklist on Sameness

Build Brands Everyone Can Use

In 2025 and beyond, accessibility is not a nice-to-have—it’s a must. It’s part of building thoughtful, inclusive, and future-ready brand systems.

Sameness makes it simple to embed accessibility into your brand guidelines from the start—so your brand is not only beautiful and consistent, but also usable by more people, in more situations.

Because great brands aren’t just seen or heard—they’re experienced.