TRUE STORY
Caramel the Hamster went on a great adventure last night.
As I was heading off to bed way too late last night, I spied Caramel, our hamster out the corner of my eye. After getting over the initial shock that it was in fact our pet hamster on the floor in front of my bedroom door and not another kind of nocturnal, beady-eyed rodent, I thought to myself, “He’s looking pretty relaxed all things considered.”
He got up on his hind legs, nose twitching, his tiny front paws curled up as if to say, “It’s about time you got here, bro.”
I couldn’t help but admire his calm, cool, collected self. Then again, the little adventurer is probably pretty tired having had the run of the house for for the past few hours.
It’s not as if he could get back into his cage himself — we don’t have that kind of technology setup. But, a hamster-sized ladder may do the trick for next time.. Hmmm.
Lucky for Him
Never mind, he can’t be trusted. I’m convinced he’s the next mini Houdini. Why else would he stuff his cheeks and run for what seems like hours on that wheel of his? Yup, he’s always planning his next great escape. But the little hobo is so cute right now, sitting there.
I’m convinced that he’s done and waiting for me to put him to bed.
Lucky for him I scooped him up before I stepped on him.
Why am I telling you this story?
So why am I telling you this story about my son’s naughty hamster?
Because it was a reminder that if he had a way to get back home on his own, he couldn’t. His enclosure is on top of a shelf and there isn’t a way down, except for jumping. For him it was the equivilant to a full story or two. I can hear the sound, oh god!
What if we had a hamster sized ladder in case of emergency? Would he use it? Shouldn’t we just makes life easier for him and get a bigger cage with lots of places to run?
My point is, and the tangent police might be here any time soon so I’ll get on with it..The lack of a suitably-size ladder for our wee Houdini reminds me of the lack of access many users face when interacting with website forms, payment carts, etc. It’s a simple analogy I know, but a website that puts simplicity and accessibility at the forefront is good for all of us.
By now I hope you understand the importance of accessibility as it relates to hamsters 🐹 and your website. You know by now that including accessibility compliance (your ladder) into your website is critical for the 25%+ of visitors that may have issues accessing your content.
How to Ensure Your Website is Accessible.
Here are three ways to approach accessibility compliance for your business website.
1. You could learn how to (build the ladder) do it yourself.
If you decide that you’d like to do it yourself, I recommend a course on Accessibility through Equalize Digital. Amber Hinds is an expert (and a colleague) whose company also offers website audits and an accessibility checker tool that will thoroughly scan your website and come up with a long list of changes you need to make.
2. Let us build the ladder.
Add the Accessibility Compliance Addon to your monthly website care plan and we’ll set to work on implementing the changes needed.
We’ll audit your website and let you know what needs to be done and how long we expect it to take. Our addons are flexible in that you can pause them at any time with 30 days notice.
3. Do nothing.
If you opt to do nothing about website accessibility now, or at least for the moment, it is, of course, your decision. I’d love to know if I can answer any questions you have.
Read other posts on accessibility —
Go on.. I’ll wait 🙂
Just kidding, bro 😉 If you’re still unsure, let’s chat on the phone!
Current care plan clients.
If you’re on a care plan already we are primed and ready to get started on the necessary changes towards accessibility compliance.
How long will it take? That depends on how much content you have on your site, how complex your build is, and whether there are already accessibility components in place.
Get Started on Website Accessibility Compliance Today. Book your free call.
Non-care plan clients.
If you’re not on a care plan we can still work together but the approach is quite different because we don’t know the inner workings of your site. You’ll either need to either get on a care plan or hire us to do a website accessibility audit and send you a proposal. (Hint, care plan clients also get a ton of other value as part of their plan).
Accessibility isn’t going away anytime soon. If we’ve learned anything over the past couple of years and through the pandemic, it is that your business is going to need a ladder up to compete in the digital space very soon.
As always, let me know how I can help. I’m always here for you.
Thanks for reading!
Lee-Anne
