At Deep Sea Fauna, we care deeply about two things: the people who use the web and the businesses that show up for those people. Accessibility sits at the intersection. Let’s take a look at what this means and how to achieve it.
The Short Version
WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, the international standard that courts and regulators reference when they talk about an “accessible” website. Version 2.1, Level AA is the bar most small businesses and non-profits are held to in the United States when accessibility is disputed. It is not a law by itself, but it is the technical definition everyone leans on when they say “make this site accessible.”
What Problem WCAG Is Trying to Solve
Roughly one in four adults lives with some form of disability. And many of the barriers they encounter online are invisible to someone who only ever clicks around with a mouse: low-contrast text, missing form labels, images with no descriptions, navigation that completely breaks when you press the Tab key.
We think about these users constantly. They are shoppers, clients, and customers of small businesses and non-profits just like yours. WCAG collects testable, practical rules so websites can work for keyboard users, screen reader users, people with low vision, and many others.
What “level Aa” Actually Means
WCAG organizes its criteria into three levels: A (minimum), AA (mid), and AAA (strictest). Level AA is the practical target for most marketing and brochure sites. It covers things like:
- Sufficient color contrast for text and interface controls
- Visible keyboard focus so users always know where they are on the page
- Text alternatives for meaningful images
- Correct heading structure so assistive technology can navigate by section
- Form inputs linked to visible labels and clear error messages
Level AAA adds requirements that are not always feasible for every design. AA strikes the right balance between rigor and real-world design flexibility, which is exactly where we aim on every project.
What This Means for Your Organization
You need to choose accessible colors and type/fonts, build with semantic HTML, test with a keyboard and automated scanners, and correct issues found during a WCAG audit.
The same caution applies when you hire help. A studio can boast they will help make your site ADA compliant when their own site fails basic ADA checks. Before you trust a vendor, run their site through a scanner like WAVE or our free accessibility audit and look at the results yourself.
Where to Start Without Feeling Overwhelmed
We have access to a free accessibility audit tool right on our website. Use it for immediate results with no email required. It runs in seconds and gives you a real picture of where your site stands today. Then, use our accessibility checklist to work through fixes on your own. Or contact us for help.
For a manual check in the meantime: test your checkout, contact, and booking flows using only your keyboard. Fix anything that blocks a task first, then move to contrast and images, then polish from there. If you need a documented baseline for insurance or legal purposes, a professional WCAG audit that maps findings to specific success criteria is the right move.
How We Approach This at Deep Sea Fauna
We build to WCAG 2.1 AA from the very first line of code because we believe the web should work for everyone.