30 Apr 2020 | Accessibility
Our annual ONE MILLION Page Giveaway and our Pragmatic Accessibility webinars are back - this year with a twist!
We want to say a huge “Thank you” to those organisations who are helping us and therefore, equally we want to help you! You can find all the details below.
On Thursday 21st May it will be the ninth Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). The purpose of GAAD is to get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital (web, software, mobile, etc.) access/inclusion and people with different disabilities.
GAAD always takes place on the third Thursday in May and at Sitemorse we always try to play our part; we want to drive awareness of accessibility standards to improve the user experience for those who use assistive technologies. We also want to encourage organisations to consider accessibility more seriously and move towards compliance.
What is GAAD?
GAAD was born out of social media exchanges between Joe Devon, an LA-based web developer, and Jennison Asuncion, a Canadian accessibility professional. The two saw an urgent need for more digital teams to prioritise accessibility and so GAAD was born.
GAAD’s target audience are those working in design, development, usability, and other related communities who build, shape, fund and influence technology and its use. One issue that the people behind GAAD recognise is that there is a knowledge gap around accessibility issues and applying the appropriate standards. This can prove to be a critical stumbling block to things getting done.
GAAD states “While people may be interested in the topic of making technology accessible and usable by persons with disabilities, the reality is that they often do not know how or where to start.”
Where should you start with accessibility?
This is something we’ve long-recognised at Sitemorse. Our clients and other organisations we speak to, advise us that they simply have no idea where to start with accessibility compliance. What adjustments should they make and where should they start? “What are the issues I really need to fix?” is something we hear a lot.
The guidelines seem complicated. This makes the task of fixing critical accessibility issues appear onerous and feel like a significant time investment. When you don’t know where to start, getting started on accessibility gets parked.
Hearing this time and time again was one of the reasons we developed the Sitemorse Intelligence Engine™ (SMIE) which highlights those actions and urgent issues that will help bring about the biggest improvements first. The priorities are identified and then distributed by role ensuring that the most appropriate actions are sent to the correct user type, for example, developers or editors. As Sitemorse highlights specific accessibility issues and also has built-in instructional videos, it’s an excellent way to upskill your digital team about the nuts and bolts of accessibility. They really do learn on the job.
By introducing an easy way for teams and individuals to identify what to work on first, we’ve removed a significant barrier. This enables organisations and their digital teams to take those critical, pragmatic steps towards accessibility compliance, and helps teams to understand accessibility issues.
Taking the pragmatic approach - forthcoming webinars
For GAAD 2020, we’ll be sharing our technology with more and more people. We will be holding a selection of online webinars which are designed to introduce the accessibility priorities within Sitemorse and how to deal with them.
Pick your webinar and book your place:
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Date |
Time |
Link |
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Tuesday 5th May |
10:00 BST, 05:00 EDT |
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Wednesday 6th May |
16:00 BST, 11:00 EDT |
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Tuesday 12th May |
14:00 BST, 09:00 EDT |
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Thursday 14th May |
10:00 BST, 05:00 EDT |
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Thursday 14th May |
16:00 BST, 11:00 EDT |
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Tuesday 19th May |
10:00 BST, 05:00 EDT |
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Thursday 21st May |
10:00 BST, 05:00 EDT |
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Thursday 21st May |
14:00 BST, 09:00 EDT |
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Thursday 21st May |
16:00 BST, 11:00 EDT |
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Tuesday 26th May |
14:00 BST, 09:00 EDT |
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Thursday 28th May |
11:00 BST, 06:00 EDT |
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Thursday 28th May |
16:00 BST, 11:00 EDT |
To book on the webinar, just click the relevant link to register your interest and to receive the joining instructions.
The webinar will run for approximately 30 minutes, including time for any questions.
For organisations with key workers who join the webinar, Sitemorse will provide a complimentary assessment on their website. Of course, there are no strings attached to participating in the webinars.
The Sitemorse ONE MILLION Page Giveaway
As we have done in previous years, we will also be bringing back our exciting One Million Page Giveaway but this time it is for organisations with key workers. It’s our way of thanking and helping those helping us.
We’re giving away a free assessment on one website for each organisation with key workers, that follows us on our social media channels and shares a post.
To qualify on Twitter it’s simple, you just need to follow the Sitemorse Twitter account, @Sitemorse, and like and share this post: GAAD Tweet
To qualify on LinkedIn, it’s just as easy, ensure you’re following our page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sitemorse/ (select the three horizontal dots on the right of the page and select ‘Follow’) and then like and share this post: GAAD LinkedIn Post
Or send us an email to awilliams@Sitemorse.com with your website details. You can also use this address to send any questions on our GAAD events.
Sitemorse will then contact you to arrange the website to be run and distribute the results by Monday 1st June. Entries to the giveaway closes on Friday 29th May. Again, there are no other strings attached.
We hope you enjoy 2020 Global Accessibility Awareness Day!