Developing a Business
An effective business case focuses on the organization's objectives and motivations. Certain aspects of the value and outcomes of Web accessibility are more important to one organization than another, based on its particular situation. For example, one organization's motivation might be to demonstrate social responsibility by being inclusive of people with disabilities, while another organization's primary motivation might be technical quality and meeting international standards.
Just as organizations' objectives and motivations vary, so do their business cases for Web accessibility. A customized business case for a specific organization will have different content and style, and incorporate different aspects with different emphasis, focused on that particular organization.
How Factors Differ Across Environments
Examples of different motivations that organizations have for adopting accessibility and how those can be integrated into a customized business case are provided below:
A corporation might emphasize:
financial gains and cost savings from increased web use due to increased potential market share, search engine optimization (SEO), and increased usability
reducing risk of legal action, high legal expenses, and negative image
public relations benefits of demonstrating corporate social responsibility (CSR)
benefits of an inclusive workplace that supports employees with disabilities
increased productivity from supporting and retaining older employees and their experience
A government ministry or agency might emphasize:
laws and policies that require public services are available to all, such as anti-discrimination legislation or information and communications technology (ICT) policy
demonstration of social responsibility and provision of information and services that are accessible to all citizens
savings from improved server performance and decreased site maintenance
benefits from enabling people with disabilities and older users to interact with them online instead of more costly ways
An educational institution might emphasize:
number of students, faculty, or staff with disabilities in educational settings as a social responsibility consideration
benefits of Web accessibility to students with different learning styles, older computer equipment, or low bandwidth Internet connections
benefits to older employees who may be experiencing age-related impairments, an increasing percentage of employees as the workforce ages
legal or policy requirements
A non-governmental (non-profit) organization (NGO) might emphasize:
social responsibility factors, such as the organization's commitment to human rights, including the right to information
organization's interest in ensuring that its materials are available to all of its potential audiences
supporting older people with age-related impairments who may be donors
A web design business might emphasize:
competitive advantage and financial benefits of being able to meet increasing requests for accessible web design and development
technical benefits and long term financial benefits to clients of providing sites according to web standards
public relations benefits of being able to support clients' interests in demonstrating social responsibility
A small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) relying on e-Commerce might emphasize:
positive impact on search engine optimization (SEO) from accessibility improvements
importance of an increasing market among people with disabilities and older people who may significantly benefit from accessible online shopping
increased general usability and trustworthiness of online shopping interfaces from improved accessibility
reduced risk of legal action and negative publicity from not complying with anti-discrimination legislation
While your business case may emphasize a few aspects, it is also important that you include other aspects. For example:
An organization with a clear legal requirement for Web accessibility might still need a solid cost/benefit analysis to get management to commit sufficient resources for an effective Web accessibility program.
Some commercial organizations might be more responsive to a social responsibility argument than to a standard cost/benefit analysis when committing to Web accessibility.
