Accessibility in Design: Opening Doors to Inclusive UX

We’ve all heard of buzzwords – Accessibility and Inclusivity.

But what do they actually mean? In today’s world they’re often tossed around without much thought, losing their true significance. So before we open these doors, let’s establish some club rules and get the record straight. What exactly is UI/UX accessibility, and why does it matter for businesses?

What is Accessibility?

In the world of UI/UX design, accessibility is building digital products and services that everyone can use, including people with disabilities. This isn’t about being ethical in designs, which already should be a solid bonus; it’s about smart business decisions.

Picture this: Over 1 billion people, which is approximately 15% of the world’s population, live with some form of disability. That’s a number that should innately feel scary to isolate because of decisions that weren’t made during the design phase. If we were to put this frivolously, it’s like saying – “Nah, we’re not interested in your business.” Let’s be real, no business can afford that.

Doors? Not again!

We know we could have chosen windows, gates, magic portals, time travel machines, a magic show, a treasure hunt map, and a lot more as an analogy to help you understand this concept with ease. Trust us, we had a lot! But as designers, we’ve learned the hard way (mostly through our naivety) that reinventing the wheel is rarely a good idea. So we’re sticking to the classic metaphor: Doors! Yes, those everyday, boring doors that Don Norman (the grand old man of UX design) loves to talk about. Why? Because doors are the perfect example of how affordances work in design.

Okay, what are affordances now?

In design, affordances refers to the properties of an object that suggest how it can be used. It’s about making the design so intuitive that users instinctively know what actions they can take.

When was the last time you needed a tutorial to use a door? Probably never. That’s because the design of a door naturally suggests its function:

• A handle is meant to be pulled.

• A flat plate is meant to be pushed.

It’s almost as if the door is having a silent conversation with you, whispering in an ASMR way, “Pull me to open.”

This is the magic of affordances. They align users’ expectations with visual cues, ensuring an intuitive and seamless experience. In digital design, affordances guide interactions like this:

• A scroll bar suggests scrolling.

• An input field suggests entering text.
• An icon of a trash bin suggests deleting something

The Not So Great Doors

Of course, not all doors are designed to be intuitive. Some doors have pull handles but need to be pushed, leading to that awkward moment when you’re yanking at the door like a fool, sometimes running into the door and pretending you intended to do that. Not your fault – the design failed you.

In UI/UX or digital design, the equivalent of that is a button that looks clickable but does nothing or a form field without a label, leaving users to guess what they need to input. The one rule we’ve all heard of – Don’t make users think – should be treated as the gospel truth when designing inclusive and accessible products. Just like the doors should be intuitive, digital interfaces need to work in the exact same way – Effortlessly!

And that’s where UI/UX accessibility comes in. Making your design intuitive and usable for everyone, including those with disabilities, isn’t just about compliance or being “woke.” It’s about good UX.

POUR-ing Accessibility into Design

We’ve come up with a handy mnemonic to remember the four key principles of accessibility:

• Perceivability
• Operability
• Understandability
• Robustness

Or as we now like to call it, POUR-ing accessibility into design.

Perceivability: Designing for All Senses

Users need to see, hear, or otherwise perceive the information on your designs. If something is only available visually, it excludes users with visual impairments. Similarly, if content is only available in audio form, it excludes deaf or hard-of-hearing users.

How Might We Apply This in UI/UX Design:
– Provide alt text for meaningful images and icons to make sure screen reader users understand visual content.
– Maintain a strong color contrast of 4:5:1 ratio between text and background for readability.
– Include captions and transcripts for audio and video content.
– Design scalable text that users can resize up to 200% without breaking the layout.

Operability: Ensuring Seamless Interaction

Users should be able to navigate and interact with a page or a flow using various input methods—whether it’s a mouse, keyboard, voice commands, or assistive technologies like switch controls.

How Might We Apply This in UI/UX Design:
– Ensure all interactive elements—buttons, forms, links, menus—are fully via keyboard
– Design clear focus states, so users always know where they are when navigating with a keyboard or screen reader.
– Avoid keyboard traps where users get stuck in a form field or modal without an escape route.
– Provide multiple ways to complete tasks, such as offering both click and keyboard shortcuts for actions.

Understandability: Making Interfaces Intuitive

A well-designed interface should be predictable, clear, and easy to understand, no matter the user’s cognitive ability, language proficiency, or level of digital literacy.

How Might We Apply This in UI/UX Design?
– Use clear, concise labels instead of vague terms—e.g., “Enter Email Address” instead of just “Email.”
– Maintain consistent navigation patterns across all pages and screens.
– Provide helpful error messages that clearly explain the problem and how to fix it—e.g., “Your password must be at least 8 characters long” instead of just “Invalid password.”
– Avoid unnecessary complexity—keep interactions simple and intuitive.

Robustness: Ensuring Compatibility Across Devices & Technologies

A digital product should work across browsers, devices, and assistive technologies—today and in the future.

How Might We Apply This in UI/UX Design?
– Use semantic HTML so screen readers can interpret the page correctly.
– Implement ARIA attributes only when necessary to enhance accessibility.
– Design responsive layouts that work seamlessly across different screen sizes, resolutions, and orientations.
– Regularly test compatibility with assistive technologies, including screen readers like NVDA, JAWS, and VoiceOver.

Why Accessibility Matters?

Accessibility isn’t just a legal formality. It’s a way to say everyone’s welcome here. It means designing for dignity, for independence, and for inclusion. And yes, it’s also great for business. Here’s how some Indian companies opened new doors by putting accessibility front and center:

🚉 IRCTC Railway Booking Platform: Making Travel Accessible

Booking a train ticket in India is a rite of passage – almost a national sport. But for visually impaired users, the old IRCTC website was more like an obstacle course.

That’s changed. The new platform is a win for inclusive design – full keyboard navigation, no need for a mouse. They ditched the impossible CAPTCHA puzzles and brought in voice-based alternatives and OTP logins. The text can be resized, screen readers like NVDA and Windows Narrator work like a charm, and the app plays nice with Android’s TalkBack.

What does that mean in real life? It means someone who couldn’t travel alone before can now book their own ticket, independently. That’s not just a UX win – that’s freedom.

🏦 RBI and the Banking Sector: When Compliance Meets Compassion

In 2016, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act set the tone: make digital banking accessible, or face the heat. RBI followed through with clear directives.

Some banks got it. About 15% of them updated their websites and apps to meet WCAG standards. These weren’t just compliance moves – they were smart, empathetic business decisions. Because when you make finance inclusive, you don’t just avoid lawsuits – you unlock a market of over 27 million people with disabilities.
Sadly, most banks still lag behind. But the ones leading the way? They’re already winning – in trust, reach, and reputation.

🎟️ BookMyShow: Ensuring Everyone Gets a Front-Row Seat

Everyone loves a good movie or concert. But for users with visual impairments, booking a ticket used to require a friend’s help. That’s not independence – that’s exclusion.

BookMyShow decided to flip the script. They made their platform screen-reader friendly, added proper alt text, and simplified navigation so that users don’t need fancy gestures or workarounds.

Now, thousands can book their own tickets – no assistance needed. And for BookMyShow, the payoff is huge: a bigger audience, stronger brand image, and peace of mind on the legal front. Everyone wins.

🍕 Zomato: Serving Accessibility Alongside Food

When hunger hits, no one wants to wrestle with a cluttered app. Especially not users with visual, motor, or cognitive challenges.

Zomato listened. Voice-based search now lets users speak their cravings instead of typing. The interface got a glow-up too – larger icons, cleaner text, less noise.

That redesign wasn’t just about aesthetics – it was about empathy. The result? People who struggled before can now order food without stress. And Zomato? They probably saw a spike in repeat orders and engagement. Turns out, designing for everyone is good for the bottom line.

❤️ Inclov: A Matchmaking App with a Heart

Imagine a dating app where accessibility wasn’t tacked on – it was the whole point. That was Inclov. Short for Inclusive Love, it was the world’s first matchmaking app built specifically for people with disabilities.

From high-contrast modes and screen reader support to text-based cues for deaf users, every feature was designed with care. Even privacy got top billing – screenshots were disabled to protect users.

By 2019, over 50,000 people had signed up. That’s 50,000 stories that might never have happened without Inclov. The app may be gone, but its legacy lives on: proof that designing for edge cases can lead to breakthroughs that benefit everyone.

The Takeaway: Accessibility Is More Than Compliance – It’s Good Business

Accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox. It’s about expanding your audience, improving UX, and driving business growth.

• IRCTC, Aadhaar, and BookMyShow have all benefited from accessible designs by expanding their user base.
• Zomato and Inclov showed that accessible designs enhance engagement and loyalty.

If you’re not designing for accessibility, you’re closing the door on millions of potential customers. And who wants to do that?

Lollypop Design Studio’s Commitment to Accessible Design

At Lollypop Studio, we believe that great design is not just good to look at, it is inclusive! Accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox for us – it’s at the heart of our design values.

Here’s how we ensure accessibility is built into every step of our design process:

1️⃣ Accessibility from Day One

We don’t retrofit accessibility—we design for it from the start.

• Our design process follows WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) to ensure compliance and usability.
• We integrate accessibility best practices into our workflows, making inclusivity a natural part of the design.
• We build user personas that include individuals with disabilities, ensuring we design for real-world diversity.

2️⃣ Clear, Consistent & Inclusive Layouts

• We prioritise logical structures and predictable navigation, so users never feel lost.
• Our interfaces maintain consistent placement of key elements for familiarity and ease of use.
• We avoid complex layouts and excessive cognitive load, ensuring our designs work for all users, including those with cognitive disabilities.

3️⃣ Readability & Scalability in Typography

• Typography is at the heart of accessibility—we ensure all text is clear, legible, and scalable.
• Our font choices prioritise clarity over decoration, using high-contrast fonts for better readability.

4️⃣ High-Contrast, Color-Conscious Design

• We ensure minimum requirements for text readability are maintained. A minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1, ensuring text is readable against its background.
• We never use color alone to convey meaning—our designs always pair colors with text, icons, or patterns.
• Our team runs contrast tests using tools like Contrast Checker to guarantee visibility for users with visual impairments.

5️⃣ Accessible Buttons, Links & Interactive Elements

• We design buttons with a minimum touch as per latest guidelines, ensuring ease of use on mobile and desktop.
• Our buttons and links are clearly labeled
• We use visible focus indicators, ensuring that interactive elements stand out when navigated via keyboard.

6️⃣ Forms That Work for Everyone

• We ensure all form fields have clear labels, so users understand what’s required without relying on placeholders.
• We provide help text and real-time validation for error prevention before they happen.
• If errors do occur, our error messages offer clear guidance, telling users exactly what needs to be fixed—no guesswork required.

7️⃣ Alternative Ways to Access Content

• We design with icons + text, ensuring users don’t have to rely solely on one type of visual cue.
• Our designs include tooltips, descriptions, and multiple interaction options for better accessibility.
• We provide multiple pathways to complete actions—whether it’s through keyboard shortcuts, voice commands, or simplified navigation.

8️⃣ Accessibility-Optimized UI Components

• We adhere to standard UI patterns, making interfaces familiar and intuitive.
• Our designs align with design system guidelines that prioritize accessibility compliance.
• We build robust, reusable components that work across multiple platforms while maintaining accessibility.

9️⃣ Continuous Testing & Real-User Validation

• We integrate automated contrast checks, keyboard navigation tests, and screen reader simulations into our design reviews.
• Our team conducts usability testing with real users, including those with disabilities, ensuring our designs work in real-world scenarios.
• We use prototyping tools with accessibility checks to refine our designs before they go live.

Why Accessibility Matters to Us

At Lollypop Studio, we believe accessibility isn’t an extra feature—it’s fundamental to good design.

By making digital experiences inclusive, we don’t just expand reach—we enhance usability, improve engagement, and create designs that truly work for everyone.

Because when you design for accessibility, you’re not just following guidelines—you’re opening doors.

Ready to Make Your Digital Products More Inclusive? Contact us now.

At Lollypop Design Studio, we’re committed to creating accessible and inclusive designs that work for everyone. Get in touch today and let’s make your digital product accessible to all users.

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