Does Web Accessibility Improve SEO? SEO Experts Weigh In [DesignRush QuickSights]

15% of US adults with disabilities don't use the internet. DesignRush reached out to experts to discover if web accessibility improves SEO.

MIAMI,  September 28, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- A Pew Research survey shows that 62% of US adults with a disability own a desktop or laptop computer whereas 72% of them own a smartphone. Unlike people with no disabilities, they are three times less likely to use the internet on a daily basis, one of the major reasons being internet inaccessibility. It suggests that most businesses are missing the opportunity to deliver excellent user experience and drive higher web traffic through these audiences.

DesignRush, a B2B marketplace connecting businesses with agencies, leveraged its 16,000-agencies-strong network for quick insights – or "QuickSights" – to ask experts if web accessibility improves SEO.

1) ACCESSIBLE WEBSITES OUTPERFORM NON-ACCESSIBLE ONES

According to Nicolas Miller, SEO manager at Infinite Ideas Web Design, accessible websites perform better since they improve user experience.

"Different studies found that websites with more accessibility features have better SEO rankings than those without them," said Miller. "Even on Google Lighthouse (a tool for improving web page quality), accessibility is one of the metrics they check alongside performance. Web accessibility is useful for SEO because it increases the number of people who can access your site and its content [while] improving user experience and brand loyalty."

Evolving Digital Founder & Director Oliver Caprile shares the same opinion and highlights that reducing the click depth of pages improves Google rankings.

"Website accessibility is incredibly important to SEO, as Google's John Mueller has stated that crawl depth (or page accessibility as it means) is more important than URL structure itself," said Caprile. "We have seen a number of our clients' websites improve the keywords specific pages rank[ings] by reducing the click depth of each page to less than 2 clicks."

2) VARIOUS WEB ACCESSIBILITY ELEMENTS MAY AFFECT ORGANIC RANKINGS

As stated by Anatoly Zadorozhnyy, CEO of Marketing 1on1, some elements, like using proper alt tags to help understand what an image is about, can impact SEO rankings.

"As of right now accessibility isn't labeled as a ranking factor," said Zadorozhnyy. "However, depending on what you use to make your website accessible it could indirectly affect your rankings in a positive way. For example, manually adding proper alt tags to help screen readers understand what the image is about can also boost your overall SEO rankings".

3) WEB ACCESSIBILITY HELPS ENHANCE USER EXPERIENCE

Marko Arsic, SEO director at Digital Silk, shares that web accessibility helps follow best UX practices that play a vital part in organic rankings.

"Web accessibility ensures some of the best UX practices are being followed (optimizing headings, anchor links, alt tags, easier reading, etc.)," said Arsic. "User experience is a crucial part of Google's algorithm when ranking organic results, so by working on web accessibility we are actually working on SEO optimization."

Alamo City Marketing Solutions Owner-Operator Evan Swanson agrees on this matter and adds that web accessibility elements provide users with value.

"Accessibility is not a core SEO ranking factor, but most of the major elements on a web page are the same elements that a screen reader picks up, which will result in adding value to the user," said Swanson. "With Google detecting the presence of these elements and enhancing the user experience, you can benefit from organic rankings. On the websites I have designed and revamped, I have seen a boost in organic rankings by improving or implementing web accessibility tactics."

Opanova Digital Owner Aja Miyamoto also believes that web accessibility best practices improve SEO.

"Web accessibility improves SEO as it is the inclusive practice to provide equal access to web interaction, including search engines," said Miyamoto. "Many of the best practices for building accessible web designs, such as legible text, straightforward navigation, and quick loading times, also enhance user experience. This also plays a crucial role in SEO and ranking factors."

DesignRush released the September list of the best SEO companies that can help businesses fully optimize their website for both users and search engines.

1. FroBro Web Technologies - frobro.com
Expertise: Web Design, Hosting Services, SEO and more

2. Evolving Digital - evolvingdigital.com.au
Expertise: SEO, Content Marketing, Web Design and more

3. Digital Silk - digitalsilk.com
Expertise: Web Design & Development, SEO, Copywriting and more

4. Infinite Ideas Web Design - infiniteideaswebdesign.com
Expertise: SEO, Web Design, eCommerce Development and more

5. Digital Velocity and SEO - teamdigitalvelocity.com
Expertise: PPC Management, SEO, Web Design and more

6. Allure SEO - allureseo.com
Expertise: Local SEO, Google Map Optimization, Technical SEO and more

7. Marketing 1on1 - digitalmarketing1on1.com
Expertise: SEO Consulting, eCommerce SEO, Local SEO and more

8. Alamo City Marketing Solutions - marketingsolutions-tx.com
Expertise: UX/UI Design, Digital Marketing, Advertising and more

9. Adssential Marketing - adssentialmarketing.com
Expertise: Website SEO Audit, Search Engine Marketing, Web Design and more

10. California SEO Service - californiaseoservice.com
Expertise: WordPress Development, SEO, PPC Management and more

11. Opanova Digital - opanovadigital.com
Expertise: Digital Strategy, SEO, Web Design and more

12. Bakklog - bakklog.com
Expertise: Web Design & Development, SEO, App Development and more

13. Content Spotlight - contentspotlight.org
Expertise: Copywriting & Content Marketing, SEO Audits & Analysis, Search Engine Marketing and more

14. Gear SEO - gearseo.com.br
Expertise: Content Creation, SEO, Link Building and more

15. Hot Local Spot - hotlocalspot.com
Expertise: Website Audit, Market Research, Local SEO and more

16. Live Web Media - livewebmedia.com
Expertise: SEO, Web Development, App Development and more

17. Alignment Online Marketing - alignmentonline.com
Expertise: Website Performance Audits, Local Business SEO, Off-Site SEO & Link Building and more

18. Wavelength Web Design - wavelengthwebdesign.ie
Expertise: Web Design, Digital Marketing, SEO and more

Brands can explore the top SEO companies by location, size, average hourly rate and portfolio on DesignRush.

About DesignRush:

DesignRush.com is a B2B marketplace connecting businesses with agencies through expert reviews and agency ranking lists, awards, knowledge resources and personalized agency recommendations for vetted projects.

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Maja Skokleska, DesignRush, 8008565417, [email protected]

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