LAUSR

The Basics ˲ Start with “Why?” Before designing a website, or even making a small change to an existing one, ask if your design choices consider the needs of people with color blindness. ˲ Don’t communicate only with colors Can color really be enough to communicate your message? Color can be one element of a much larger picture, but don’t rely on color to serve as the only element of distinction. ˲ Design with shapes Color-blind people can discern the difference between shapes far more easily than between colors. When you design with shapes, you won’t cause unnecessary additional effort for the people who visit your website. ˲ Choose the right copy Absolutely avoid identifying tasks or requests to the user only through color. Include other distinguishing characteristics like shape or size. ˲ Test your designs in black and white Switching the UI to black and white helps you evaluate the composition and the usability of your designs. Without the meaning provided by color, is your UI still working? Can you understand the meaning of every button? ˲ Rethink button states Color alone does not convey information for everyone. Use shapes and icons that indicate a button’s function. ˲ Use contrast Don’t default to using green and red to communicate things like product availability or pass/fail. Using icons, text, and high contrast colors such as blue and red will help many (but not all) people with color blindness. ˲ The smaller the item, the bigger the problems Relying on small, colored elements to signal important information, like updates or status, creates a huge barrier for color blind people. ˲ Less fancy, more usable Dear data visualization designer, stop using hundreds of shades to present your data infographics. ˲ More than you think Although it may seem that color-blind people are few, there are actually 350 million peoplea you are closing the door on when you don’t make your site accessible.