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By Thomas Imbriago
Today, your website is more than just an optional marketing asset, it’s the core of your brand’s presence and the main way most users experience your business. For many, it’s the only interaction they’ll have with you. That means if your site is confusing, hard to use, or riddled with unseen hurdles, you’re not just facing a user experience challenge, you’re risking your reputation, losing valuable opportunities, and driving away customers who may never return.
If you’ve ever tried to make a purchase online with a slow internet connection or a damaged screen, you know firsthand how quickly a frustrating digital experience can drive you away. Now imagine facing that level of difficulty every single day, not just because of technology, but because of a visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive disability that makes poorly optimized websites virtually impossible to use.
That’s where accessibility becomes essential. It’s not just about meeting legal standards or ticking boxes on a checklist, it’s about designing and developing experiences that are genuinely inclusive. Accessibility ensures everyone, regardless of ability, can seamlessly navigate and use your website.
How we approach accessibility at Creamos
At Creamos, we combine strong design sensibility with technical precision. Accessibility isn’t an afterthought, it’s embedded into every stage of our process. Whether we’re building a website, an app, or any digital product, we treat accessibility as a fundamental element of user experience, ensuring that navigation, comprehension, and interaction are effortless for everyone.
We leverage a combination of automated tools, such as Wave and Google Lighthouse, alongside thorough manual audits and hands-on front-end expertise. While automation helps catch technical errors, it doesn’t replace real-world testing. Manual reviews allow us to evaluate accessibility through the eyes of actual users: navigating the site solely by keyboard, using a screen reader, or interacting with the interface with limited mobility or attention. We look for friction points and confusing moments, always asking: what can we improve to make every user’s journey as smooth as possible, regardless of their abilities or the device they use?
Accessibility is about far more than adding the right HTML tags, it’s about crafting an experience with logical flow, clarity, and ease at every step. We’ve all felt the frustration of navigating a clunky site or app. Now picture that challenge amplified by numerous hidden barriers. Our mission is to dismantle those obstacles, ensuring a seamless and intuitive journey for every user.
When you use a div to mimic a button but forget to add keyboard accessibility, you’re not just missing a detail, you're excluding an entire group of users. True accessibility is about building interfaces that everyone can engage with, not just those using a mouse.
Case study : proactive accessibility in beauty eCommerce
A beauty client approached us wanting to proactively expand their audience and elevate their user experience, rather than reacting to legal complaints.
For this project, we implemented:
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Semantic HTML for product detail and collection pages
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Focus indicators and keyboard-friendly navigation throughout interactive elements
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Comprehensive alt text and descriptive labels for all images and form fields
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Accessible color contrast and thoughtfully chosen font pairings without sacrificing brand aesthetics
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Thorough testing of key user flows to ensure accessibility was integrated from the ground up
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Best practices informed by World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) guidelines
The goal was simple, remove barriers, foster inclusion, and set a higher accessibility standard for digital commerce.
Explore the full project here.
Build inclusively from the start
We believe accessibility isn’t an afterthought, it’s foundational. It starts at the design phase, long before code is written, and is woven into every stage of our process. From the initial wireframe or layout, we focus on how real people will interact: Can they easily read this text? Will a component be clear and useful when accessed through a screen reader? Is the focus order logical and predictable for all input types?
Early accessibility doesn’t limit creativity; it refines it. It challenges us to craft more thoughtful, robust, and consistent interfaces that work beautifully across all devices and abilities.
True accessibility is a collaborative effort:
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Design teams establish the groundwork with proper contrast, spacing, hierarchy, and legible typography.
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Development teams bring designs to life using semantic HTML, full keyboard access, and integration with assistive technologies.
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Testing closes the loop by evaluating the experience from an actual user’s perspective—tabbing through pages, navigating with screen readers, and exploring with curiosity.
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Accessible solutions are the result of intentional teamwork, not an afterthought. This is how we ensure every user can confidently engage with your brand.
Why accessibility matters
If you manage an e-commerce site, it’s likely that a significant portion of your users, or potential users, are relying on assistive tools or encountering barriers you may not realize exist. Addressing accessibility broadens your audience and potential customer base, minimizes legal exposure and compliance risks and elevates the overall user experience for everyone. Can deliver a boost to your SEO and discoverability.
And here’s the best part: when considered from the outset, accessibility improvements are neither costly nor complex. Purposeful design ensures inclusion, and delivers business value, right from the start.
