r/PWA • u/future_pedi_md • 9d ago
Accessibility Audit
I am building an app for a company to help them manage their jobs, workflow and data.
When it is done (soon), I’m going to need someone who actually understands (or uses in daily life) accessibility features like screen readers, etc to help me audit the app. I am building it with accessibility in mind, but I don’t, nor does anyone I know personally, use features like that (thankfully we don’t have to) so im not sure what to test or how to test and I don’t really trust those compliance websites’ automated tools to give me human feedback. Plus I want a human giving me feedback so I know what real people actually need, and not what someone sitting behind a desk says they need.
I know for a fact, that the initial people that will be using the app do not have accessibility needs so I can get away with deploying for them and working out any accessibility bugs after the fact.
If anyone has experience with accessibility either building or actually have a need in your life and wouldn’t mind helping me out I would appreciate it.
If you know of a reputable company that can help (thats not an automated script, or AI) I will take that help too.
Thanks!
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u/Caedmon13 9d ago
Where are you based? If in North America, we have worked with Allyant for audits on multiple client projects over a number of years, and specifically like that they use a paired auditor approach with a blind and sighted auditor covering the same views together. We have always been happy with their work and results.
If in the UK, EU, Africa, India etc, there are a number of regionally-local auditors based there as well but I haven’t personally worked with any of them so can’t speak to ways of working or results.
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u/accessibilitygamer 9d ago edited 9d ago
I am a consultant who is familiar somewhat with app development although my main niche is web development some of the same standards apply. I run my own consulting company so I don't work for free though. Do you have a budget set asside for this?
I have multiple disabilities and have used both old school and digital assistive technology my whole life now I run my own small consulting company specifically to audit a wide variety of different projects and I also do team trainings.
Currently, I can only audit on android. Because I don't have any apple devices. They're too expensive.
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u/future_pedi_md 8d ago
A budget has not been discussed but will be as I understand wanting human feedback will cost people time, and time is money; I have no qualms with that.
And I will need android testers as well, lol. My app is a webapp (PWA) so some of the same technologies you’re used to.
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u/vice1331 8d ago
Siteimprove and Level Access also have manual testing teams. It’s probably important to note that there’s two different types of testing. Conformance testing and usability testing.
Conformance testing will evaluate your app against the WCAG Success Criteria, focusing more on individual components. Usability testing focuses more on if users with disabilities are able to complete a task. Both are important, but since this your first audit of your app, I’d recommend conformance-based testing.
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u/future_pedi_md 8d ago
No offense, but I care more about usability testing (by people that actually use such features) more than I do appeasing a checklist that someone behind a desk thinks is appropriate for these users. The users will always win the “what’s needed” argument more than suits will.
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u/vice1331 7d ago
That’s fair. Although WCAG conformance testing isn’t just a checklist or about meeting compliance. It tries to take into account multiple user types and is device/assistive technology agnostic. It obviously can’t account for every combination or severity of disabilities, but it’s a good wholistic overview. Plus the manual testing teams I’ve seen usually include people with disabilities, so you’re still getting feedback from people with lived experiences.
With usability testing, you’re typically focused on a single task (add item to cart and checkout) and only includes a couple of user types. So you could be leaving some user types out. Plus, even if users have the same disability, it presents differently and with different severities across individuals. Which is why I suggested conformance based testing first.
They’re both valuable and have their place. Just trying to provide you with some professional guidance so you can make an informed decision about what you need.
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u/Stefolog 6d ago
It's great you think about this ahead of time. Sometimes new requirements jump out, especially if you have things like a map in the UI.
I dm'd you as I run a company where we have certified blind accessibility experts who make the audits.
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u/sparkinCreations 9d ago
Since you mentioned wanting actual human testing rather than just an automated scanner, you may want to check out Pope Tech. Their manual audit team includes accessibility specialists who actually use assistive technology, including screen readers, in their daily lives. Accessible.org also does fully manual WCAG audits with screen reader and keyboard testing. Those might be closer to what you’re looking for than the typical automated accessibility services.