While the concept of chatbots has been around for decades (the first chatbot, ELIZA, was created way back in 1966), they've become a widespread part of the internet experience in the last 15-20 years.
Chatbots are valuable tools that offer 24/7 customer support, lead generation, and personalized experiences. However, these benefits should be available to everyone, regardless of how they access or interact with the chatbot. Building or purchasing accessible chatbots ensures your online presence is welcoming and usable for everyone.
Key Principles for an Accessible Chatbot
Here are some key principles to keep in mind, along with corresponding WCAG criteria for guidance, when creating or looking to purchase a chatbot for your organization
Text-Based Communication—Prioritize text-based interactions. Text-based chatbots are accessible to a broader audience, including those with auditory impairments, screen reader users, and those in noisy environments.
Use Clear and Concise Language—Use simple, straightforward language, avoiding jargon and technical terms unless appropriate for your user. Break up complex information into short sentences or bullet lists - the same way you break down large amounts of text for the web. A conversational tone is good, but clarity should always be the priority.
Use Accessible Fonts—Accessible fonts improve legibility, making the text more accessible for everyone to see, read, and understand.
Status Messages—Make users aware of updates when the content changes. This is especially important for screen reader users when content changes might not have focus at that time.
SC 4.1.3: Status Messages (Level AA)
Keyboard Navigation—Ensure your chatbot is fully navigable using the keyboard alone. Users should be able to tab through interactive elements, select options, and submit information without a mouse. Each interactive element should receive visible focus. See #7, Focus Must be Visible.
SC 2.1.1: Keyboard (Level A)
Also, consider how your users navigate to and from the chat interface. Avoid forcing users to tab through the entire page repeatedly. You can improve their experience by implementing landmarks, skip links, and ensuring all features are fully operable using only a keyboard.
SC 2.4.1: Bypass Blocks (Level A)
Logical Structure and Flow—Your chatbot's conversation should flow in the correct reading order, making it easier for users to understand the available options and how to proceed.
SC 1.3.2: Meaningful Sequence (Level A)
Alternative Text for Images—If you use images, please do so sparingly. When you do use images, provide descriptive alternative text (alt text) that accurately conveys the image's meaning. Alt text is essential for screen reader users.
SC 1.1.1: Non-text Content (Level A)
Captions and Transcripts—If your chatbot incorporates audio or video, provide captions for deaf users and transcripts for Deaf and blind users. Screen readers will read the transcript to the user. Again, please use these media sparingly.
Time-based Media, includes nine success criteria.
Proper Color Contrast—Ensure sufficient contrast between the text and background to improve readability. WCAG SC 1.4.3: Contrast (Minimum) (Level AA) says, "visual presentation of text and images of text has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1." (Please see the exceptions here.) Note that the contrast level applies to images of text as well as simple text and background.
SC 1.4.3: Contrast (Minimum) (Level AA)
No Color Only—Make sure color is not the only way of disseminating information. Color vision deficiency, low vision, diseases like cataracts or glaucoma, and even eye injuries can affect a person's ability to process color properly. Instead of using only color, convey messages and information by using color along with text labels, different shapes, or shading patterns.
SC 1.4.1: Use of Color (Level A)
Focus Must Be Visible—Focus indicators help users who rely on a keyboard or assistive technology know precisely where they are within a digital document or webpage. However, not all user agents make focus visible by default. The designers and developers of the chatbot are responsible for "providing at least one mode of operation where the focus is visible."
Interactive elements must receive focus in an order "consistent with the meaning of the content…" Focus order must align with the content's logical structure to preserve meaning and operability.
SC 2.4.7: Focus Visible (Level AA) | SC 2.4.3: Focus Order (Level A)
Time Limits—If your chatbot uses time limits for responses, make sure users are aware of that and give them the option to extend, pause and resume, or turn off the timer.
SC 2.2.1: Timing Adjustable (Level A)
Error Messages and Prevention—When constructing error messages, use descriptive language, use active voice, provide solution suggestions, and keep the error message close to the error's source so it is easy to locate.
You can help users avoid mistakes by using clear and concise labels and instructions, putting related input fields in the same group, and, if possible, providing immediate feedback on their data input. This not only improves the user experience but also fosters trust and efficiency.
SC 3.3.1: Error Identification (Level A) | SC 3.3.3: Error Suggestion (Level AA)
Reviewing a Vendor-Provided Chatbot
If you outsource your chatbot product, select products with the most user customization. And remember, you will also want to conduct your own accessibility audit, both automated and manual.
Be sure to request and receive an updated Accessibility Conformance Report from the vendor. Carefully review the "Level of Support" column for criteria labeled "Does Not Support" or "Supports with Exception." For unsupported criteria, determine if it's due to a lack of functionality in the product (something that the product wasn’t designed to do anyway) or non-compliance. For "Supports with Exception" criteria, determine if the exception requires vendor remediation for compliance or is based on specific usage conditions (e.g., operating system or browser).
Testing Your Chatbot
The most crucial step is to test your chatbot with users with disabilities. Gather feedback and iterate on your design based on their experiences. Accurate user testing is invaluable for identifying and addressing accessibility issues.
By following these guidelines, you can create or purchase chatbots that are helpful, engaging, inclusive, and accessible to everyone.
Resources
- Web Chat accessibility consideration
- Designing Accessible Chatbots: An Introduction
- Five Key Accessibility Considerations for Chatbots
A human author creates the DubBlog posts. The AI tool Gemini is sometimes used to brainstorm subject ideas, generate blog post outlines, and rephrase certain portions of the content. Our marketing team carefully reviews all final drafts for accuracy and authenticity. The opinions and perspectives expressed remain the sole responsibility of the human author.
