by Matteo Petrani, CRO Expert at Black Pep part of Intarget

When discussing web accessibility, the focus often narrows to upcoming regulatory mandates, such as the European Accessibility Act (EAA) set to be fully enforced in 2025, and the risk of penalties. While legal compliance is crucial, adopting a purely reactive approach overlooks a fundamental strategic lever for growth. It is time to change this perspective: accessibility is not merely a compliance cost but a strategic investment with tangible returns, deeply intertwined with the principles of Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).

Viewing accessibility simply as a checklist of regulations misses the broader goal of enhancing site performance beyond surface-level elements. The strategic approach typical of CRO poses a more profound question: “Are we excluding significant segments of our potential market due to digital barriers?” For many businesses, the answer is yes.

A Frequently Overlooked Target

Digital access challenges are not limited to individuals with permanent disabilities. Interaction barriers can take many forms and affect a much broader audience than commonly assumed. We can categorize these barriers as:

Permanent: For instance, blind users employing screen readers or individuals with permanent motor impairments needing alternative input methods.

Temporary: Those recovering from injuries (e.g., a broken arm preventing mouse use), experiencing temporary medical conditions (laryngitis limiting voice command use, severe migraines heightening light sensitivity), or dealing with temporary vision impairments (e.g., conjunctivitis).

Situational: A parent holding a child in one arm can only use one hand, a professional checking a smartphone under direct sunlight (reducing perceived contrast) or in a noisy environment (train or event impeding audio listening), a driver interacting via voice commands for safety.

Contextual: People abroad with limited proficiency in the local interface language or anyone in stressful, hurried, or fatigued states (such as after a flight cancellation), conditions that diminish cognitive capacity and patience.

According to Eurostat data, about 87 million people in the European Union have some form of disability. Adding those who experience temporary or situational limitations reveals that a significant portion of the population—potentially between 20% and 30% in certain moments or contexts—may encounter barriers when interacting with non-inclusively designed digital interfaces. Economically, the purchasing power of people with disabilities and their families in the EU is estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of euros annually (estimates based on data from the European Commission and the European Disability Forum). Ignoring their needs is not only an ethical issue but a clear forfeiture of significant market shares and concrete business opportunities.

Accessibility and CRO: An Interconnected Process

The methodologies of Conversion Rate Optimization and accessibility practices share the same data-driven focus on continuous improvement. Both rely on:

In-depth User Understanding: CRO employs user research, behavioral analysis (heatmaps, session recordings), A/B testing, and quantitative data analysis to understand user needs and pain points. Accessibility requires a similar immersion, specifically targeting the needs of users with various abilities, often through dedicated usability testing with individuals with real disabilities, providing invaluable qualitative insights.

Identification and Analysis of Barriers (Friction Points): CRO maps friction points along the conversion funnel (e.g., cumbersome checkout processes, unclear contact forms, ineffective call-to-actions). Accessibility identifies specific barriers that prevent or hinder usage (e.g., insufficient color contrast, inability to navigate via keyboard, content not interpretable by assistive technologies, complex logical paths). These barriers often coincide or overlap: a complex form is problematic for everyone but can be a complete barrier for screen reader users. Quantitative data (e.g., high dropout rates at a certain step) may indicate a problem, while accessibility-oriented qualitative analysis reveals the specific cause for certain user segments.

Hypothesis Formulation and Strategic Prioritization: Both disciplines generate measurable hypotheses to enhance the experience (“If we simplify the form structure…”, “If we ensure all functions can be operated via keyboard…”). CRO prioritization is based on the estimated impact on conversions and business. Integrating accessibility enriches this evaluation by considering barrier severity (how much it impedes task completion?), the number and type of affected users, and the criticality of the touchpoint in the user journey.

Implementation, Testing, and Measurement: Implement changes and measure their impact. In CRO, A/B testing is used to compare variants. For accessibility, validation includes automated tests, expert manual reviews, and crucially, testing with end-users with disabilities. Measure not only standard conversion metrics but also specific accessible usability indicators (e.g., task completion success rate for screen reader users, time taken, number of errors).

Iterative Improvement Cycle: Neither is a “one-time” activity. They are ongoing processes fueled by collected data to inform subsequent iterations in an overall user experience optimization cycle.

Examples of Accessible Optimization with Business Impact

Let’s go beyond the basics and consider scenarios with clear return on investment:

Seamless Purchase Process for Everyone: A checkout process that cannot be easily completed using just a keyboard or that is not logically interpretable by a screen reader represents a direct sales loss. Ensuring that every step—from product selection to shipping choice, from entering payment details to handling errors—is fully accessible removes an insurmountable barrier for a segment of customers (not just blind users but also those with temporary or permanent motor impairments), while simultaneously enhancing flow for everyone. CRO Impact: Drastic reduction in cart abandonment, increase in final conversion rate.

Clarity and Support in Form Completion: Vague or unintuitively placed error messages foster frustration and increase form abandonment rates (registration, contact, quote request). Designing forms where errors are clearly marked, linked to the specific field, and communicated effectively even to those who do not perceive visual cues (e.g., through well-associated textual descriptions) is essential. This benefits all but is critical for users with visual or cognitive impairments. Greater tolerance for minor format errors can further reduce friction. CRO Impact: Increased form completion rate, improvement in both the quality and quantity of generated leads.

Maximizing the Reach of Video Content: Accurate subtitles and text transcripts not only assist deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals but are also used by viewers in noisy contexts, non-native speakers to enhance understanding, and positively impact SEO by making content indexable by search engines. If video marketing is part of the strategy, making it accessible broadens reach, engagement, and overall effectiveness. CRO Impact: Increased viewing time, improved engagement, enhanced organic visibility, potential increase in conversions attributed to video content.

Robust and Tolerant Design: A responsive design is now a standard. However, it’s important to consider less common but relevant usage scenarios. Interfaces with interactive elements that are too small or close together can lead to inadvertent clicks for those with tremors or using the site on the move. Layouts that “break” when the user enlarges the text (a common practice for visually impaired but beneficial to many) create significant usability issues. Designing with adequate touch targets, generous spacing, and flexible layouts that support zoom without information or functionality loss prevents errors and frustration, improving experience for a wide array of users and contexts. CRO Impact: Reduction in error rates, improvement in task success rate across different devices and for users with various needs.

And What About Overlays? A Shortcut with Limitations

The allure of “overlay” solutions promising immediate accessibility with just a few lines of code is tempting but often illusory and potentially counterproductive. It is crucial to understand their limitations:

They Do Not Solve Structural Issues: They often act at the surface level without addressing underlying HTML code issues. In-depth tests (manual and with real users) frequently continue to identify significant barriers.

Potential Conflicts with Assistive Technologies: Users with disabilities already employ assistive technologies (screen readers, magnification software, etc.) configured to their preferences. Overlays may interfere with these technologies, worsening the experience rather than improving it.

Impact on Performance: Adding external scripts can affect site loading times, a critical factor for user experience and SEO.

Privacy and Data Security Concerns: Some overlays may raise privacy issues, depending on how they interact with user sessions.

Doubts About Legal Compliance: Despite marketing promises, jurisprudence (especially in the United States, which often sets precedents) and expert opinions tend to view overlays as inadequate for full compliance with laws like the ADA or, the principles of the EAA. They represent a superficial tactical solution, not a robust strategic adjustment.

Relying solely on these tools typically means not addressing the real usability issues that limit access and, consequently, conversions.

Integrating Accessibility into the CRO Process: An Operational Framework

How to make accessibility an integral part of the optimization strategy?

Holistic User Experience Audit: Combine automatic tools (for initial screening) with expert manual analysis (simulating keyboard use, screen readers, zoom, various viewing conditions) and, crucially, usability testing sessions with individuals with different types of disabilities. Directly observing their interactions with critical funnels provides invaluable qualitative insights, akin to traditional usability testing for CRO.

Barrier Mapping and Strategic Prioritization: Identify barriers and correlate them with key conversion paths. Which issues represent a total block (e.g., unable to complete a purchase)? Which cause significant frustration or slow down the process? Use a prioritization matrix that crosses barrier severity (according to WCAG), user impact (number and type of affected users), and the criticality of the touchpoint for business objectives. Prioritize interventions that unlock main funnels and resolve issues with the greatest impact.

Hypothesis Formulation and Development of Inclusive Solutions: Formulate specific and measurable hypotheses: “By making the date selection process in the booking calendar fully operable by keyboard and understandable via screen reader, we expect a X% increase in completed bookings from these user segments and a Y% reduction in abandonment rate at that stage.” Design and implement intrinsically accessible solutions (“Accessibility by Design”), integrated into the structure and code, not merely patchwork.

Multi-Method Validation and Impact Measurement: Technically confirm the compliance of implemented solutions. More importantly, validate effectiveness through new target-user testing. Ensure that the solution not only works technically but is genuinely usable and enhances the experience. Measure impact on key CRO metrics (conversion rate, task completion rate, time on task), striving to segment data to isolate, where possible, the effect on different user groups.

Culture of Continuous Accessibility: Accessibility is not a project with an end date. It must become a structural element of design, development, and release processes, equivalent to performance, security, and conversion optimization. Integrate accessibility requirements into briefs, design systems, QA processes, and provide continuous training for teams.

Conclusion: Unlocking Potential, Converting the Entire Market

Adopting a web accessibility approach through the lens of CRO means transforming what many view as a regulatory mandate into a powerful competitive advantage lever. It means shifting the focus from mere compliance to the opportunity to effectively reach and serve a broader segment of the market, customers who might today be inadvertently excluded.

It means recognizing that a digital interface that’s simpler, clearer, and more flexible for those with specific needs is, almost invariably, better for all users. Removing accessibility barriers equates to reducing friction throughout the entire conversion journey. It’s a direct investment in usability, customer experience, and, ultimately, business growth. Do not wait for regulatory deadlines: start optimizing for all your potential customers today.

Do you want to transform accessibility from a cost center into a growth and conversion engine? Contact us for a strategic assessment and discover how an integrated CRO and accessibility approach can maximize your digital business’s potential.