In today’s financial services landscape, accessibility and inclusivity are not just buzzwords but the cornerstone of design. “As financial institutions strive to cater to diverse demographics and evolving needs, the imperative for inclusive and accessible design has never been clearer”, explains GBST Digital Designer, Kelly Chiu. But what exactly is accessible and inclusive design, and how can we effectively integrate these principles into our day with the work we do for financial services organisations across the globe?
Accessible design aims to helps users with different levels of ability, whether that’s visual, auditory, or motor impairments, to equally perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with the product and/or interface.
Inclusive design is a step further from accessible design, welcoming and involving users from diverse backgrounds and circumstances, ensuring factors such as gender, race, location, and religion does not affect the experiences they have with the product and/or interface.
Having an accessible and inclusive design mindset is crucial for creating positive and welcoming user experiences that are accessible to all. In addition to complying with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), below are the five UI/UX practices that we follow at GBST to ensure an outstanding and consistent experience for all users.
Accessible UI and layout
Interfaces should be checked for sufficient colour contrast between text and background to make sure the combinations stand out against each other and are readable for all users. Font, weight, sizes and line spacing must be chosen so the content is consistently legible across all formats, whether that’s in mobile or desktop. This is the foundation in eliminating any barriers that could prevent individuals with disabilities from accessing the content, ensuring equal usability for all.
“With the latest updates to our Equate React calculators, we’re striving to achieve the highest accessibility standards by improving our contrast ratios from the recommended 4:5:1 (AA) to 7:1 (AAA) between text and background across all our tools. We’re dedicated to ensuring our tools are more accessible than ever before.” Randy Hernandez, Principal Software Engineer, GBST Digital
Keep the language simple
User-centric language should be employed to effectively communicate with users. Keeping the content concise, terms neutral, language plain and tone of voice consistent will ensure the information is easy to understand for users. Minimise the use of financial jargon, while making sure clear explanations, help text and/or tooltips are readily available to support the user when needed. This not only enhances the user experience but also serves as a great opportunity to educate, help familiarise, and improve financial literacy for the user.
Device friendly
Designs should adapt to various screen sizes to ensure the user can access the content on any device. This is fundamental in making sure the experience is consistent but also enhances reach and visibility. Being flexible ensures that no matter where users are, whether they are commuting or sitting down at their desk, they can access the information and services seamlessly anytime, anywhere.
Clear feedback and response
Accessible feedback and interaction must be considered in design. Forms, as an example, should be designed to enable quick, easy, and accurate completion. By having clear and informative instructions, providing helpful suggestions when errors occur, and affirming feedback and interactions when the user has completed a correct action, we can potentially reduce the cognitive load for the user and make the experience more enjoyable.
Test, review, and iterate
Testing plays a crucial role in gathering user feedback and evaluating the accessibility and usability of interfaces. Involving and engaging users from diverse demographics, abilities, and backgrounds is essential in gaining deeper insights into how they interact with the product and interface. This inclusive approach ensures a more comprehensive understanding of usability and accessibility across the wide spectrum of users, helping to mitigate bias, uncover potential challenges and identify areas for improvement. By acknowledging and addressing these flaws, designs can continue to be refined, resulting in a more inclusive, user friendly, and seamless user interface.
Cross team collaboration
Embracing accessibility and inclusive design principles isn’t a solitary endeavour, but rather a collaborative one. Within the financial services industry, and more specifically at GBST Digital, this integration is a cross-team effort, drawing on a diverse range of expertise. Designers, product managers, and developers work together to ensure seamless integration and inclusive practices. This collaboration both fosters cohesion and cultivates an environment where the exchange of perspectives and ideas is valued. Through this collective effort, innovative design solutions emerge, poised to better serve the diverse needs of users across the financial services industry.
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Posted in: GBST Digital
