In our tech-driven world, mobile applications have become a fundamental part of everyday life, providing endless services and conveniences right at our fingertips. However, not everyone experiences mobile applications in the same way. For 1.3 billion people around the globe with disabilities, accessing and using applications can present significant challenges. This is where accessibility testing comes into play, ensuring that mobile applications are usable by everyone, regardless of their abilities.
What is accessibility testing?
Accessibility testing is a practice of making your web and mobile applications accessible to as many people as possible. It is the practice of making sure people with disabilities, like vision impairment, hearing problems, and other physical or cognitive conditions can use your product without difficulties.
Did you know that 56% of people with disabilities cited accessibility as the reason for choosing one online store over another? Making accessibility testing a regular part of the software testing process and implementing all the necessary checks early can improve the overall experience of using a mobile application or website.
Organizations can leverage accessibility testing to:
- Improve accessibility to customers with physical disabilities or other challenges.
- Increase their customer base and market share.
- Provide relevant content and information to more users.
- Create opportunities in untapped markets.
Accessibility testing best practices
Ensure your mobile application is accessible to a wider audience, providing a more inclusive and enjoyable experience for all users. Remember, accessibility is not just a feature—it’s a necessity!
Follow accessibility guidelines
Adhere to established accessibility guidelines, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Mobile Accessibility Guidelines. These guidelines provide comprehensive instructions on making applications accessible to all users.
Use automated tools
Leverage automated accessibility testing tools can quickly identify common accessibility issues such as missing labels, insufficient color contrast, and improper focus management.
Include real users in testing
Involve people with disabilities in your testing process. They can provide valuable insights and feedback that automated and manual testing might miss. Their firsthand experience can highlight barriers that others might overlook.
Focus on navigability
Make sure that the application is easy to navigate using different input methods. Ensure that users can move through the application logically and access all its functions without getting stuck. Improve the overall user experience with good navigability.
How OpenText Functional Testing Lab for Mobile and Web can help
Now that you know what accessibility testing is, its best practices, and how crucial it has become for many organizations, you may ask how you can effectively do accessibility testing on your mobile applications. Well, here is what you can get out of OpenText Functional Testing Lab for Mobile and Web to make your team’s life much easier and deliver accessibility compliant applications.
Ensure each object has a proper caption and/or label assigned to it with the OpenText Functional Testing Lab for Mobile and Web inspector tool, as well as test the application itself. This ensures that when VoiceOver (iOS) or TalkBack (Android) is enabled on the mobile device, people with disabilities will be provided with meaningful voice feedback immediately. This functionality is available regardless of where the mobile devices are located, so even if your international teams are accessing the mobile devices in different regions, the experience will be as if they were just next to the mobile device, being able to clearly hard the audible feedback.
Previously, testers needed additional hardware to access remote devices when VoiceOver or TalkBack was enabled. To get good quality audible feedback testers would have to have mobile devices accessible locally, but thanks to recent innovations, additional hardware is no longer required. You can use these features out of the box without any kind of additional configuration.
Additionally, people with disabilities can use these features with a keyboard. The audio streaming functionality enables them to find the relevant objects in the application easily. When enabling the accessibility testing mode, you can:
- Hear the VoiceOver/TalkBack announcement remotely with audio streaming.
- Control VoiceOver/TalkBack from the computer keyboard.
- Use buttons in the accessibility testing panel.
Simplify your accessibility testing
Ensure that your mobile applications are accessible to all users, including those with disabilities. Conducting such testing can bring numerous benefits to your business, including increased market share, improved user experience, and the ability to tap into untapped markets. With the help of OpenText Functional Testing Lab for Mobile and Web, performing accessibility testing becomes an easy and effective task. It is recommended to incorporate accessibility testing into your software testing process to ensure that all users can access and benefit from your mobile applications.
