Is your brand’s ego too big for accessibility?

I pose this question because I believe a lot of brands are wearing boots that are too big for them. They invest heavily in design agencies to create strict brand guidelines – dictating the exact colours, logos, and fonts – and distribute these expecting rigid adherence. For these brands, the word ”guidelines” seems to have lost its meaning.

This rigidity is understandable; you’ve probably paid the price of a small family car to get this expert guidance. However, that design agency likely forgot to factor digital accessibility into their thinking.

The accessibility conflict

I love seeing the light bulb flick on during one of my accessibility workshops when participants realise their current colour palette or typography could be drastically improved. Of course, the immediate response is always: “But the brand guidelines won't permit that change.”

I do understand the reticence, but ultimately, it boils down to a fundamental choice: Do you genuinely commit to supporting digital accessibility, or do you decide that paying lip service to the subject is enough?

I believe that reluctance is complete rubbish. Surely, a truly strong brand has enough confidence and ego to place inclusion and user choice at its very heart. A truly strong visual identity is one that is confident enough to step back when the user's need is greater than the brand's aesthetic preference.

Embracing flexibility and choice

You don't need to scrap your entire visual identity to improve your users' experience. You need to embrace flexibility. That is exactly what we have done on the Kindera website.

In addition to introducing a dark mode theme, we recently introduced a toggle that overrides the default typeface with one specifically designed for improved reading. In partnership with Google, Lexend was developed by Dr. Bonnie Shaver-Troup to create an amazing variable typeface that flexibly adapts to the needs of its readers. You can learn more about the scientific research and development behind the typeface on the Lexend website.

Choice is a crucial concept in digital accessibility. You can see on our website that we haven't replaced our entire visual identity and forced it to be something it isn't. Users retain the ability to toggle on the Lexend font should they require or prefer a more comfortable reading experience.

I don’t know a thousand people who are dyslexic, but I do know one, my daughter, who I asked to review the site. Her conclusion was: 

“I don’t know why, but it’s easier to read.”

Ok, this isn't scientific proof based on a large pool of people, but like my daughter, I think Lexend really makes a difference. This phenomenon is known as the “curb cut effect”: changes made for a specific disability group often end up benefiting everyone. By making your brand flexible for a dyslexic user, you create a better, more comfortable experience for all users.

The business case for inclusion

It is estimated that around 10% of the UK population has dyslexia, which equates to over 6.3 million people.

So, the real question is: Can your brand afford not to improve the user experience for 1 in 10 visitors to your website?

Don’t be afraid to change your visual identity. If it improves your users’ experience, your brand will only get stronger.

Are you dyslexic? Whether you are or not, what do you think of Lexend and the concept of user choice? Let me know.

Footnote

Lexend is a free, open-source font and can be downloaded or embedded on your website. Get Lexend from Google Fonts.