Beyond Color Contrast: Designing for Everyone

You’re working solo with a new client, referred to you by a friend. It’s your first contract project, and the client has already hinted that if this goes well, there will be more work ahead. The design has moved into high-fidelity user testing, and everything appears to meet professional standards for color/contrast, typography, and layout. On the surface, it looks polished and ready to go—proof that you can deliver as a designer.

But as testing begins, problems emerge. One participant using a screen reader finds several key images skipped because they have no alt text or captions. Buttons are vague—the screen reader simply announces “button,” leaving the participant unsure which action to take. Navigation feels confusing, and moving through the workflow is slow and frustrating.

Another participant, who has dyslexia, struggles with dense paragraphs. They repeatedly re-read sentences to understand the content, and centered text makes it even harder to follow. Tasks that should be simple drag on, leaving the participant visibly frustrated and exhausted.

Sighs, pauses, and questions make it clear these aren’t minor issues. During the session, testers ask why certain content or buttons don’t work as expected. Later, when the usability report is compiled, the client raises concerns based on these findings. Suddenly, accessibility problems are front and center. You feel nervous—these issues need to be resolved quickly without derailing the timeline or budget.

Looking back at the mid-fidelity phase, you realize the focus was heavily on refining layout. Due to time constraints, the participant pool was narrower than it should have been. As a result, accessibility issues slipped through until now.

You begin by addressing typography for the participant with dyslexia. Breaking text into smaller paragraphs, left-aligning it, and increasing line spacing make reading easier and reduce cognitive strain. Choosing simple, readable fonts further supports comprehension.

Next, you tackle buttons and navigation for the screen reader user. Adding descriptive labels such as “submit form” or “next step” clarifies actions, while ensuring all interactive elements are keyboard-accessible, giving users predictable control over the workflow. Images are updated with alt text and captions so no content is lost, and critical instructions are simplified to reduce confusion. Error messages and feedback are also improved—now they provide clear guidance when mistakes occur and reassurance when tasks succeed.

After implementing changes, you retest with similar participants to confirm the fixes work. The screen reader user can now navigate confidently, while the participant with dyslexia can read and complete tasks without repeated effort. The frustrations observed during the initial session are gone.

By addressing the core issues—typography, navigation, images, and feedback—and confirming improvements through retesting, the interface shifts from looking polished but frustrating to being truly usable, inclusive, and approachable. Each fix directly resolved the problems uncovered during high-fidelity testing.

Accessibility isn’t just about color/contrast; it’s about ensuring real people can use your design effectively, even when issues appear late in the process. Targeted improvements, thoughtful implementation, and validation through retesting can dramatically improve usability, user satisfaction, and client trust.

For junior designers and career changers, the reminder is simple: accessibility is not optional. Even if gaps surface late, it’s possible to recover and deliver a high-quality experience. Pay attention to user behavior, prioritize fixes with the greatest impact, and always verify improvements—these steps ensure your designs work for everyone.

Helping UX Designers bridge gaps and grow