Relationship Marketing 101 - Interview with Cornelius Butler of AccessibleNet on Website Accessibili

Could you be turning away people who want to conduct business with you? You could be losing out on a trillion dollar hidden market simply because of the way you show up online.

Cornelius Butler's company, Butler New Media, LLC is a disability services firm committed to assisting companies, government agencies and individuals make their web and marketing communications accessible to all people, including those with disabilities. Butler New Media & AccessibleNet offer professional consulting and technology solutions. Our goal is to make sure that our clients reach all of their audiences as well as meet governmental and international standards. Once accessible, they make sure that our clients stay accessible.

He started his company based on the problems he saw in the online world for people with disabilities. He himself is legally blind. A few years ago while working for Georgia’s Department of Labor as an Intern, Cornelius Butler was observing a person who was blind accessing the department’s website using a screen reader. Unfortunately the individual was having difficulty because the program could not read the link that said, “Find a Job.” After this encounter Mr. Butler decided to do some research on the issues people with disabilities face when using online resources. His findings motivated him along with his partner to create a business dedicated to helping corporations and government agencies better serve the disability community.

In order for a web site to be accessible, its content must be available to all people including those with disabilities. Web Accessibility is the process of ensuring that web content and online resources are accessible to people with disabilities. This means consistency of content no matter what senses you use.
By making your website accessible, you put yourself in good standing with Google. Google REWARDS you with increased page rank and visibility for complying.