Talking Websites could Improve Sales and Accessibility

An IT Analysis report says that making websites talk improves accessibility and sales.

Textic Limited, the text to speech solutions specialist, is the subject of a recent IT Analysis report by Peter Abrahams, Practice Leader - Accessibility and Usability, Bloor Research. Bloor is one of Europe's leading independent information technology analyst firms. Textic produces TalkletsTM, an install-free web vocalisation service that can be easily be plugged in to any website to make it talk, enhancing usefulness and accessibility.

One of Abraham’s key conclusions about Textic is that (voice-enabling your website): “adds an extra level of accessibility to the site and further ensures compliance with existing and proposed legislation around the world…”. This conclusion and other aspects of Abraham’s analysis are exactly in accord with Textic’s strategy of developing a range of web usability enhancing features that can easily be added to any website and made available to all visitors as an on-demand service.

As well as acknowledging the direct benefits of enhanced usability and accessibility that Textic technology might deliver to users with disabilities, Abrahams noted that a raft of other web users also benefit from assistive technologies.
• People who find it more fun, or trendy, to listen rather than read.
• People who absorb more by listening as well as reading.
• People viewing sites that include images and diagrams, listening to the description whilst looking at the image is much more effective.
• Time-poor visitors can download an MP3 version of pages and then listen to them on the move.

This analysis comes on top of the recent Target class action settlement in the USA, whereby a leading retailer was fined $6million for trading via a website considered inaccessible, notably by blind users. Paul Ayres, Textic CEO, commenting on the Bloor article said: “It is gratifying to have someone as respected as Bloor say such positive things about our technology as well as highlighting the benefits over and above the core accessibility enhancements.”

Associated Link: Bloor Research highlights Textic Technology (plus downloadble PDF)

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