Design evaluations overview

Level Access’s design evaluations are a design-centric service, by designers for designers, that identify accessibility issues rooted in the design of digital assets.

On this page:

• Why request design evaluations?
• What are the benefits of design evaluations?
• Types of design evaluations at Level Access
• When should I use this service?
• How do I request this service?
• Learn more

Why request design evaluations?

Designs evaluations help you catch accessibility issues early in the software development lifecycle. As a result, you can  prevent these issues from being built into your digital asset. This helps you to mitigate risks, reduce cost for your organization, and create and maintain accessible digital experiences.

Note: Our research shows that 41 out of the 50 Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA success criteria (82%) should be addressed during the design phase, while another 6 criteria (12%) are best considered during content authoring. This means design teams are responsible for 94% of the WCAG success criteria. Despite this, accessibility barriers remain common in many design systems.

What are the benefits of design evaluations?

Designing with accessibility in mind goes beyond minimizing risk and cost—it also delivers meaningful organizational value.  Whether you have just one design evaluation or a series of cadenced evaluations, design evaluations help you to proactively incorporate accessibility into your software development lifecycle. 

Organizational benefits include:

• More inclusive digital experiences and as a result, more marketable digital asset.
• Stronger, more capable design teams with deeper accessibility knowledge, leading to greater team efficiency and innovation

Risk and cost benefits are:

• Fewer accessibility issues during automated scans and manual reviews of in-development products
• Reduction in recurring issues, leading to more consistent accessibility outcomes
• Lower remediation workload, saving time and resources during development

Types of design evaluations at Level Access

A design evaluation is an analysis of the accessibility of your digital brand and/or interface designs. Your digital brand and/or interface designs may include newly designed screens, views, pages, and/or components.

Level Access currently offers two types of design evaluations:

• Digital brand evaluation
• Interface design evaluation.

Digital brand evaluation

A digital brand evaluation assesses how accessible your organization’s digital brand is. You’ll receive a  report with actionable feedback and guidance to help you embed accessible design principles into the core of your brand’s visual identity.

We recommend conducting this evaluation before developing wireframes or user interface designs that rely on atomic elements from your brand guidelines. However, if you're already further along in the process, that’s perfectly fine, because digital brand evaluations can be requested at any stage.

The most critical aspects of the evaluation are:

• Color and contrast
• Typeface elements (headings, fonts, spacing, etc.)
• Core functional elements (buttons, links, etc.)

Interface design evaluation

An interface design evaluation examines the accessibility of your newly created screens, views, pages, and components. The resulting report offers practical feedback and guidance to help you integrate accessibility requirements into your everyday design practices. This type of evaluation accepts the following design artifacts:

• Wireframes
• User interface designs (comps, mockups, etc.)
• Component designs/pattern libraries/design systems

When should I use this service?

We recommend that you identify accessibility issues as early as possible in the development process.

While design evaluations can be conducted at any stage of the software development lifecycle, they are most impactful before you write the code. For example, they’re especially valuable when you are planning to redesign, rebrand, or launch a digital asset. 

How do I request this service?

You can request a design evaluation through our support portal. 

Learn more

To request an evaluation and analyze the results:

• Request a design evaluation
• Understand design evaluation finding types
• Review remediation recommendations

To get answers about the design evaluation results, request support from a technical accessibility expert.