Access Information

Giving people the information they need to decide whether a location is accessible for them can change people’s lives. Information is power, for everyone, but especially those with disabilities.

When we talk about information, we don’t just mean telling customers your business is ‘fully accessible’, we mean detailed, interactive and whole customer journey information before, during and after they visit your location.

Information is one of the key areas to improving accessibility and accessibility is the practice of making sure your business or services can be enjoyed by as many people as possible.

This is often interpreted as being only about people with disabilities, but really it covers all potential customers to ensure you do not discriminate and are being inclusive.

Think of pregnant mothers, the elderly, young families or those with short-term health issues. Accessibility is treating everyone the same, and giving them the same opportunities, no matter what their ability or circumstances. By designing for those with enhanced accessibility requirements, you’re designing for everyone.

Information regarding your business is much more important to anyone with enhanced access requirements than others. Truly being able to understand the whole customer journey before, during and after visiting your location can significantly increase the number of people coming through your door or using your services, resulting in increased profit for your business.

According to a recent survey, 85% of respondents would check a company’s website first, and usually last, for information on accessibility. If they couldn’t find any, nearly 50% automatically presume the location is inaccessible and take their business and money elsewhere.

So many people do not like to (or can’t) talk on the phone, or have had bad experiences using email that the ability to find all the information they may need in one, simple location online cannot be underestimated.

Virtual Inclusion are world-leading experts in providing Inclusive Virtual Tours. These provide all the information that many of your customers need before visiting your business, whilst also creating a great marketing tool that benefits everyone.

Ensuring you are inclusive does not only makes great social sense, but also has significant financial benefits:

Benefits

HUGE SPENDING POWER

In the UK, the spending power of disabled people and their households (the accessibility market), known as the purple pound, is worth £249bn

The over 50s, also known as the ‘grey pound‘, is worth over £320 billion a year to the UK economy

MINIMISE LOST REVENUE

UK businesses are missing out on £1.8bn of lost revenue each month by ignoring the needs of disabled customers

Bad customer experience is costing UK companies £37bn per year in lost revenue

MAXIMISE INCOME

Globally, the accessible tourism market alone is an emerging market the size of China, with over 2.2 billion people (people with a disability and their immediate families)

This equates to annual spending power worth over £5.5 trillion

Over 50s account for a third of the population and half of all consumer expenditure. They hold 80% of all personal wealth and control 70% of all disposable income. Yet a mere 5% of all ad spend is directed at the over 50s. They understand marketing, they’re loyal, they have the cash and they want to spend it.

MARKET SIZE

Disability:

There are nearly 14 million disabled people in the UK

Approximately only 8% of disabled use a wheelchair

Elderly:

Over 50s account for 35% of the UK population

This figure expected to grow to 50% in the next 5 years
18% of the population are over 65 (expected to increase to 25% in the next 20 years)

Pregnant Mothers:

At any one time, 4% of the female population is pregnant

Young Families:

In 2017 there were 19.0 million families in the UK

this increased by 15% from 16.6 million in 1996

By investing in accessibility, you are investing in the future of your business. 70% of all Europeans with accessibility needs have both the financial and physical capacity to travel and spend, but if they cannot find the right information about your business online, you may be missing out on this growing market.

Why is being accessible great for your business?

Being accessible and inclusive means catering for all needs. Whilst this is not always possible, providing clear and accurate information means customers can make informed decisions about visiting your location. Even if there are some accessibility limitations to your location, awareness of these issues will encourage customers to visit your business and build trust and transparency between you and your customers.

This can help avoid creating bad customer experiences and is a critical part of any successful marketing strategy. Not only is providing the right information the socially responsible thing to do to ensure you do not discriminate, as the statistics show, it is a great way to engage with all your potential customers.

A recent survey by an accessibility charity found that:

– 95% of respondents said they try to find access information prior to visiting a venue

– 86% have found a venue’s website information to be misleading, confusing or inaccurate

– 92% when thinking about accessibility, say that they do not feel very confident about visiting new places

How to make your destination more accessible & inclusive

We hope this provides a basic understanding around inclusion, the customer demand for improved information on accessibility, and some of the financial benefits involved. the next question is.

If you’re interested in starting this journey, why not review the accessibility of your venue with a structured audit/survey. The gathered data can then be developed into a multi-format access guide to improve customer experience and boost your revenue.

At any stage of your business journey, whether it is your first steps into being inclusive or if you want to enhance what great accessibility information you already have, then get in touch today!