I’ve received the results of my accessibility audit. Now what?

If your organization has just completed a digital accessibility audit, congratulations! That’s a meaningful first step toward creating more inclusive digital experiences. However, you may now be wondering what to do with the results. Can you get away with just a VPAT? Read on to learn more.

(For more details on what a good audit includes, check out my post: What to Look for in an Accessibility Audit.)

While an accessibility audit is a great first step, it can be difficult to interpret audit results and prioritize audit issues. If your organization has recently received the results of an accessibility audit and needs guidance on what to do next, this blog post might prove helpful to you.

Do I just need a VPAT?

Some organizations turn to a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) to document the current accessibility of their product. While helpful, a VPAT is not a substitute for action. It summarizes conformance to standards such as EN 301 549, WCAG 2.2, or Section 508, but it won’t tell you how to fix issues or improve usability.

You’ve got the digital accessibility audit results. Now what?

Audit reports can be overwhelming. You may be surprised by the number or severity of issues, but that’s normal. Accessibility takes planning, expertise, and ongoing effort.

Prioritize remediation based on risk and impact

Once you understand the issues, the next step is to prioritize. We recommend assessing issues by impact level:

• Blocker: Prevents access to core functionality.
• Critical: Makes key parts unusable for some users.
• Serious: Causes major barriers, but some access remains.
• Moderate: Reduces experience quality.
• Minor: Annoying or distracting, but not a major barrier.

Focus first on blockers and critical issues, especially those that prevent users from completing key actions, such as logging in, submitting a form, or making a purchase.
Also, look for quick wins. Fixes that can be applied across templates or components, such as updating contrast in a global style guide, can deliver widespread improvements with minimal effort.

Verify fixes and maintain progress

After remediation, retest everything to confirm that the issues have been resolved. Update your VPAT or accessibility documentation accordingly. You can use Deque’s tools and services for support during this process.
Accessibility is not a one-time fix—it’s a practice. With training, coaching, and support, your organization can build accessibility into your culture and processes.

Next step: Build accessibility into your website from the start

Once you’ve gone through your audit results, the right tools can help you take action and build accessibility into your daily workflows. Deque’s solutions are designed to support you across your entire accessibility journey – from enabling dev teams to identify issues as they write code to monitoring accessibility at scale. With a combination of automated testing, guided support, and reliable reporting, it’s easier than ever to catch issues, prioritize fixes, and build more inclusive digital experiences with confidence and efficiency from the start.

Ready to build inclusive digital experiences from the start? Request a product demo today!