How To Help Your Business Be Inclusive And Supportive Of Others

The world is a diverse place and more and more it is important to include everyone and be supportive of others so that everyone can have a pleasant experience when going about everyday life and carrying out normal tasks. To some people, basic tasks can sometimes be a big deal and require a lot more planning and effort which is something we need to be mindful of. There are lots of different things that businesses need to think about and implement. It can be very damaging to a business’s reputation if they do not set out to help and serve everyone. 

Your logo, when designing your logo or re-designing it if you are having an upgrade it is important to take into account people who are colorblind, if you are colorblind it isn’t that you can’t see color it is that it is more that you are unable to distinguish between different shades of color. If your logo is colors that look very similar to a colorblind person they will be unable to see what your logo or business name even is. Even if you aren’t colorblind you need to accommodate a colorblind audience. This also will stretch out to your website. When you have hyperlinks in text, make sure it is a color that will easily stand out. If you have a map on your website to see where you are located, keep it with the colors on the map rather than change to black and white as the colors will differentiate subway lines and different city districts. There are certain color combinations which are particularly hard for colorblind people to register and these are:

• Green and Red
• Green and Brown
• Blue and Purple
• Green and Blue
• Light Green and Yellow
• Blue and Grey
• Green and Grey
• Green and Black

Another thing you will want to do to help your business be inclusive is to have disabled access to your physical sites. This would be having a disabled toilet or if you don’t have space for that having rails and an emergency cord in your bathroom so someone who is differently-abled is still able to use the facilities. You will also want to consider a ramp for the entrance to your store or office. Especially if there are stairs as they will not be able to get up so having an alternative entrance which is a ramp will be inclusive. Be sure to look at the ADA ramp guidelines for homes and businesses.

It is important to be inclusive for your staff as well which means being an ally at work for them especially if they are in the LGBTQ+ community. It is important to stay up to date on the challenges that people within the community face to make sure it isn’t something they need to face at work. Also when taking people on it is important to check pronouns so you are referring to them as they want. If any jokes or comments are overheard be sure to make it clear that it is unacceptable.