You can't approach accessibility like a sprint. Audit the site, fix the obvious issues, tick the compliance box. Job done.
Except it isn't.
Accessibility isn't a feature you ship and forget.
Whether you like it or not, it's a practice and it grows stronger or gets weaker over time.
Real improvements happen slowly.
You start by learning how screen readers actually work, not just running automated tests. You watch real users navigate your interface with only a keyboard. You find out that your clever dropdown menu is completely unusable for someone when you don't have clear focus indicators.
So you fix all these small things one by one. And you trust that each small fix teaches you something.
Why semantic HTML matters. How colour contrast affects readability. Why that animated loading spinner gives some people headaches.
The teams doing accessibility well aren't the ones who did a massive overhaul once. They're the ones who consistently make small improvements. They test every new feature with keyboard navigation. They consider cognitive load alongside visual design. They build relationships with users with disabilities and actually listen to their feedback.
It sounds like a damn slow approach. Why would you want that? Isn't the tech mantra to always go faster? To be the first?
Speed isn't everything. The slow approach builds momentum through genuine understanding. Slowly but surely, your team starts designing accessibly from the start instead of retrofitting solutions. You might not get to where you're going first, but you'll have a much better chance of staying ahead once you do get there.
Accessibility debt compounds quickly.
But so does accessibility knowledge.
Invest in the slow growth.