Yelp makes it easier to find businesses that meet your accessibility needs
Using the review site Yelp is a great way to learn important details about a business, such as its sustainability, inclusivity, and accessibility practices. Now, Yelp is adding new attributes and more artificial intelligence (AI) to make its offerings more holistic.
On Tuesday, Yelp announced it has teamed up with Disability:IN, the American Association of People with Disabilities, Open to All, and The Arc to launch new accessibility features ahead of Disability Pride Month in July. These features include new searchable accessibility attributes that let you find businesses that meet your needs more easily and eight new attributes geared toward mobility, hearing, and vision accessibility requirements.
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The new attributes designate whether a business has parking near the entrance, an ADA-compliant main entrance, an ADA-compliant restroom, no steps or stairs, at least one ASL-proficient staff member, closed captioning on TVs, braille menus, and QR code menus.
You can find the attributes under the new accessibility section in a business's info tab. To make connecting to the right business even easier, you can search for the attributes by typing in queries such as "QR code menus available" to find organizations that have adopted that attribute.
Business owners can add those attributes to their Yelp page for free by editing the Business Information section in their Yelp for Business account. You can also share insights about the attributes through "Update the community" questions on Yelp business pages.
Yelp is also updating its app and website to be more inclusive. For example, the company has added AI-powered alternative text descriptions for photos, allowing screen readers to provide better photo details to visually impaired Yelp users. This feature is available on the desktop now and will roll out to other platforms later.
The company has also introduced improved color contrast to make content more readable to users with low vision or colorblindness, and it has enhanced the overall screen reader experience.
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Lastly, to help businesses access the things they need to create more inclusive spaces, Yelp has added a new Accessibility Resource Hub with information, tools, tips, and more.