Have you ever built what you thought was a killer app, only to hear users say, “I can’t use it”? Sometimes assistive technology, like a screen reader, skips right over the buttons, or the colors blend so much they can’t tell where to click. It’s a total headache ‌— ‌wasted time fixing complaints, lost trust from customers, and even legal headaches if you’re not compliant.

The good news? Omnistudio’s latest updates make accessibility a breeze. We evaluated more than 45 elements across Omniscripts and Flexcards to move it from being merely accessible to highly accessible.

What is accessibility and why is it important?

Accessibility in general means that a person with a disability is given an equal opportunity to use and avail the same services as someone without a disability. 

Accessibility, in the context of Omnistudio, is about ensuring that everyone can easily use the product, encompassing a wide range of abilities and needs. Essentially, it means building software that doesn’t put barriers in the way of people who use different methods to interact with computers.

Here’s why accessibility is important.

  • Inclusivity for all users: Accessibility helps everyone in our community use the platform, including people with cognitive, visual, and mobility impairments. By supporting these users, we make sure no one is left out.
  • Use of assistive technology: Making a product accessible means intentionally designing it to work well with specialized tools that people rely on daily. This includes screen readers, keyboard navigation, and zoom functions. Comprehensive focus includes crucial, often unseen, non-verbal enhancements, such as making sure that screen reader announcements capture the correct context of what’s happening on the screen.
  • Meeting high industry standards: The extensive improvements undertaken in Omnistudio and Flexcards were necessary because the product was previously only fairly accessible. This massive refactoring moves the platform to be highly accessible and demonstrates compliance with key industry standards, specifically the WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 guidelines.

What does it mean for Omnistudio users?

Omnistudio is moving from being fairly accessible to highly accessible. So, what do all these accessibility improvements look like in your day-to-day tasks with Omnistudio?

For starters, you can create experiences that‌ work for every single person who uses them — whether they’re navigating with a screen reader, tapping a keyboard, or just needing text that’s easy on the eyes. 

Flexcards and Omniscripts now handle things like clear button labels and sharp color contrasts automatically, so a busy customer with low vision or someone using voice commands can zip through without frustration. We all get to build faster, test easier with simple tools, and deliver experiences that make everyone feel included and empowered.

Major leaps in accessibility standards

We evaluated more than 45 elements within Omniscripts and Flexcards. These enhancements are primarily focused on changes in the core runtime for SLDS and SLDS+ themes, as well as the Omnistudio standard runtime.

Improved accessibility across the product

Omnistudio tackles the big stuff head-on. Screen readers that ‌”speak” your content clearly, keyboard shortcuts that let everyone navigate without a mouse, and zoom that works perfectly every time. It’s all about supporting folks with cognitive, visual, or mobility needs, making sure no one gets left behind.

Toggle availability and testing

For newly created builds, the accessibility toggle will be enabled by default. And while cloning or creating a new version of Omniscript/Flexcard, the accessibility setting is inherited from the parent. However, for existing Omniscripts and Flexcards, the toggle is off by default in the designer to protect against any compatibility hiccups. Test the changes in a sandbox environment and deploy them when ready.

Note: This feature is only available in core designers.

[ALT: Runtime accessibility toggle.]

Better control on accessibility rollout

No worries about breaking what already works. Many accessibility fixes involve visual or behavioral changes, and simply applying them universally could cause problems for customers who rely on customized UI elements and branding. The Omnistudio team prioritized backward compatibility to avoid breaking your existing implementations.

Opt-in for comprehensive changes

Many accessibility fixes are placed behind an opt-in toggle. Want the full power? Just enable the accessibility toggle right in the core designer at the Omniscript or Flexcard level. If it’s off (the default for safe mode), you still get the essential “safe changes” without any risk.

Meeting global standards

Your apps are now compliant out of the box, so you can build with confidence for customers worldwide. The enhancements align with the industry’s WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 guidelines.

Examples of key component enhancements

Let’s look at some examples of the key enhancements that deliver a better experience for our diverse users.

Better form interaction

Forms are often the core of an application, and we’ve made major improvements to how users interact with them.

  • Disabling fields is clearer: Input components such as Currency, Email, Number, Text, and TextArea now include a dedicated Disabled attribute in the designer. Developers can easily set fields as non-interactable at runtime, providing a predictable experience where the field can’t receive focus via keyboard or mouse.
  • Enabling faster form completion: The designer for several components, including Currency, Email, Number, Select, Text, and Textarea, now has an Autocomplete input field. It helps users, particularly those who struggle with manual typing or have cognitive needs, by enabling auto-fill functionality.
  • Less disruptive error handling: Error messaging is refined to be less interruptive. It now assigns role=”status” instead of role=”alert” to error messages. Screen reader users aren’t abruptly interrupted while interacting with the input field.

[ALT: Omniscript Designer page with autocomplete input field and disabled attribute.]

Clearer visual indicators

For users who rely on visual cues, especially those with low-vision, components now offer additional indicators beyond just color.

  • Visual confirmation of selection: Multi-select and Radio components (with image display format) show a clear check mark (✅) in the top right corner when selected. The selection isn’t relying solely on color, which is vital for meeting contrast requirements.
  • Consistent editing pattern: Edit Blocks now have an Edit icon (pencil) placed right next to the Delete button to give that familiar “edit here” feel. 
  • Defining icon text for screen readers: Designers can use a new svgAltText JSON attribute to provide a descriptive alternative text for SVG icons used in the Edit Block.

[ALT: Multiple options with selected option marked with a checkmark on top right corner.]

Improved keyboard and screen reader support

Many changes were made to the platform’s underlying structure to ensure smooth navigation without a mouse.

  • Clearer link semantics for actions: In both Flexcards and Omniscripts, the components configured for navigation actions now correctly use role=”link” and not role=”button”. When opened in a new window or tab, the screen reader announces “opens in a new window”, ensuring users are prepared for the change in context.
  • State change announcement: When a toggle is switched on or off, its updated state is announced in real time to screen reader users.
  • Contextual data table announcements: Data Tables row deletion buttons now have context-aware aria-label values. This means a screen reader reads the exact context users need to navigate easily, like “Delete {first cell value of each row} button”, instead of a generic “button”.

[ALT: Selected rows highlighted with a blue strip.]

Discover more Omnistudio enhancements

There are many more examples of the accessibility improvements on Omnistudio. It went through a massive transformation to provide the most inclusive and compliant experiences for all its users. Experience the difference. Try out the improved features today. Enable the enhanced accessibility toggle in your Omniscript and Flexcard designers to test these critical improvements and become more inclusive.

Resources

About the author

Dhairya Kedia is a Product Manager at Salesforce with over 5 years of industry experience across product management, product development, business analysis, and program management. Follow him on LinkedIn.

Payal Verma is a Content Marketing Analyst at Salesforce with over 4 years of professional experience in product, brand, and content marketing. She has worked across both B2B and B2C markets, developing and executing content strategies for a wide range of formats, including blogs, social media, scripts, e-books, guides, etc. Follow her on LinkedIn.