O2.co.uk

Background

O2 UK has an accessibility policy that requires all online content to meet the WAI WCAG 1.0 level Double-A and three checkpoints in Triple-A guidelines. This applies to development both in-house and by all 3rd-party agencies. O2 has a preferred agency roster and numerous applications builders and content providers who provide them with a large volume of content and applications for online publication.

Segala’s Involvement

Segala has an exclusive contract with O2 UK (www.o2.co.uk) for the provision of ongoing accessibility testing and certification services for Web accessibility across all Web based projects.

O2’s entire agency roster, and all other 3rd-party development partners, are mandated to have their work audited by Segala before they are permitted to publish new online content such as microsites, landing pages and pages refreshes. Agencies audited by Segala on behalf of O2 include Agency Republic, Rufus Leonard, Corporate Edge, DNA, Suburb Design, AIS and more.

Segala provides support, documentation and tools to assist agencies to help them design and build accessible sites in a cost effective manner. Under the scheme, new online collateral is audited and certified against the WAI guidelines and each Web page is stamped with a seal of approval (Trustmark) to visually demonstrate that compliance with O2’s required levels of conformance to the Web Accessibility Initiative guidelines has been met.

The Benefits

Segala are key contributors to the whole online experience for O2.co.uk. They have worked with O2 right from the start; helping us define the required accessibility levels on the site, consulting on the designs and code throughout, and awarding the Segala-Certified Certificate and Trustmark to the completed site.

They worked very closely with our developers to ensure that the whole usability side of the site was guided by our accessibility requirements, and the Trustmark clearly shows that we take our responsibility to provide an accessible site seriously.

Segala also currently certify all new Web builds within O2 and have worked very well with one of our agencies in particular, Agency Republic, to develop some fantastic accessible flash campaign microsites.

– Dermot O’Mahony, Head of Production

• O2 relies on Segala to manage their ongoing accessibility requirements
• All online continues to be accessible without the need for O2 toeducate or manage development agencies
• Segala helps agencies to better understand the WAI Guidelines ongoing
• Segala provides ongoing technical support and training to O2’s agencies
• The delivery process for publishing new content has been accelerated dramatically
• O2 benefits from positive PR & Marketing with its key staff being invited to deliver keynote Segala provides tools and documentation to help agencies deliver accessible content
• Segala provides unlimited support from design to delivery
• Agencies have direct access to Segala’s accessibility experts
• O2.co.uk provides access to the broadest possible audience
• The site is continuously being optimised for search engine ranking
• Demonstrates O2’s commitment to Accessibility
• O2’s customers can see that it cares about accessibility
• O2 will immediately benefit from Segala’s involvement with the W3C WAI and the introduction of the WCAG 2.0 accessibility guidelines

O2 has now topped a Customer Respect Group survey on how the UK’s leading telecommunications companies treat their online site users.

The survey ranked www.o2.co.uk as “Excellent”, which places it in the top 5% of all Web sites worldwide, making O2 the first UK telco company to achieve such a rating.

The survey assigned a Customer Respect Index (or CRI) rating for each company, and O2’s top-scoring 7.4 was well above the industry’s average of 5.8. A rating of 7 or more is needed in order to be classified “Excellent”. Matthias Bohler of the Customer Respect Group acknowledged that telecom operators are increasingly competing for each other’s customers rather than addressing new market segments and congratulated O2, commenting that “customers increasingly make assumptions on a company and its brand based on the online experience”.

The results of the study clearly demonstrate that www.o2.co.uk offers a best in class online experience in the critical areas of Trust, Communication and Ease of Use, core drivers of the online experience when visiting a Web site. The Customer Respect Group is an international research and consulting firm that uses its Customer Respect Index (CRIT) methodology to help companies improve how they treat their customers online.