Just two days ago, we received this email:
My employer, Big Company, just wrapped up a big accessibility audit, and while the product development team looks at remediation, I’m looking ahead to next year and how we start making audits and annual practice.
To that end, I’m reaching out to vendors to talk about scope, pricing, methodology, etc. to find someone we can partner with long-term, ideally.
If you’ve got time for a 30 minute introduction and chat, let me know!
This wasn’t the first email we’ve received like this.
Notice how the prospective client is looking for “someone we can partner with long-term.”
Also noticed how they had just wrapped up a “big accessibility audit.”
What this looks like to us is yet another client has seen what Big Accessibility Co. has to offer and has realized there is no magic behind the curtain. Just another fancy demo with a lot of promises and hype, but tepid value.
Who wants to buy into a $25,000 annual contract for one audit, a “suite of tools” (scan), a dedicated team of experts for “regression testing” and not much else?
As more and more clients become educated, enterprise accessibility accessibility companies are finding it difficult to keep them renewing pricey annual subscriptions. We know because this is now the third company that might potentially sign with Accessible.org in the month of September.
Even big companies have budgets and no one likes to spend $25,000 when they can get the same or better bundle with excellent quality audits and technical support for $11,000.
What Enterprise Accessibility Companies Actually Deliver
Most enterprise accessibility companies follow a predictable model. They bundle one audit with “regression testing”, scan-based monitoring, and an account rep and call it an accessibility program. This typically ends up at $20,000 – $25,000 annual package as a starting point.
Here’s an itemized breakdown of what this includes:
- A single WCAG audit. The audit is the real value and is what’s holding the bundle together.
- Automated scanning tool with various functions marketed as a suite of tools that provide for “continuous monitoring.” Scans flag roughly 13% of WCAG success criteria and require manual review. This will be presented as a complete dashboard with analytics and progress monitoring, but it’s really just scan results sliced and diced and presented in different ways.
- Access to a “dedicated team of experts” for technical support. In practice, this often means scheduled calls with account reps where technical experts can be brought in.
The disconnect in value becomes apparent when clients realize they’re paying enterprise prices for audit services that other companies can provide for half the price, combined with scan-based tools that provide limited practical value for achieving WCAG conformance.
Alternative
Accessible.org specializes in WCAG audits and remediation workflow, which just so happens to be what almost all of our clients need.
Our auditors use screen reader testing, keyboard testing, and other manual evaluation methodologies to identify all accessibility issues. The resulting audit reports provide complete roadmaps for WCAG conformance.
Our Accessibility Tracker platform transforms your audit spreadsheet into a comprehensive project management system. Upload your accessibility audit report and immediately prioritize issues by legal risk or user impact, assign tasks to team members, and track progress through validation.
Built-in Tracker AI provides instant code examples and plain-English explanations for each issue, eliminating expensive technical support calls. While enterprise platforms track incomplete scan data, Tracker monitors real WCAG conformance progress.
Your Choice
When enterprise accessibility companies lose clients to Accessible.org, it directly reflects a market that’s becoming more educated on what products and services actually align with their primary objective: WCAG conformance. Organizations learn that expensive, scan-based platforms are completely unnecessary and a waste of time (because they don’t track WCAG conformance).
And audits are great, they’re necessary, but do you really need to pay $20,000+ for your standard accessibility audit packaged together with extras you weren’t interested in in the first place?
If you’re evaluating alternative accessibility companies for when your contract is up, focus on audit quality and project management platforms that actually help your team reach WCAG conformance. Aligning with WCAG conformance should be the foundation for every contract. From there, you can build on the products and services that your organization wants.
Organizations switching to Accessible.org can get a comprehensive WCAG audit priced individually and not as a pre-determined bundle with a floor price.
Our Tracker platform can be purchased on a monthly basis with no subscription required. If your current accessibility engagement feels expensive for what you receive, schedule a 30-minute introduction to see how are services and audit-based project management deliver much better value.
