The Accessibility Advantage

The Blind Blogger Maxwell Ivey
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Advocating for more accessibility for and inclusion of people with disabilities through communication & collaboration instead of compliance & shame.

  1. 19h ago

    Seeing Accessibility As An Investment Rather Than An Expense With Scott Wintheiser

    Hello again, everybody. I hope this finds you well, wherever in the world you happen to be listening or reading from. On this episode of The Accessibility Advantage, I sat down with Scott Wintheiser, CEO and Founding Partner of Lightburn, a Milwaukee-based digital CX agency he co-founded in 1998. Scott has more than 28 years in digital and e-commerce, has founded and sold multiple businesses along the way, and even had a documentary screened at Sundance. These days, Lightburn's team of 20-plus works mostly with mid-size manufacturers, helping them handle everything from web design and development to CMS strategy and e-commerce. I went into this conversation with one question on my mind: is accessibility an investment or an expense? I don't like to guess where my guests will land before we talk, but given Scott's background building the internet since before most of today's tools existed, I figured he'd have a strong answer either way. On With The Show Building the tools before there were words for them Scott and his brother started Lightburn in 1998, back when the internet itself was still rudimentary and accessibility tools, both on computers and online, were nowhere close to where they are now. Because content management systems and e-commerce platforms either didn't exist yet or cost more than a small client could ever afford, Scott's team just built their own, custom to each client, long before "CMS" was a household term. That resonated with me. I built my first website back in 2007 with no money for a web master and none of the site-building tools we lean on today, so I spent hours chasing the cursor around blank pages teaching myself HTML. My color choices were so bad in those early days that, as I told Scott, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder could have argued over them. Scott's team was solving the same kind of problem from the builder's side: how do you serve people well when the tools to do it simply aren't there yet? Accessibility isn't an investment or an expense — it's just part of the job When I asked Scott the investment-versus-expense question directly, his answer surprised me a little. He said he doesn't really see it as either one. At Lightburn, accessibility has been baked into their process for at least 15 years, to the point where it's simply a non-negotiable part of building a website, not a line item anyone debates. He put it plainly: building a new site to be accessible doesn't really add anything to the process anymore. It might mean a few extra hours of testing, much of which can now be automated, but that's it. Retrofitting an old site is a different story and can be a real investment. But for anything built from scratch today, skipping accessibility takes more effort than including it, because the tools you're already using are constantly flagging issues like poor color contrast or unreadable font sizes along the way. AI, "zero-click" search, and why accessible content matters more than ever This is the part of the conversation I keep thinking about. Scott explained that as search shifts toward AI overviews, where an AI engine hands the user a single answer instead of a list of links to choose from, businesses now have two audiences for their websites: human beings and AI engines. If your content isn't visible to the AI, you're not part of the conversation at all. To become visible to AI systems, a business needs a large amount of well-organized, clearly structured content on its site. And here's the part that matters for our community: that same well-structured, machine-parsable content is also accessibility-friendly content. It's not why most businesses are rushing to build it out, Scott said, but it's a genuine side benefit. The push toward AI visibility and the push toward digital accessibility are, in large part, the same push. He also walked me through what's called "zero-click" search: increasingly, people take an AI's recommendation, say, the best running shoe for a given condition, without ever visiting the manufacturer's website. For a business to earn that recommendation, it has to give the AI enough accurate, well-structured information to work with. Leave gaps, and the AI will fill them in on its own, sometimes in ways that don't serve your brand at all. What a chatbot told me about the limits of AI-driven accessibility testing I shared a moment from a conversation I'd had with Claude while working on a page for my own site. After going back and forth about accessibility, it told me it could tell me whether a page met WCAG or other published criteria, but that it couldn't get me from technical compliance to genuine user experience the way someone who actually lives with the technology every day could. Scott agreed that's likely to remain true, at least for a while, which we both found reassuring for different reasons. For him, it means the tools his team uses will keep getting better at catching what a publisher overlooks. For me, it means people like me still have a seat at the table. Screen readers, browsers, and why "better" isn't always "used" We got into the technical weeds for a bit, comparing notes on Mac versus Windows screen readers. I explained why I've stuck with Apple's built-in VoiceOver over the years: because it's embedded in the operating system, it updates automatically alongside the OS and native apps. Windows screen readers like JAWS and NVDA are third-party tools that have to catch up to Microsoft's changes, and their keyboard commands take more fingers moving in more directions than I'd like. I admitted that even though I know Chrome is technically the more capable browser, I can't make myself switch from Safari, because the muscle memory of years of commands is hard to give up, even when it's not the most efficient option. It's a good reminder that "better" tech and "usable" tech aren't always the same thing, especially for people who've built years of habit around what already works. Why I think we need to widen who counts as "the audience" This part is more me thinking out loud than anything Scott said, but it's something this conversation kept circling back to. We in the disability community tend to talk about ourselves as one group, which pushes businesses toward building for a single imagined "disabled user" instead of individuals with very different needs. There are also two huge groups who need the same accommodations but will rarely, if ever, claim the label: people with invisible disabilities who stay quiet out of fear of being stigmatized at work or at home, and people who are aging and will say "my hearing's going" or "I'm just getting older" long before they'll say "I'm disabled." If someone doesn't identify as disabled, no survey counts them, even though their needs on a website are identical to mine. The honest truth is that most business owners I talk to already know someone in one of these groups; they just haven't connected that person to the work we're asking them to do. More exposure, in both directions, is how that gap closes. Treating accessibility as a process, not a finish line One of the most useful things Scott shared was how Lightburn handles existing sites that feel overwhelmed by the idea of "doing accessibility." Instead of treating it as a separate project, they fold accessibility fixes into a quarterly continual-improvement process alongside every other site update. Missing alt tags, poor color contrast, whatever's flagged, it just becomes part of the next round of improvements, not a scary standalone expense. That lines up with something I say often on this show: accessibility is a journey, not a destination. When we frame it as a finish line to cross in a compressed window of time, we scare off the very people we're trying to bring along. Scott's team applies that same "make it one percent better" mindset to everything they build, not just accessibility, and it shows in how unremarkable the whole thing has become for them. About Scott Scott Wintheiser is CEO and Founding Partner of Lightburn, a Milwaukee-based digital CX agency he co-founded in 1998. With more than 28 years of experience in digital and e-commerce, he has founded and sold multiple businesses and even had a documentary screened at Sundance. Lightburn's team of 20-plus specializes in helping mid-size organizations, especially manufacturers, with web design, development, CMS strategy, digital marketing, and e-commerce. Scott's approach is straightforward: find the right-size solution for the job, not the most expensive one. Connect with Scott Lightburn website Scott on LinkedIn Keep the Conversation Going Scott's take reframes something a lot of us in the accessibility world have been saying for years, and gives it new urgency: the businesses that treat accessibility as a bare-minimum part of building anything online, not a bolt-on, are the ones quietly winning in a world where AI is becoming a second audience for every website. Here's what I'd ask of you: Watch or listen to the full episode and hear Scott lay out the AI-visibility case in his own words. Visit lightburn.co if you're a business owner wondering whether your site's accessibility gaps are also AI-visibility gaps. Look at your own website the way Scott suggested: when's the last time you actually used your own shopping cart, search, or checkout process from start to finish? Tell us what you learned. Drop a comment or email me at maxwell@theaccessibilityadvantage.com. If this episode changed how you think about accessibility and AI, I want to hear it. And if you're building or leading something and you're not sure where accessibility fits into it, that's exactly what I do at The Accessibility Advantage. Reach out and let's figure it out together. What's your excuse?

  2. Aug 9

    Authentic Accessibility & Inclusion: My Conversation with Daniel Hodges

    Hello again, I hope you are having a peaceful enjoyable weekend wherever you may live. For the first time in a while I'm writing to share a new episode of my podcast The Accessibility Advantage After over two months of physical therapy to treat a bumm shoulder, I'm feeling up to sharing some of the great conversations I've been having. Because you know that even when I don't feel up to writing or blogging I'm not going to stop talking, singing, or telling stories. On this episode, I sat down with Daniel Hodges, JD, MHA — a lawyer, disability advocate, and the President and Co-Founder of Peaces of Me Foundation. Daniel started the nonprofit while he was still in law school, and it's become one of the most thoughtful voices I've come across on what "authentic" accessibility and inclusion actually look like in practice. On With The Show A childhood defined by low expectations, not by vision loss Daniel was born with retinitis pigmentosa, leaving him with no usable vision in one eye and very limited vision in the other. He also lives with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder that wasn't diagnosed until his 30s. But as Daniel told it, the hardest part of his early life wasn't the physical reality of his conditions — it was the social and systemic response to them. He grew up without access to Braille, a white cane, or assistive technology. Professionals told his family that his future was limited to menial work, with no college, no career, no marriage, and no kids on the table. The lack of support was so severe that he missed grades seven through eleven entirely, only reaching a school for the blind — where he finally learned Braille and cane travel — in what should have been his senior year of high school. That story reframes a point I care about deeply on this show: so much of what gets labeled "the struggle" of disability isn't inherent to the disability itself. It's the product of missing resources, missing inclusion, and missing opportunity. Redefining what "inspirational" means We spent a good chunk of the conversation on a tension a lot of us in the disability community feel: the discomfort around being called "inspirational." Daniel's take stuck with me — inspiration without action is just entertainment. If someone's story moves you but never changes what you do, it hasn't really done its job. We talked about people like Katie Ledecky, who disclosed her own diagnosis of POTS (a condition also connected to Ehlers-Danlos), and the backlash she got from some corners of the disability community for daring to describe a struggle "on par" with others. Daniel's view: that reaction misses the point entirely. Success stories from people with disabilities — famous or not — show what's possible with the right support, not that anyone's hardship is disqualified from being real. Rejected by law school after law school: the power of wanting something badly enough Daniel's path to becoming a lawyer wasn't a straight line, either. He was turned down by Washington University in St. Louis and Case Western, and waitlisted at Mizzou, before landing at the University of Baltimore. When the opportunity came together, he flew out, scoped out the area, and — having spent less than a week in Maryland in his entire life — found an apartment online, packed a friend's car, and moved to start his new life there. Along the way, he also fought for custody of his daughter during her battle with pediatric cancer, after a hospital doubted that a blind parent could raise a child. That thread connected directly to my own story of building the Midway Marketplace and, eventually, my brand as The Blind Blogger after the family carnival business closed. Neither of us got where we are by wanting things in a passive, "it'd be nice" kind of way. We both talked about the difference between wanting something enough to sacrifice comfort for it, and wanting it in theory. Why Peaces of Me exists Daniel co-founded Peaces of Me in the summer of 2019 with his cousin Christie, after conversations about the gaps both of them had experienced — his own fight for medical advocacy and custody, and her family's struggle to find resources after her daughter was born with a limb difference. They realized the problem wasn't unique to one diagnosis or one disability; it was systemic. Peaces of Me operates on three pillars: Community education that goes beyond simple awareness and actually teaches people something. Professional training that helps people apply that knowledge within their own sphere of influence. Connections to relevant resources so people know where to go to put what they've learned into practice. Daniel described it as a flywheel: the more people who go through that journey, the more their knowledge and perspective feed back into the community, raising the baseline of awareness for everyone else. Rather than reinventing the wheel, Peaces of Me is building a peer-to-peer library that connects people to resources that often already exist but are hard to find — starting with fact sheets and guidance authored by people with direct lived experience of a given condition. Accessibility doesn't limit creativity — it can improve it One of my favorite parts of the conversation was Daniel's reference to David Epstein's writing on how thoughtful constraints can unleash more creativity, not less — and how that idea applies directly to universal design. When choices are unlimited, people tend to default to what's comfortable and familiar. Meaningful constraints, like accessibility requirements, actually force more intentional, creative problem-solving. We compared it to physical architecture: nobody thinks twice anymore about a new building needing an elevator, and that requirement hasn't stopped architects from designing bold, ambitious spaces. The same logic applies to digital accessibility — it's not a straitjacket on developers, it's a design constraint that, done well, produces better experiences for everyone. Authentic inclusion means the real possibility of failure Perhaps the most powerful idea Daniel shared: inclusion is only authentic when there's a genuine possibility of failure, not just success. If someone succeeds only because standards were quietly lowered for them, that "success" comes with an asterisk — one that can haunt both the person it was meant to help and the community around them. Real inclusion means removing bias and barriers so people can compete on equal footing, whatever the outcome. That idea ties directly into something Daniel and I have both lived with: imposter syndrome, and the nagging question of whether praise for our work is genuine or just "generous, considering." His answer was clarifying — if you can trust that the person evaluating you was being fair, you can actually own your success. If you can't trust that, the doubt never fully goes away. Daniel's story — missing years of school, getting a GED, and going on to earn a JD — is exactly the kind of thing he wants people to draw the right lesson from: not "isn't that amazing," but "if I can do this, so can you." About Daniel Professional photo with black cowboy hat taken by Lisa. Daniel Hodges is a JD and MHA and a passionate advocate for authentic accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities. He is the President and Co-Founder of Peaces of Me Foundation (spelled P-E-A-C-E-S), which he launched while still in law school. Peaces of Me's mission is to transform society through community education, innovative professional training, and reconnection to relevant resources that help break the stigma surrounding disabilities of all kinds. Connect with Daniel Peaces of Me Foundation website Facebook Instagram X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube Keep the Conversation Going This episode is a good reminder that authentic inclusion takes more than good intentions — it takes real conversations, real resources, and real people willing to share what worked and what didn't. So here's what I'd ask of you: Watch or listen to the full episode and hear Daniel tell these stories in his own words. Visit piecesofme.org and look through the resources, or book that free 30-minute conversation with Daniel if you're a business or organization leader wondering where to start. Follow Peaces of Me on social media and share this post with someone who's navigating a disability, raising a child with one, or trying to make their workplace more inclusive. Tell us what you learned. Drop a comment, send Daniel a message through his site, or email me at maxwell@theaccessibilityadvantage.com. As Daniel and I talked about on the show, none of us hear often enough that our work made a difference — so if this episode did, say so. And if you're building or leading something — a business, a nonprofit, a classroom, a team — and you're not sure where accessibility fits into it, that's exactly what I do at The Accessibility Advantage. Reach out and let's figure it out together. What's your excuse?

  3. Feb 9

    Melih Oztalay Accessibility Is Smart Marketing

    Hello again, I hope your week is getting off to a great start. I know mine is because I'm blessed to be speaking with Melih Oztalay owner of Smart Finds Marketing on the latest episode of my podcast The Accessibility Advantage. He shared some of his journey as a business owner and marketing expert. He talked about building accessibility into the user experience. He touched on his expectations for the impact of the EAA, European Accessibility Act, on future US adoption of accessibility best practices. He made a passionate case for word press as an accessible platform with tools to create accessible content and for which lots of developers are familiar with. We talked a little about compound accessibility and how business owners can be assured the tools they are using are helping them create user friendly content that is also accessible. He finished with some great advice to business owners about building and maintaining their websites. If you want to hire me to improve accessibility in your organization, or if you want to come on the show and share your accessibility experience; then Please complete this short form. Afterwards, you will receive a link to book a short chat with me. On With The Show Recommended Companies My hosting is provided by Blubrry. They provide free hosting for me and a few other hosts who have a disability. I book most of my guests through Podmatch where I am their advisor for accessibility. And I love Less Annoying CRM for their commitment to accessibility that has lead to a cRM that people actually want to use. About Melih Today, my work sits at the intersection of AI, SEO, conversion optimization, and accessibility. I help companies build marketing systems that are resilient, human-centered, and ready for how people—and machines—actually consume information. My focus isn’t chasing trends; it’s helping businesses adapt intelligently without losing sight of the people they serve. My path into marketing wasn’t linear—and that’s probably what shaped how I think about it today. I’ve been in business and marketing for nearly four decades. Over that time, I’ve seen multiple waves of “the next big thing” come and go: early web, search engines, social media, mobile, automation—and now AI. Each wave created opportunity, but also confusion, shortcuts, and a lot of broken systems. What stayed consistent was this: businesses that focused on clarity, structure, and people—not just tools—were the ones that lasted. Accessibility entered the picture for me not as a compliance checkbox, but as a practical business realization. I kept seeing websites that technically worked but failed real humans—people with vision challenges, cognitive overload, motor limitations, or simply different ways of processing information. When we fixed those issues, something interesting happened: Conversion improved, engagement improved, SEO improved. The business performed better. That’s when it clicked that accessibility isn’t a niche concern—it’s foundational. It’s about designing digital experiences that work for more people, more consistently. In short, accessibility is in every business owner's best interest. Connect With Melih Website: https://smartfindsmarketing.com Linked In: www.linkedin.com/company/smartfinds-marketing Facebook: www.facebook.com/smartfinds Instagram: www.instagram.com/SmartFindsmarketing Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/smartfinds Youtube: www.youtube.com/@MelihOztalay Sharing Is Caring When I bring someone on my podcast, it is because I want to help them share their knowledge and experience with more people. But, I can't do that without your help. As they say it doesn't matter how compelling the content is if no one ever hears it. So, I'm hoping you will share this post or the links in it with your friends, family members, and online communities. Besides sharing the link Me or Melih would really love a thoughtful comment. And as a host it really makes my day when someone takes the time to rate and review the show. I want to thank you for taking the time to watch or listen. I know you have lots of demands on your time. And you have precious few spare moments to spend. I really appreciate your spending them on me and my show. Hope you will join me again next time. Until then please take care out there, Maxwell

  4. Feb 6

    Sarah Johnson Speaks About How Content First Design And Accessibility Go Hand In Hand

    Hello again, I hope your week has been going well. Today, I'm writing to share the latest interview from my podcast The Accessibility Advantage. This time I am blessed to speak with Sarah Johnson Founder and director of Content First Design. We had a great conversation about how accessibility and great user experience come together in content first design. She spoke of how her first exposure to the idea of content first design while trying to design an engaging interactive course on marketing. She spoke about the importance of strong consistent structure for both accessibility and good content design. She spoke to the importance of user research in content design, and confirmed my understanding that we can influence SEO, search engine optimization, and AIO, Artificial Intelligencenteligence optimization, through accessible content. She shared the methods that have helped her collect truly complete user information for past clients to show the importance of trust, clear instructions, listening to user concerns, using consistent language, and confirming their success. Then she did a unique beautiful thing. She asked me about some of my accessibility issues. And I was surprised to find I could teach her a couple things she didn't know about the challenges of screen reader users. She finished by talking about how good content is engaging content that over time can help convert attention into interest and then into income. On With The Show About Sarah About Sarah Sarah is a content design leader and teacher with over 20 years of experience, Sarah isn’t just a content designer—she’s one of the original architects of content-first thinking. Sarah transforms how teams think about content. Not as filler, but as infrastructure. She’s the author of Content-First Design, the playbook behind her approach to content-first design. Her forthcoming book, Meaning at Scale, will release later in 2026. She is the founder and director of Content First Design which offers content services built on actionable, data-driven insights. Her company presents workshops designed to enhance practical skills in areas such as content design, AI integration, and more. Connect With Sarah Website: www.contentfirstdesign.com Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/sajwriter Instagram: www.instagram.com/contentfirstdesign Youtube: www.youtube.com/@Content-firstDesign Recommended Companies My hosting is provided by Blubrry. They provide free hosting for me and a few other hosts who have a disability. I book most of my guests through Podmatch where I am their advisor for accessibility. And I love Less Annoying CRM for their commitment to accessibility that has lead to a cRM that people actually want to use. Sharing Is Caring I hope you will help me show my appreciation for Sarah by sharing this post and encouraging your friends, family members, and community to watch or listen to the episode. Please consider sharing the direct links to the podcast, her website, and her social media accounts. And we would both love it if you shared your opinions in the form of a blog comment or a rating & review on your favorite podcast player. If you want to work with me, or if you want to be a guest on the show; then please complete this short form. Thanks for joining us. I hope you will be with me again next time. Until then, take care out there, Maxwell

  5. 11/13/2025

    Interflo Founder Michael Leung Shares About His ground-Breaking Hearing Devices

    Hello again, I hope you and the people you care about are doing well. This time on The Accessibility Advantage I'm bringing you a conversation with Michael Leung who is the founder of Inner Flo He shared about having a detached retina early in life and almost losing vision on one side. He talked about how his rehab exposed him to many older people which started him thinking about the challenges they live with. He recently found out that his vision has decreased and how working on this project is part of his long-term plan. He mentioned how a business background and having family members in the manufacturing arena helped him get started once his brain storming resulted in his first product. He discussed the benefits of his product which include low entry price, ease of use, lack of need for replacement batteries, and the fact that they are bone conduction. This means they go outside the ear instead of inside. It also means people don’t have the same problems with hygiene or adjusting them to fit their individual ear structure. We also talked about how the bone conduction design could help the visually impaired improve the auditory cues in their environment. Which could mae them safer when traveling. I was happy to hear him say that these headphones are not going to help everyone. He shared that there are probably about 15 percent of people who try them who will not be helped by them. He spent the rest of our time talking about the differences between the two models. And we finished by agreeing that his device is not a toy or a medical grade device. And it won’t help people who are deaf or have a true hearing disability. Due to legal concerns, I am not personally endorsing or recommending this product. Simply sharing it with you as a potential alternative. If you or a family member is in need of help with hearing loss, then I advise you to do your research and make the best decision that fits your hearing condition. On With The Show Support My Supporters The fine folks at Blubbry have been a long-time supporter of me and both my podcasts. They also do what they can to encourage and support others who have a disability or whose shows work to improve the lives of the differently abled. If you are considering starting a podcast, or you are wanting to switch hosting providers; then you should definitely give them a look. About Michael Michael Leung, founder of The Flo Group in Calgary is transforming the hearing experience with a revolutionary, affordable alternative to traditional hearing aids. He explains our open-ear bone conduction technology, paired with a built-in amplifier, helps people hear clearly—without the stigma or high cost. It also benefits the blind community by improving spatial awareness and safety. My journey here wasn’t easy. I lost my mother to cancer at 12, and her death shattered my world. She was my best friend, and her passing left a deep void. Without her, I struggled—falling in with the wrong crowd, battling anger, addiction, and depression through my 20s and 30s. Despite the setbacks, I pushed forward—working in hospitality, launching an investment firm, and eventually rebuilding after losing nearly everything. My turning point came when someone I loved reminded me that success is about purpose, not profit. That led to the birth of The Flo Group. Now, I’m focused on helping people—especially seniors, those with disabilities, and low-income families—access hearing solutions that truly improve quality of life. We’re breaking barriers, offering choice, and giving hope to underserved communities. This is only the beginning—but it’s the path I was always meant to take. Connect With Michael Website: www.theinnerflo.com Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/michael-leung-462547298 Instagram: www.instagram.com/theflogroup TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@theflogroup Youtube: www.youtube.com/@theflogroup I appreciate your taking the time to watch or listen to my conversations. If you have learned something from them, or if you have simply been entertained; then please share them with your friends, family members, and online communities. If you feel moved to leave a comment, rating, or review; that would be even better. As most of us hosts don't hear from our audiences often enough. I look forward to you joining me next time. Until then take care out there, max

  6. 10/04/2025

    Disability A Market Too Big To Ignore

    Hello again, I hope you have had a good week so far. I'm writing to share the latest episode of The Accessibility Advantage. In this episode I discuss the issue of just how powerful the disability community may be as a market for the sale of goods and services. I share many of the same thoughts that I share whenever I give talks on the subject of improving accessibility. First, I talk about just how large the community may be. Including people who don't currently identify as having a disability. Then, I address the value of our loyalty as consuemrs of products, services, and content. Third, I explain how vocal we can be in advocating for brands willing to make the effort to become more inclusive. I feel that showing people why they should care about accessibility in a way that goes beyond compliance is a first step. I didn't speak to search engine benefits or reaching the AI bots through accessibility this time. And I didn't cover the many ways improving accessibility will lead to improved user experiences for everyone including those who don't have a disability. On With The Show I' hope that as you learn just how much your business can benefit from improving accessibility that you will want to hire me to help you become more inclusive. Part of working with me can include content creation about your investment such as a future appearance on my podcast to talk about your business. Please send me an email, or book a short chat if you are interested. Thanks for your time. I hope you will join me on the next episode. Take care out there, Max

  7. 09/26/2025

    Overlays vs Automation: What’s the Difference, featuring Mike Paciello

    Hello again! I hope you've all had a great week. I recently had a conversation that I think is going to improve the discussion we have around digital accessibility. This episode is sponsored by AudioEye and I'm so excited to have had the chance to speak with Mike Paciello, AudioEye's Chief Accessibility Officer. First, we covered a small part of Mike's more than 40 year career in the field of accessibility. I think we could have filled an hour with experiences from the multiple companies he's worked with and the initiatives he has been a part of. Next, we got into one of the most important issues: overlays vs. automation. Mike did a great job of explaining the differences between the two and clearly explained how overlays interfere with existing users' adaptive technology. Then we talked about AudioEye — how the platform is vastly different from an overlay. He explained AudioEye's three-pronged approach to accessibility. He first explained how AudioEye's automation catches 32 WCAG violations, which can automatically be fixed by the platform. He then explained that AudioEye offers Expert Audits where experts and individuals with disabilities dive deeper into content to find and fix accessibility issues. I'm familiar with these Expert Audits as I have participated in a few of them myself. I shared some of that experience during our conversation. Around the 16-minute Mark, Mike said something I loved about the relationship between accessibility and usability and vice versa. I'm a big believer in emphasizing how improving accessibility leads to improved user experiences. Mike discussed how through continued automation, education, and collaboration that we will get to a point where accessibility is treated just like any other aspect of localization. I was so impressed with this ready answer. I look forward to hearing what you learn from our conversation! Show Notes While this episode was not recorded live, it has not been edited. Just like episodes from the golden age of Tv it has several hiccups in it. Streamyard still doesn't offer an easy way to know when I am live, so you can hear Mike telling me we are recording. Sadly, I was so nervous about speaking with Mike that I forgot to sing my intro. And I never did get back to doing our audio descriptions. On With The Show On Youtube:

  8. 09/10/2025

    Alex Sanfilippo Being Customer Focused Leads To Accessibility On Podmatch

    Hello again, I hope your week has been going well so far. I'm so excited to get to speak with my friend, client, and mentor Alex Sanfilippo on the latest episode of my podcast The Accessibility Advantage. Alex is the founder of Podmatch.com A site designed to match podcast hosts with their ideal guests using artificial inteligence. But the real mission of Podmatch is to help podcast hosts & guests reach more listeners, so we can make more money, and change more lives. I met Alex for the first time when we both spoke at the Pecha Kucha track at Podfest Expo in 2019. And that friendship lead to his listening to me about accessibility and eventually hiring me to be the accessibility advisor for Podmatch. What We Discussed Alex first shared about his early entrepreneurial experiences. Then he openly discussed the effect that the mortgage collapse of 2008 had on him. He recounted working menial jobs in corporate before working his way up to the C Suite level at a very early age. He covered the difficult decision to leave corporate to focus on a business of his own again. When I asked him where the customer centric approach came from, he told a story about personal frustrations with a major online business. And how he never wanted to cause that kind of heartbreak for anyone else. He also hopes that other tech founders will see how they are doing things at Podmatch and decide that putting people over numbers is the key to long-term success. He shared the core values of his company, and said that if maintaining those values lead to smaller profits; that would be perfectly fine with him. I then asked him to talk about how maintaining the health of his platform lead to their regularly removing people who don't use the platform. At about the 19 minute mark he tells the story about how being customer centric lead to focusing on accessibility. And for the first time I heard about how much pushback Alex received from other people in the software industry about his public decision to embrace accessibility. He shared their process openly, and we talked a bit about how they are continuing to work to improve accessibility as they continue to grow the platform. About 25 minutes in he starts speaking about the benefits of improving accessibility. Some of which were new to me. At About 29 minutes he introduces his full advisory board which he leans on to continue to improve Podmatch. And at 36 minutes he addresses why people should care about accessibility. Then at about 41 minutes. I asked him why more companies doing the work of improving accessibility don't promote their efforts more openly or more often. Show Notes Still having accessibility issues with Streamyard, so have encouraged my guests to have fun with telling me we are live. Alex decided to play a few chords on his ukulele. Then, I sang a bit of my theme song The Accessibility Advantage. Then we had a great conversation. On With The Show Support Our Sponsor Thanks to Blubrry.com For continuing to support my podcasts with free professional hosting. About Alex I would usually copy my guest's bio to this section. However, Alex would tell me to do less so I can accomplish more. So, I'm just going to give you the link to his About page. Connect With Alex Alex's Website: www.alexsanfilippo.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/AlexJSanfilippo X: www.x.com/alexsanfilippo8 Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/AlexSanfilippoPM Instagram: www.instagram.com/alexsanfilippo7 Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/alexsanfilippo Threads: www.threads.com/@alexsanfilippo7 Reddit: www.reddit.com/user/Alexsanfilippo/

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About

Advocating for more accessibility for and inclusion of people with disabilities through communication & collaboration instead of compliance & shame.

Information

  • Creator
    The Blind Blogger Maxwell Ivey
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Maxwell Ivey
  • Show Website
    The Accessibility Advantage