In the heart of Omaha, a moment of warm connection unfolded, forever changing the perspective of a deaf customer. Renca Dunn, a deaf influencer was braving a chilly day when she paused outside a local coffee shop. To her astonishment, the cashier inside began communicating with her in American Sign Language (ASL) [...]
With the holidays around the corner, customer service sometimes changes for the worst. How does that bode for deaf and hard of hearing customers who are trying to survive the most credit-disrupting, nerve-wracking, and elbow-jostling season of the year? This holiday, are you prepared to provide deaf-friendly customer service? We already discussed [...]
After its first virtual conference in 2020, the National Association of the Deaf is back with another milestone: hosting its biennial #NAD2022 conference in Orlando, FL for the very first time. Long-time NAD members may remember New York, NY, Washington, D.C, Chicago, IL, and Cincinnati, OH as frequent host cities (prior to [...]
All businesses are hungry for the expertise that takes them to the next level. But what, exactly, is expertise? Acronyms like “SME” (Subject Matter Expert), “ninja,” and “rock star” have long been standard in job descriptions. Everyone always wants a rock star. But it’s not limited to an MBA, university prestige, or [...]
In 2012, Melissa “echo” Greenlee had an ambitious idea - to crowdsource all deaf consumer experiences on a public review platform. This month, we celebrate the 10-year mark of this entrepreneurial journey. The spark? An Indian restaurant hung up on her video relay call before she could even finish signing “naan”. The [...]
Good customer service is the defining factor of any good business – especially important is the first point of contact. As Deaf consumers, we frequent a variety of businesses daily such as retail establishments, grocery stores, restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and many more. If we experience bad customer service, chances are, all [...]
Twelve percent of the US population is twice as likely to leave positive reviews: Deaf and hard of hearing customers. It’s a stark contrast to a recent Salesforce study: Consumers (in the general population) are twice as likely to share bad customer service experiences than good ones. Last month, deaffriendly.com - a [...]
It has been over one year since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged and resulted in massive, monumental changes to the way we live our lives. From state-mandated closures to disrupted supply lines, to virtual learning/remote working, and wearing masks in public, no one has been immune to the effects of this pandemic. The [...]
Feeling accessibility-stuck? Don’t have time for a full-blown American Sign Language course, but want to better serve deaf and hard of hearing people? Skill up on seamless communication with deaf and hard of hearing customers, in just one hour or less. Launching February 1st, deaffriendly Consulting’s on-line course, “Deaf-Friendly BASICS” is a [...]