Over 48 million people in the U.S. live with hearing loss- and they are far from a monolithic group. We live in an era that celebrates sign language and Deaf Culture on a scale that previous generations never imagined. Deaf artists share the Super Bowl halftime spotlight. Deaf actor Troy Kotsur (CODA) [...]
Norman Rockwell’s iconic Thanksgiving dinner painting is a picture of joy and connection. But for most deaf people, dinner hurts. There’s even a name for it: Dinner Table Syndrome, a phenomenon in which deaf people are cut out of conversations while surrounded by hearing people they can’t understand during meals. In pop [...]
Make no mistake about it: Despite the pandemic's huge impact on the dining industry, deaf and hard of hearing Americans still crave good customer service - as much as they crave a good meal itself. According to the National Restaurant Association, 6 in 10 adults have changed their restaurant usage behaviors as [...]
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 [...]
The unknown can be scary. Imagine that you’re doing business as usual, when a customer emails you a request you’ve never gotten before: sign language interpreting services. It’s natural to feel overwhelmed, awkward, and downright unsure how to take the first step. After all, interacting with deaf and hard of hearing people [...]
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 [...]
If you operate a business that is open to the public in Washington State and has forward-facing TV’s in your establishment, you will want to be aware of a new state captioning law that went into effect last month (July 2021). Washington State is the first state to mandate closed captioning in public [...]
Signed into law on July 26, 1990, The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is considered the most significant law that protects Americans with disabilities from discrimination and ensures they have access to employment, transportation, health care, education, communications, and places of public accommodation. Access barriers experienced by deaf and hard-of-hearing people are [...]
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 [...]