Automated tooling catches contrast, missing labels and structural errors. A conformance audit catches what the standard covers. Between them sits the category neither reaches: interfaces that satisfy every requirement and still defeat the person using them.
That gap is only visible to someone who uses assistive technology as their ordinary way of working, at their ordinary speed.
What to put in the public brief
- The specific assistive technology and platform
- That it is a real-usage check, not a conformance audit
- The journey they will attempt, described as an outcome
- Roughly how long it should take
- That findings of "this technically works but is horrible" are exactly what you want
Keep the URL and any test credentials private.
What to put in the private instructions
Give a goal, never a route
"Buy the cheapest item in the sale and get to the confirmation." A route removes the navigation problem, which is usually the finding.
Ask for the point of highest friction, not a list
One place they nearly gave up is more actionable than twelve minor annoyances, and it is the one that costs you customers.
Ask them to work at normal speed
Not carefully. Careful use hides the problems, because careful use is not how anyone uses anything.
Ask what they would have done outside a paid task
The honest answer is often "left". Knowing where is the deliverable.
Proof worth requiring
Ask for
A screen recording with the assistive technology audio where the platform allows it, the exact software and version, and the friction point in their own words.
Do not ask for
WCAG success criterion references. That is audit vocabulary, you are not buying an audit, and requiring it filters your pool down to consultants rather than users.
When this task type is the wrong tool
If you need a conformance statement for procurement or to meet a regulatory obligation, commission a proper audit. This does not substitute and should not be represented as one.
If nothing has been fixed since the last automated scan, run the scan first. Paying an expert to find missing alt text is spending specialist attention on something a free tool reports in seconds.