MarketMates Technologies Inc. is committed to making our platform accessible to people with disabilities. This statement describes our current accessibility status, the standards we target, known limitations, and how to reach us if you encounter a barrier.
Our Commitment
MarketMates is headquartered in Ontario and is subject to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) and its Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (IASR). We are committed to providing an accessible digital experience for all users, including those who use assistive technologies such as screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, voice control software, or magnification tools.
Accessibility is not a one-time project — it is an ongoing part of how we build MarketMates. We conduct accessibility reviews when we build new features and when we receive feedback about barriers. We welcome reports of any issue you encounter.
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AODA
We comply with the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (IASR) for Ontario-based organizations.
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WCAG 2.1 AA
We target Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 Level AA for all new and updated platform features.
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Ongoing
We audit existing features and remediate issues on a rolling basis, prioritising core user flows.
Standards & Compliance
AODA — Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation
The IASR requires organizations to meet accessibility standards across five areas. Our obligations under the Information and Communications Standard — which governs web content — are the most directly relevant to MarketMates as a digital platform.
The IASR requires organizations with 50 or more employees to meet WCAG 2.0 Level AA for web content. As a growth-stage company currently under that threshold, we are voluntarily targeting the more current WCAG 2.1 Level AA standard.
WCAG 2.1 Level AA
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 are organized under four principles:
Perceivable
Information and interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive — including text alternatives for non-text content, sufficient colour contrast, and content that can be presented in different ways.
Operable
Interface components and navigation must be operable — including full keyboard accessibility, no seizure-triggering content, and enough time for users to read and use content.
Understandable
Information and the operation of the interface must be understandable — including readable text, predictable page behaviour, and input assistance for forms.
Robust
Content must be robust enough to be interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including current and future assistive technologies.
Conformance status
MarketMates is partially conformant with WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard. We are actively working to close identified gaps (see Known Limitations below).
Accessibility Features
The following accessibility features are implemented across MarketMates:
Keyboard Navigation
- All interactive elements are reachable and operable by keyboard alone
- Tab order follows a logical, predictable sequence
- Visible focus indicators on all focusable elements
- No keyboard traps — you can always move focus away from a component
Screen Reader Support
- Semantic HTML elements used throughout (nav, main, header, footer, article, section)
- ARIA roles and labels on custom interactive widgets
- Form inputs have associated visible labels and error messages
- Status messages and dynamic content updates announced via ARIA live regions
Visual Design
- Text colour contrast meets WCAG AA ratio (4.5:1 for body text, 3:1 for large text)
- Information is never conveyed by colour alone
- Text can be resized up to 200% without loss of content or functionality
- UI does not include flashing or strobing content
Content & Forms
- Images that convey information have descriptive alt text; decorative images use empty alt=""
- Form validation errors identify the field in error and describe how to correct it
- No time limits are imposed on standard user flows
- Page language declared in the HTML lang attribute (lang="en-CA")
Known Limitations
We are transparent about areas where MarketMates does not yet fully meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. The following limitations are known and being actively remediated:
| Area | Limitation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Map previews | Mapbox static map images used in the operator onboarding wizard are rendered as images without descriptive alt text reflecting the specific address. | In remediation — Q3 2025 |
| Complex dashboard tables | Some sortable data tables in operator and vendor dashboards lack column header scope attributes and sort-state announcements for screen readers. | In remediation — Q3 2025 |
| File upload controls | The drag-and-drop logo upload in vendor onboarding has limited screen reader support; the fallback file input button remains fully accessible. | In remediation — Q4 2025 |
| Toast notifications | Some in-app toast notifications may not be reliably announced by all screen reader + browser combinations. | In remediation — Q3 2025 |
| Mobile touch targets | A small number of icon-only buttons on mobile viewports may fall below the WCAG 2.5.5 AAA target size of 44×44 px. All meet the AA minimum. | Monitoring |
If you encounter a barrier not listed here, please let us know using the contact details in the Accessibility Feedback section below.
Third-Party Services
MarketMates integrates third-party services that have their own accessibility commitments. We cannot control the accessibility of these external interfaces, but we have selected providers who take accessibility seriously.
Stripe
Payments
Stripe's payment elements are designed to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA and are tested with major screen readers. Stripe publishes its own accessibility conformance report.
Mapbox
Map previews
Mapbox GL JS supports keyboard navigation and screen reader descriptions for some map interactions. Static map images we render have the limitations noted above.
Resend
Transactional email
Our email templates use semantic HTML and sufficient text contrast. We do not use background images or decorative elements that would affect assistive technology in email clients.
Supabase / Auth UI
Authentication
MarketMates uses a custom-built authentication UI (not Supabase's default Auth UI), which we control fully and have built to our accessibility standards.
Accessibility Feedback
We want to hear from you if you encounter an accessibility barrier on MarketMates. Your feedback helps us prioritise remediation work.
How to report a barrier
- 1Email accessibility@marketmates.ca with the subject line "Accessibility Barrier."
- 2Describe the page or feature where you encountered the barrier and what you were trying to do.
- 3Tell us which assistive technology and browser you were using (e.g. NVDA + Firefox, VoiceOver + Safari on iOS).
- 4If possible, describe what you expected to happen and what actually happened.
Response time
We will acknowledge your report within 2 business days and provide an update on remediation within 10 business days.
Alternative formats
If you need any information from MarketMates in an accessible format (e.g. large print, plain text), email accessibility@marketmates.ca and we will respond within 5 business days.
Escalation
If you are not satisfied with our response to an accessibility concern, you may contact the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario by calling 1-866-515-2025 (toll-free) or TTY: 416-325-3408, or by visiting ontario.ca/page/accessibility-in-ontario.
Multi-Year Accessibility Plan
Under the AODA IASR, organizations with 50 or more employees are required to establish, implement, and maintain a multi-year accessibility plan. As a growth-stage company, we voluntarily publish this plan as a statement of intent and accountability.
2025 — Foundation
- Publish this accessibility statement and establish accessibility@marketmates.ca as a dedicated contact
- Audit all core user flows (signup, onboarding, dashboard navigation, application submission) against WCAG 2.1 AA
- Remediate all critical (Levels A and AA) findings from the core flow audit
- Add automated accessibility testing (axe-core) to the CI pipeline
- Address all Known Limitations listed above
2026 — Expansion
- Extend the WCAG 2.1 AA audit to cover all secondary dashboard pages and features
- Conduct usability testing with participants who use assistive technologies
- Document and publish a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) / ACR
- Review and improve email template accessibility across all transactional and marketing sequences
- Train all engineering and design staff on accessible development practices
2027 — Maturity
- Achieve full WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance across the platform
- Begin evaluation against WCAG 2.2 and relevant EN 301 549 criteria
- Establish a formal annual accessibility audit cycle with an independent reviewer
- Publish an updated multi-year plan for 2028–2030
Feedback on this plan
We welcome feedback on our multi-year accessibility plan. If you have suggestions for priorities or believe we have missed an important accessibility need, please email accessibility@marketmates.ca.
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