If achieving our goals only required information, we'd all be billionaires with six-pack abs. After all, the steps to wealth and fitness are just a search away. But information alone doesn't create change. You need action, support and sustained effort.
Now think of web accessibility.
An accessibility audit identifies barriers. If you're lucky, the auditor also suggests fixes. But then, they walk away. Again, if you're lucky, they'll circle back to verify you've fixed the issues.
Technically, the diagnosis is helpful. Practically, it's next to useless. Knowing a website fails accessibility standards doesn't magically make it accessible. Product teams need guidance, resources and accountability to implement working solutions. Otherwise, they risk introducing more bugs.
Audits also risk becoming checklists, encouraging the tick-box mentality. Accessibility requires ongoing commitment. You need to test with real users. You need to iterate. You need to embed inclusive design into your workflows. You need accessibility in the definition of done.
Without all that, audits just document failure without driving improvement.
Instead of static reports, product teams need partnerships. They need experts who help apply fixes, who train teams and foster long-term accessibility thinking.
Like health or wealth, you can't achieve accessibility through information alone. You build it through action.