Case Study

Accessible Media Inc. : Canadian Not-For-Profit Cuts Costs and Keeps Accessibility Front and Centre

How an accessibility focused broadcaster replaced Mailchimp with a Canadian alternative that matched their values, and their budget.

Key Highlights

Organization: Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) – a Canadian not-for-profit content creation company producing media by and for the disability community
Channels: AMIPlus.ca streaming platform, AMI-tv (basic cable), and AMI-audio
Newsletter Subscribers: 2,000+
Primary Use Case: Bi-monthly newsletter distributed to subscribers across Canada, plus seasonal communications
Primary Contact: Greg, Communications Specialist (7 years with AMI)

The Challenge

AMI’s communications team relied on Mailchimp to stay connected with their growing subscriber base, but as the organization expanded, the platform became increasingly difficult to justify financially. For a not-for-profit with tight budget constraints, every dollar matters, and Mailchimp kept asking for more of them.

Escalating Tier-Based Pricing: As AMI’s subscriber list grew, Mailchimp automatically moved them into higher pricing tiers with pricing fluctuations.
USD Billing and Currency Risk: Paying in U.S. dollars added unpredictable costs on top of an already rising bill. With exchange rate fluctuations, AMI had no way to reliably forecast their monthly spend.
Accessibility Gaps: AMI serves blind and partially sighted subscribers who rely on screen readers, making alt text and accessibility features non-negotiable, not just a nice-to-have.

The Solution

AMI connected with Envoke and after a single product walkthrough with the founder, Greg was confident enough to bring the recommendation to his manager. The switch was straightforward, and Envoke has since become AMI’s platform for all newsletter communications.

Key capabilities that made Envoke the right fit:

Drag-and-drop editor that simplifies newsletter creation and duplication across sends
Template reuse — Greg builds each new newsletter by saving and renaming the previous one saving on production time
Built-in accessibility features including alt text support for screen reader compatibility
Canadian platform with competitive, stable pricing in CAD

The Results

50% Cost Reduction with Predictable, CAD Pricing
Switching to Envoke reduced AMI’s email platform costs by 50% and eliminated the currency risk that came with paying a U.S.-based vendor in USD. For a not-for-profit where every budget line is scrutinized, predictable Canadian-dollar pricing made a meaningful difference.

Ease of Use That Sticks
Greg has maintained his newsletter workflow independently for years without needing to overhaul his process. The drag-and-drop interface fit naturally with his existing habits.

“We switched from Mailchimp because the pricing just kept climbing, especially with the USD billing. Envoke gave us a much more predictable cost, and it’s honestly just so easy to use for what we need. The drag-and-drop editor makes building our newsletters really straightforward.”

Greg David
Communications Specialist
AMI

Accessibility Built In
With subscribers who rely on screen readers, AMI needed alt text functionality baked into the platform, not bolted on. Envoke met that requirement from day one.

Consistent Reach to 2,000+ Subscribers
AMI sends its newsletter to just over 2,000 subscribers across Canada multiple times a month, alongside seasonal communications like holiday cards sent to additional contact groups.

For Canadian not-for-profits navigating tight budgets and accessibility requirements, AMI’s experience shows that switching from a global platform to a Canadian alternative doesn’t mean sacrificing capability, it means finding a better fit.

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