August is National Black Business Month. Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) offers five ways you can honor Black businesses.
1 Promote Black-owned businesses on social media.
“Promoting a Black-owned business on social media can help others learn about and begin to frequent the business. Doing a 30-second video clip about the company, inviting them to talk about their business on your podcast, or creating a social post can increase engagement and their market reach.”
2 Shop at Black-owned businesses.
“The best way to support Black businesses, or any business for that matter, is to pay for their goods and services continuously. Next time you’re thinking about making a purchase, look to Black-owned businesses to fulfill your needs.”
3 Provide black founders with more access to funding.
“One way to support Black-owned businesses is by providing Black founders with more access to funding. Historically, Black founders have not always had equal access to funding. The most important thing that investors and lenders should consider is the product’s viability, rather than the ethnicity of the company’s founder.”
4 Share Black-owned business content with your network.
“Social media allows small businesses to amplify their message, expand their reach and build an audience. Sharing their content supports their marketing efforts and introduces Black-owned businesses to your network and new customers. Sharing content is a form of advocacy and elevates the business’ credibility with new audiences.”
5 Share your positive opinion online.
“Celebrate and support Black-owned businesses by sharing your opinion on social media! Word of mouth is a powerful and, most importantly for us, inexpensive marketing tool. Your opinion can help us grow from side hustlers to full-fledged business owners!”
— Ronn Rowland