The Visibility Crisis Facing Black-Owned Businesses – The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint

By David Derryck, Founder of BuyBlack.org

That’s the problem.

Not the quality of our businesses. Not the desire of our consumers. But the systems between them are fragmented, incomplete, and too often built in isolation.

Despite the rise of Buy Black movements, digital directories, and cultural momentum around economic justice, Black-owned businesses are still fighting to be seen. And while the intent to support them has never been higher, the execution continues to fall short.

According to McKinsey, 63% of consumers say they want to support Black-owned businesses — but only 23% say they know how to find them. And yet Black buying power is projected to reach $1.8 trillion by 2027 (Selig Center). This isn’t a demand issue — it’s the result of systems that were never designed to support Black-owned businesses in the first place. 

A visibility void. 

That gap isn’t just about awareness — it’s about how platforms are designed. Discovery systems don’t reward quality — they reward visibility. In Black neighborhoods across the country, long-standing businesses are losing digital ground to better-resourced newcomers. It’s not just economic gentrification — it’s digital gentrification. If you’re not ranking, you’re not being found. And if you’re not being found, you’re not growing. Our entrepreneurs pay the price every day — especially those who depend on word-of-mouth and local loyalty. For them, lack of visibility means missed revenue, missed recognition, and missed opportunities. 

That visibility gap is exactly what the Best of BuyBlack.org Awards is designed to close. It’s a 3-month, community-driven push to increase traffic, boost discoverability, and build long-term trust — both online and offline — delivering search-optimized, evergreen visibility for businesses long after the final vote is cast. Launching this Juneteenth, the initiative will spotlight the top Black-owned businesses across the country — city by city, category by category. It’s national in scope but local in focus.

We’re centering the storefronts — the barbershops, bakeries, boutiques, and community anchors that serve as cultural and economic hubs. 75% of Black-owned businesses operate in service, retail, and food — the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic (Brookings, 2022). Too often, they’re left out of national campaigns built for digital-first brands.

We know Best Of campaigns work. They’re not just lists — they’re engines of visibility and community engagement. Businesses that get nominated or win experience a 37% increase in brand awareness and a 24% increase in consumer trust (Clutch.co & Nielsen). And with word-of-mouth still driving the majority of purchasing decisions (Nielsen, 2023), these nominations aren’t just recognition — they’re revenue drivers.

A small business owner recently told me, “Our challenge isn’t capability — it’s visibility. We spend more time trying to get noticed than serving our customers.” It’s a familiar refrain. Discoverability isn’t a branding issue; it’s a systemic gap in how the market connects intent to action. Ask any Black business owner and they’ll tell you: the hardest part isn’t delivering — it’s being discovered. It’s convincing the algorithm — or the city’s top 10 list — that your work matters. 

That’s the problem we’re solving and we can’t do it alone. We’re inviting other directories, business networks, certifiers, and platforms to join us. Even those some might consider competitors — because if we truly believe in building Black wealth, we can’t afford to stay siloed.

Through our BuyBlack.org digital ad co-op, more than 100 businesses are already sharing resources, leveraging collective data, and amplifying their message. It’s proof that collaboration isn’t idealistic — it’s effective. Collaborative marketing increases campaign reach by up to 300% and reduces costs by 62% (HubSpot, 2022). And businesses connected to ecosystems are 40% more likely to survive beyond three years (AEO, 2020).

We’re asking all consumers to nominate their favorite Black-owned businesses. We’re asking Black entrepreneurs to register and claim their visibility. And we’re asking other platforms — whether local, national, or sector-specific — to partner with us in amplifying what we all say we care about — supporting Black-owned businesses.

Together, we can build an ecosystem where no one has to ask, “Where do I find a Black-owned business?”—because the answer is everywhere.

This post was originally published on this site