Welcome to our newest blog series, State of the Black Business Directory. The goal of this series is to detail the ins and outs of the black business directory landscape as well as provide findings from our journey at IABB.
The first topic deals with the actual size of black business directories. If you've done any research into black business directories, you will know there are hundreds of regional directories and a few national directories. During our competitive analysis, we've noticed there is one common issue across all of them including IABB. No one directory contains a substantial number of businesses to be able to serve as the one go-to-app for searching and discovering black owned businesses. Consumers are disparaged when they open an app and can not find businesses near their location which leads to bad reviews and negative feelings around supporting black business directories.
I have two possible explanations that explain why there isn't one accepted directory for black owned business:
- No collaboration - "United we stand, divided we fall." This statement rings loudly with the current state of the black business directory. Egos, fear, and ignorance are just a few things that can keep us divided. Without collaboration, it will be a slow process for any one directory being successful.
- Chicken and egg - The classic what came first situation of the chicken and the egg plays a big role as well. Business owners will not submit their business to a directory that doesn't have a large number of businesses or consumers. On the other hand, consumers won't use a directory that does not contain a large number of business or at a minimum, a large number of businesses in their area.
We have taken our time to develop, release, and plan products that bring value and provide confidence to both consumers and business owners. We have pledged to never charge for a basic business listing in our directory because we know we can be more innovative and create revenue streams elsewhere rather than charging a business that may be struggling for basic exposure.
We are also committed to releasing a public API that will allow other companies to "plug-in" directly to our data and create other innovative products. I Am Black Business is always open to collaboration. We know every situation may not be mutually beneficial, but as a community, we must start these conversations and support one another in our efforts to increase the black community's economic power.