Is the Black Consumer Too Brainwashed or Stupid to Support Black Business?

Often I see in social media and again these attitudes have been expressed like "... do we really support our own? No ! And why ? Because many of us still have that slavery mentality taught to us by or former masters, we act like we care but in reality it's all about us!"

Here's another example - "Well we just solved the problem that is called us. We don't trust us we don bank us, we don't like us we don't f**k with us. So no more complaining about the black plight cuz it just don't exist. We got us f**k up"

Bro it is hard selling any type of business or marketing concept. It isn't easy in the North either. Blacks have built businesses so large whites and Asians try to buy them out.

The adage Blacks don't support Blacks in business is old school thinking. It's tired and untrue. Blacks support Black barbers, restaurants, salons, tax services, rent real estate from other Blacks. And it's not just in the city.

I have Black clients in different industries that make millions from other Blacks. They started in their houses or small and built their businesses to do millions largely from other Blacks. If you got off this platform and taught other Blacks how to market online you'd help lots of them. This is such a waste of time.

People should stop with the limited thinking. 90 percent of all businesses in the US go out of business in 5 years not just Black ones. If you want to build Black economic power you have to create it by having a valuable product or service and going out and selling it. Not lamenting about it on social media.

ML King Jr. got the south to mobilize but had trouble doing so in the north. You have to start where you are and build locally. But if you have a negative message like - you backward Blacks too stupid to support each other in business see how far you get.

Sell value not spread negative thinking. Word to the wise.

Our people have to do business and take the risks to become experienced in business and economic development. When they start businesses they should get successful mentors to teach them marketing, sales, customer service etc.

I once had a store where the 85% of the customers where Black men. I swore Black women didn't like my business and only wanted to buy from other ethnic groups. I changed my location and my business changed to 85% Black women being my customers.

Just a change in location changed my support. Too many Blacks with little or no business experience are going around making claims that are baseless. BTW I will pay a bit more and go out of my way to support our businesses.

For every Black business that is shooty there are good ones. Get good referrals from other Blacks. I had a big billion dollar corporation not owned by Blacks upgrade our cable and Internet access.

Once they upgraded they couldn't get their service to work with my computer. I asked them if I needed to buy a new WIFI card and which one I should use. They couldn't even tell me how to make it work or what equipment to use that was compatible with their upgrade.

I couldn't use the Internet for over a week. Finally I remembered their was a Black owned computer supply store in my hood. I went to them and they gave me a card and my computer was up within a few hours.

A billion dollar non black owned company didn't know jack about the equipment they were installing and I had to go to a Black owned computer store to help me. SMH

Yeah, you think those Black plumbers are bad. Do you know the kinds of algorithms social media sites and search engines use on businesses to force them to advertise? Do you know how once you advertise they rip you off with defaults?

Let me tell you they are straight gangster. Black businesses don't have nothing on these major corporations.

Kamau's Qu!ps is Published by Kamau Austin. Austin is a popular Blogger with over 11,000 connections in social media.  Austin is an author, writer, and Internet Marketing Professional helping small businesses grow more profitable businesses online.

If you need web design, blogging, search engine or social media promotion contact him at Search Engine Plan

The Hair Raising Claim that Blacks Don't Support Each Other in Business

I recently saw a rant about Blacks not supporting each other in business after a successful Black business, Shea Moisture, in the haircare industry, sold a minority stake in their company that was acquired by a mainstream investment group. To put it mildly, a significant number of Black women lamented that the resulting marketing had taken a change in direction from the traditional ethnic marketing to Black women. 

This seemed to cause a significant outcry about yet another successful Black company being bought and whitewashed in the Black haircare industry.

In response some Blacks in social media seem to be taking a more traditional outlook on this business move.  They seem to take the position - it's all about expanding into different market segments and growing a company.  They also usually add that Black women shouldn't take it as a personal or ethnic insult.

Some even rationalized that Blacks don't support Blacks in business any way so a company has to do what's best for it's bottomline sans the ethnic solidarity.

This is what annoyed me in the discussion.  This justification really rubs me the wrong way.

If you want to have a bottom-line approach to business where green is the only color you see that's on you.  But don't try to peddle the negative narrative that Blacks don't support other Blacks in business as justification for your outlook because - it just isn't true!

What people may be forgetting is these companies buy black companies because they have reached multimillion dollar status, often doing tens of millions or even hundreds of millions in sales, because Blacks supported these companies as consumers!  This is how they become valuable targets to mainstream investment groups in the 1st place.

Companies like FUBU, Cross Colors, Essence, Karl Kani and Carols Daughter to name a few became multimillion dollar companies that were valuable to investors because Blacks supported them to a large degree. I don't get why some Blacks are so vested in this negative narrative that Blacks don't support other Blacks in business.

In my experience If Black businesses market creatively and well to black consumers they will flock to them. I've seen it happen a quite a bit. Sheeesh.

They even offered up this infographic as proof of their sentiments...

However, this graphic has little to do with the psychographics of the Black consumer. There are countless Black companies supported to the tune of millions of dollars by Black consumers.

This business infographic, if true, is more a reflection of a lack of mentorships, the scarcity of financial institutions loaning to Black entrepreneurs, redlining, lack of government contracts etc. It has  little to do with Black consumers not willing to buy from Black businesses.

This is a demoralizing type of negative narrative towards the Black community. I work with Black businesses who are making millions from Black consumers, customers, and clients. One of my clients I've had for 8 years, and help market 400 apartments, to primarily Black tenants, is Black owned. I've helped them do about 25 million dollars primarily from rentals to Black apartment tenants.

Another of my Black clients owns a multimillion dollar tax service and Jazz club. Almost all their business comes from Black consumers.

The sad thing is some really smart people are saying things like this. My 1st day in business, about 25 years ago, I made near $5,000 the 1st day and 1st month close to $12,000 - almost exclusively from Black customers. I get Black clients to pay me thousands of dollars without even meeting me personally. So enough of these glib stereotypes about Black consumers.

I wrote a book on business finance. One of the major reasons you have more Latino and Asian businesses is because they have large viable nonprofit business loan organizations like Accion and Grameen bank which have the capacity to afford them billions in loans for their businesses.

The Black community doesn't have a national microfinance organization, with over a billion dollars in capital, dedicated to loaning to small businesses in our community. That's one of the major reasons why we don't have more viable businesses.  It isn't a psychographics issue it is more of a lack of business finance and strategy issue.

Kamau's Qu!ps is Published by Kamau Austin. Austin is a popular Blogger with over 11,000 connections in social media.  Austin is an author, writer, and Internet Marketing Professional helping small businesses grow more profitable businesses online.

If you need web design, blogging, search engine or social media promotion contact him at Search Engine Plan

Is the Black Church the Greatest Institution on Earth?

A person on my Facebook newsfeed asked: Is the Black Church the Greatest Institution on Earth?

In my opinion, I think it depends on the Black church. Some Black churches are on a mission feeding the hungry, giving sight to the blind and helping those who are sick. They are into community and economic development. They run homeless shelters and build housing for senior citizens.

Other Black Churches focus on the bye in bye when you die and preach a gospel focused on who is sleeping with whom. They have little social impact. They are good in keeping people in check and capitulating to the status quo. Those churches are underwhelming.

Kamau's Qu!ps is Published by Kamau Austin. Austin is a popular Blogger with over 11,000 connections in social media.  Austin is an author, writer, and Internet Marketing Professional helping small businesses grow more profitable businesses online.

If you need web design, blogging, search engine or social media promotion contact him at Search Engine Plan

Give to Your Community in Little Ways that Add UP

Let's not run away from problems in our community. Do you try to make your community a better place? You don't have to be an activist luminary like Martin Luther King, Jr., or Malcolm X to make a contribution in your own humble way. And it can make a BIG difference.

I enjoy living in a community with other bruthas and sistahs in NYC. I like helping build more viable businesses using digital technology. Ironically, I cleaned up a whole block of a business strip street today near one of my clients for free - just to enhance the neighborhood.

I occasionally break up a fight with young bruthas and look out for neighbors. I help shovel the neighbors next to me in snow storms. Small things do matter.

I feel we have to extend ourselves to make our communities better. I lived in the suburbs but like living in our community better with people who are progressive. BTW while I was cleaning up the business strip, I was telling you about, one of the business owners came out to thank me and help me.

We got into a nice conversation and I got a chance to tell him about my digital marketing services primarily using search engine technology. He may become a client.

I sowed positive karma and reaped positive results. The way I look at it a strong business presence in out communities will help people shop here more and also property values will increase and economic development will go up. Is it just me that looks at upgrading our communities this way?

Kamau's Qu!ps is Published by Kamau Austin. Austin is a popular Blogger with over 11,000 connections in social media.  Austin is an author, writer, and Internet Marketing Professional helping small businesses grow more profitable businesses online.

If you need web design, blogging, search engine or social media promotion contact him at Search Engine Plan