Find black-owned businesses to support via this app

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that from 2002 to 2007, black owned businesses increased 60.5 percent. Today, it’s estimated that there are over 2.6 million black-owned businesses in the United States.

Black-owned businesses stabilize communities by providing jobs, paying taxes and keeping money in the community where they live. The black community has a buying power of over $1 trillion, but much of that money is spent outside of black communities.

The more money spent with black owned businesses, the more jobs are created; the more money is returned to the community; the more stable families become.

Mandy Bowman saw a need to support black businesses and entrepreneurs. In 2105, she created an app, Official Black Wall Street, the largest directory of black-owned businesses. The app is available in the AppStore and on GooglePlay.

Currently, it lists more than 1,400 verified businesses that are owned and operated by black entrepreneurs.

Consumers who use the app can get an alert when they’re near a black-owned business. The app lets you bookmark your favorite businesses. When the business updates or puts out a new offer, you can also get an alert.

As a black business owner, you have opportunities to advertise your business, and you can even message customers right through the app, another way to reach out to prospects. Promote sales, special offers and promo codes in the app.

It’s fairly simple to add your business. Create an account and enter your information. Consumers can even enter businesses that qualify. Although the app seems to be more for brick and mortar businesses, but online shopping opportunities are listed too.

We encourage black businesses to add a listing to the app and for all people to download the app and support the community.