"OVERGROUND FREEDOM TRAIN"

Jamaal Brown Created the

www.BLACK365.US

 Calendar to Inspire

 

 

 

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Nov. 5, 2010) - Jamaal Brown once believed that the only thing African Americans could be were athletes, drug-dealers, gang members or entertainers. He eventually put all of his eggs in the athletics basket; however, he was diagnosed with a rare heart condition and forced to have heart surgery while still in high school.

No longer spending time on the court, Brown began cataloguing what he considered to be the most inspiring and uplifting facts in Black history, along with the dates they occurred. Little did he know then, that his actions would be inspiring, uplifting and encouraging thousands of people across the country in the form of a 365 Days of Black Facts Calendar, found at www.Black365.US

Brown, became his high school’s first-ever African American valedictorian, was accepted to eight universities and received nearly $50,000 in scholarships. He credits the inspiration he received from the information in the 365 Days of Black Facts Calendar found at www.Black365.US as “being miraculous for me, and helping me succeed both inside and outside the classroom.”

Many others feel the energy from this 365 Days of Black Facts Calendar. Principals throughout the Palmdale School District in California read the Black fact of the day featured in the BLACK365.US Calendar over the loud speaker during the morning announcements. The district’s superintendent knows the information within the BLACK365.US Calendar is contributing to the growing success of his students.

Black Fathers Radio, Black Teen Empowerment Radio, Black Home Schools Magazine, and a large number of organizations throughout the country have all endorsed the BLACK365.US Calendar.

The calendar is also a great fundraising opportunity for youth organizations,churches, non-profits, and even individuals to earn extra income. A portion of the proceeds from the calendar support a scholarship for deserving high school and college students.

For more information visit www.Black365.US

Jamaal Brown

661.609.8193

www.JamaalBrown.com

www.Black365.US

info@Black365.US

 

Posted by Joan Gosier at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

 

  Can We Regain Our Trust in “Buying Black”?

by Aishah Jeffries-El

Over the years, I’ve noticed that interest among African Americans in supporting Black owned businesses has not significantly improved. Many of the same complaints continue to surface as to why we are still apprehensive in supporting one another, so I would like to share the major ones with you in hopes of reducing those concerns.

1. Poor customer service is the number one complaint that we have about one another (i.e., when you enter into a Black owned establishment and the owner is on the telephone or assisting another customer, they don't acknowledge you to let you know that they see you and will be with you shortly. You are made to feel like they are doing you a favor by waiting on you).

2. Cost of products or services can be more expensive than other businesses (based on an individual’s priorities they may not feel the product or the service is worth the price).

3. Web sites don’t have contact information or the links don't work (i.e. I found a Black owned restaurant on the Internet and when I went to their Web site they didn't have a telephone number, address or e-mail information anywhere on the site. Fortunately, I was able to get their telephone number by “Googling,” so I called, didn't get an answer, left a message and one week later no one had returned my call.

4. Black hair salons — There was an article a few months back about how Black women are increasingly going to Dominican salons to get their hair done. I personally know a few people who are doing that and their reasons aren't necessarily because they feel Dominicans do a better job. They cited things like they are cheaper, better organized and they get you out fast.

5. We don't know any Black owned businesses in our neighborhood. This is a big reason why Black owned businesses don't get supported, because we simply don't know they exist. Outside of beauty salons, barbershops, restaurants and daycare, how many other Black owned businesses in your neighborhood can you name? A large number of small businesses don't have big budgets for marketing and advertising to help get the word out.

Because of the “trust issues” that we have with each other as a community, African American business owners have no choice but to work harder than other ethnic groups to win the support of Black people, so here are some solutions:

1. Provide EXCELLENT customer service – go “above and beyond” to make the customer feel that you are grateful to have them in your place of business (when a customer enters your place of business, greet them with a smile, ask them what they need and if you cannot help them, try to refer them to someone who can).

2. Make sure your Web site has ample information about your products, your service and location (if you have a traditional brick and mortar store).

3. If you operate a restaurant, why not have several clear photos of the exterior and interior of your establishment and photos of some of the dishes on your menu to help entice people to come visit your store?

4. Don’t be afraid to include prices so that customers know right away if they can afford your product or service.

5. If your only contact information is via e-mail, make sure to check your e-mails frequently and respond ASAP.

6. Presentation of store and/or Web site should be visually appealing:

• Store should be clean and organized with nicely painted walls and polished floors.

7. If your store hours say that you are open at 9 a.m. then you should be in the store before 9 a.m. (I remember at one company that I used to work for, the supervisor told us that if your shift starts at 5:30 p.m., that does not mean come in the door at 5:30 p.m. It means be at your desk and ready to work by 5:30 p.m.)

8. A Web site is a necessity these days because it's the fastest and simplest way to locate a business.

 

Unfortunately, we tend to remember our negative experiences more than we recall the positive ones. Therefore, we, as Black business owners will have to work harder and more creatively in order to persuade people in our community to overcome their reservations and regain their confidence in BUYING BLACK.

 

blacktasticnews.com

 

 

"My purpose for creating the Blacktastic News Network is to create a more balanced view of events taking place in the Black Community. " Aishah Jeffries-El

 

Posted by Joan Gosier at 10:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)