I Am Black Business is still in its early stages in comparison to some of the other black owned business directories. As a result, we’re playing catch up on the total number of listings. We have no problem playing catch up as we know our competitive advantage lies in our user experience and custom search algorithm. Our directory is one piece of a larger movement.
When it comes to user experience and search, it is critical to return relevant results as quickly as possible. While researching existing directories, we’ve noticed that it can be difficult to navigate to a “successful result.” A consumer is interested in finding a black owned business within a certain vicinity. This experience should be seamless. Difficulty finding businesses is a huge deterrent and prevents users from using directories and supporting black owned businesses.
Our search algorithm allows users to search exact terms and broad terms. When results are returned, refinements (blue box in screenshot) are provided to help guide the user to further refine their search to be more accurate. On top of the refinements, we have also implemented location search (red box on screenshot) which allows a user to use their current location or enter in a location to further specify their search. When manually entering a location, we’ve made it very simple; you can enter a zip code, state, city, or a complete address. The location is quickly identified, and relevant results are returned.
We are still in beta at this time and will continue to clean up the site and add additional features before going live. A mobile optimized website as well as native mobile applications are also in the works. We want this site to be community driven so be sure to send the team any feedback or suggestions you have for improving the website.