iSpeakLOUD The Premier Black Owned Business Resource

 Up until this point I've had a lot of conversations with black business owners regarding business building best practice tips, client experience skills and social media marketing.  But the one thing that always comes up in every conversation, coaching session, workshop, event etc. is the most anticipated question, WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?   This question is very simple but so very important.  It's the single most critical way to communicate your value.  I want to give you guys three important things to think of whenever you are communicating the 'what's in it for me?' answer to your clients. As consumers that's the one thing they're looking for! If you address these three areas you will have effectively established the benefits of doing business with you.  The first thing you want to address is, is it going to save your client time?  Convenience is so very important in this day and age and everyone wants to save time and everybody wants convenience.  How

Today I want to talk about how I overcame being the new Black Owned Business directory on the block! Just like EVERY business owner, you have competitors. What can be so frustrating is when you come up with an innovative concept, more established businesses catch wind of it and make it their own.  BUT that's business! I use to get caught up in building a platform a large as my competitors and at times losing sight of my purpose/vision. Anything worth having is worth working for and waiting for. I wanted to be THE GO-TO Black owned business resource for my people YESTERDAY! But one of the things I am most passionate about when it comes to iSpeakLOUD and my personal life is leading by example. While my competitors may be just that (competitors), there is also an opportunity to work with them and create business relationships.  For example, I just relocated to Fort Pierce, FL and I have been doing a great deal of networking. I was introduced to a Queen who happens to run the Treasur

Just like many business owners in the Black community I assumed putting together the basis of my business would be similar to baking an instant cake. I would gather my ingredients, mix them and throw it in the oven to bake. The only problem is, my cake (business) didn't rise. I thought to myself 'I must be missing something' only I couldn't figure out what it was! February of 2015 I completed something for the first time in my life on my own and it felt amazing! I became a licensed Investment financial advisor. I was working for one of the top financial brokerage firms in America. Life was GREAT!  February 2016 I delivered my first iSpeakLOUD seminar broadcast. It struck something in me, talking about the Black community and our issues; ways to possibly solve them. This went on for a few months but then it occurred to me that I am capable of doing more. Talking about it just didn't cut it anymore. I sought out someone to build me a website and iSpeakLOUD Sol

Would we ever credit bad service to the race of the owner if they were not Black? The first place to tackle this issue is to acknowledge that it is in fact a learned behavior . We have been taught to not trust each other, not to depend on each, not to love each other and most definitely not support each other. There was and still is an extreme amount of effort to demonize Black people (especially men) and even we bought into it ourselves. As a result, we are the most divided amongst any community. BUT THAT STOPS HERE. Let's practice techniques that will not only bring us closer together as a community but will build the reputation of Black business as a whole. Let's start with the customer perspective. As a customer who frequently supports Black owned businesses, I am looking for an excellent customer service experience, this includes promptness, politeness and professionalism. When I do not get those basic customer service qualities, I seek the owner, I explain to them what my

TOO OFTEN I hear my peers talk about their bad experiences with Black owned businesses. I would defend my people to the DEATH! But at some point we have to hold each other accountable. You do that when you love someone. With over thirteen years of customer service experience I felt qualified to give 3 tips that will help increase sales and drive business. Currently I am a financial investment advisor for a well known broker dealer in the United States and at this point in my career I can say that no matter what business you're in, these three tips will WORK! I started out in retail and learned the basics, you know, 'the customer is always right' and when became a licensed professional I realized that there was much more to that. What it really means is, as long as I am doing everything right my clients won't have anything to complain about and if they do I didn't do everything right. Now I know some of you are saying 'people will complain even when you do everyt