Website Branding – Your website address (www.yourdomainame.com) must be included on all external materials, included but not limited to business cards, catalogs, invoices, newsletters, packaging and so on…

Press Release – Announce your website to the media, targeted mailing lists of potential clients and all of your current customers and clients.

Search Engine Registration – This maybe the most important of all the steps, to ensure that your website is registered with the top 3 search engines (Google, Yahoo and Bing). If the search engines can’t find you, than no can. You must also be sure that you  are your website designer has optimized your site to rank high in the search results by using things like Meta Tags and Page Titles.

Messages Boards and Forums – Locate online message Boards and Forums within your niche, participate on Internet Newsgroups, and answer relevant discussion questions.

Email Signatures – Create an email signature for yourself and all the employees that have an email account. An email signature is about 2 lines of text that automatically appears at the bottom of every email message that is sent out. The signature should contain information about your business like website address and contact information.

Niche Business Directories – Being listed in niche directories like www.MinorityDirectory.com is another way to get the word out about your minority company. With most directories being online, your potential clients will be able to find your company quickly and easily to see what you have to offer.  

There are a number of other things that can be done in order to promote your website, but if you just do the above 6 things, you will be well ahead of your competition.

According to the government definition, a minority-owned firm is one that is 51% owned by a U.S. citizen who is:

Black American – United States citizen having origins in any of the Black African racial groups.

Asian-Pacific American – United States citizen whose origins are in Japan, China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (Republic of Palau), the Northern Mariana Islands, Laos, Kampuchea (Cambodia), Taiwan, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Republic of the Marshall Islands, or the Federated States of Micronesia.

Hispanic American – United States citizen of Spanish culture whose origins are from Mexico, South America, Central America or the Caribbean Island, regardless of race.

Native American – American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut, and Native Hawaiian.

Woman-Owned Business: Is a disadvantage business with at least 51% owned by one or more women, and the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more women.

The company can be any size, as long it’s for-profit and physically located in the United States or its territories.

Minority owned businesses are sometimes referred to as an MBE (Minority Owned Business Enterprise). According to the 2002 Census Survey of Business Owners, the number of MBE grew 31% between 1997 and 2002 compared to 13% growth for non-minority businesses. Between 1982 and 2002, there was an 18% increase of Ethnic minorities owned companies in the U.S.

Where can Minority Owned Businesses get Help?

The Minority Business Development Agency (www.mbda.gov) is the only federal agency solely dedicated to the creation, growth and expansion of minority-owned businesses in the United States. As part of the Department of Commerce, the MBDA has established a network of minority business centers and strategic partners who work with entrepreneurs to develop their firms to their full potential.

The MBDA offers a wealth of business planning, start-up and expansion information. In addition, it offers guidance on loans, grants, certifications and other related resources.

More Minority Owned Business Resources!