How listings are reviewed

Ownership is self-attested

When someone submits a business, they sign a statement that it is at least 51% Black-owned and that they are authorized to submit it. That statement is the basis for the listing. We do not determine ownership from names, photographs, or any other characteristic, and we do not ask for documents as a condition of being listed.

The three labels

• Owner self-attested — the default. The owner signed the statement and a person on our side checked that the listing is complete, reachable, and within our listing policy.
• Reviewed by our team — in addition, an administrator spoke with the business or reviewed supporting information they volunteered.
• Listed from a public directory — nobody from the business has told us anything. We compiled the name, address and phone number from a directory that is already published publicly, and we name that source on the listing. Treat the details as a starting point, not a confirmation, and expect some of them to be out of date.

None of these is a certification. We are not a certifying body, and a listing here should not be read as a diversity certification for procurement or grant purposes.

What review actually covers

• The business appears to be real, operating, and reachable at the details given.
• The listing meets the listing policy.
• The category and description are accurate enough to be useful.

Payment and review are separate

Featured and sponsored placements are labelled as such. Buying one never changes an ownership label, never speeds up or alters review, and never implies that we verified anything further.

If something is wrong

If you believe a listing misrepresents its ownership or is otherwise inaccurate, tell us. We look into every report, and we will remove a listing while we do if the concern is serious.