Kenyatta Forbes was a middle school teacher in Chicago when she realized that the traditional Black History curriculum was lacking in important aspects. She felt that it focused too much on historical figures and not enough on the cultural and historical impact of Black history. To enhance her lessons and bring in more insights, she created a unique deck of index cards called “Trading Races”.
The game had each player dealt five cards, and the goal was to convince everyone else that the person on their card was the “blackest”. After testing the game with friends, Forbes launched a crowd-funding campaign and raised $5,500 to start her new venture. She sold the game at Black culture festivals for a few years but the pandemic halted all in-person events.
Feeling lost and uncertain about the future of her business, Forbes sought professional marketing experience. That’s when she heard about Verizon Small Business Digital Ready and signed up for live 1:1 reviews to discuss social media marketing and strategy. The one-on-one sessions were incredibly helpful as they allowed her to focus on actionable goals and get into the details.
With expert advice from Verizon Small Business Digital Ready, Forbes refined her promotional ideas into a marketing calendar with a coherent social media strategy tailored to her target audience. Creating content and scheduling it out helped Trading Races see a surge in followers and sales. Today, the business has several thousand followers on social media and has formed partnerships with influencers.
