The Data Doesn’t Lie

It was so good to be back in the Big Apple for another L2L Mixer and this time we discussed what it’s like to be women of color using our influence in beauty, tech and media to create inclusion.

In a conversation moderated by Dreams In Drive‘s Rana Campbell, panelist Erika Wood, Shani Syphrett, Janel Martinez, Ty Heath and Sojourner Elleby discussed how they are using their seat at the table to create content, campaigns and opportunities for women of color.

One way that all of these ladies take the lead in creating opportunities for women of color is by leading with numbers. “The numbers don’t lie,” shared Shani as she broke down how black women entrepreneurs should be pitching themselves for opportunities in Forbes and other publications. Erika agreed as she uses numbers in CoverGirl board meetings to make her case for expanding the foundation shades. Ty also used numbers when pitching the first LinkedIn conference for women of color. As a journalist, I look for pitches from publicists and entrepreneurs that lead with industry data, and as someone who pitches for sponsorship, I too lead with numbers to gain opportunities. There’s data out there for any demographic you want to learn more about. You can find out how we spend money, how we use social media, how we vote, how much we get paid and so much more.

The next time you are in a position to advocate and create an opportunity for people of color make sure you lead with numbers.

Thank you to Splash for hosting us, a special shout out to Alize of Link NYC for using your seat at the table to promote black businesses on the new digital kiosks and to Ciroc for sponsoring the good vibes for this month’s L2L Mixers.

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