The Root has officially launched the National Black Calendar, an events-listing website that will capture goings-on across the nation of interest to an African-American audience.
Whether you’re looking to plan the perfect date night with your beau, curate an itinerary for a bachelorette weekend in Las Vegas, track down professional conferences relevant to your industry or spread the word about a music festival or Bible-study class in your hometown, the National Black Calendar is a comprehensive resource for individuals and organizations seeking or promoting events.
The Root Publisher Donna Byrd describes the hub as a “highly sociable calendar” that will allow users to make use of their existing social media accounts to map out their outings, professional trips and social engagements.
“This is by far the most comprehensive events calendar for the African-American community,” Byrd says. "There is something for everyone. Whether you are a young adult or senior, single or have a family, we feature events that will appeal to you."
What makes it different from other event-listing hubs, Byrd explains, is how easy the calendar is to use. Users will be able to zero in on events occurring in specific cities and also search by category for specific types of events. Some of the categories include sports, the arts, politics, business, comedy, religion, film, festivals and food and drink.
Byrd went on to describe some of the functionality that will allow users to export their findings to family and friends when planning group trips.
“There’s a feature on the site that allows readers to save their events and then send all of them in calendar-form to their friends via email,” Byrd explains.
That email will contain links for users to purchase tickets if necessary—a convenient feature for groups looking to lock down engagements at the same time.
Event organizers who want to have their event appear on the calendar will find that it’s super affordable: only $10 a post. Additional add-ons will allow advertisers to add a video to their post, or have their event promoted on the National Black Calendar’s Facebook page, Twitter account or newsletter.
A corresponding app will be available for Android and iPhone users in the near future. Users will also be able to sign up for the National Black Calendar newsletter to receive weekly updates.
Click here to visit the National Black Calendar.