By Leslie A. Rodriguez, Contributing Writer

The past eight years have led Soul Pitt Media CEO and founder Donna Baxter down a versatile vocational path. After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh in 1997, Baxter started a community newsletter called “Sistahs Talkin” and distributed it to local hair salons.

“It was in black and white print and was a similar in concept to The Soul Pitt community web site that I do today,” said Baxter.

She quickly realized that the print medium was costly and the physical labor involved with assembling the newsletter by hand was time consuming. According to Baxter, the decision was made to take “Sistahs Talkin” to the internet after a few issues due mainly to low overhead.

Following the launch of the “Sistahs Talkin”, Baxter became enthralled by the internet and its capabilities. The fruition of her next endeavor, TheSoulPitt.com, came when she heard her friends in Pittsburgh complain that there was nothing in the city for African-Americans to do. While honing her internet and web design skills, Baxter was also busy earning her Master’s of Education degree in Instructional Technology from AIU Online.

“I decided to put a web site together just to showcase the soulful side of the city. As the digital divide began to narrow, more African-Americans in Pittsburgh were logging onto the internet and they were also logging on to TheSoulPitt.com and discovering the city’s minority community in a totally new way,” said Baxter.

Baxter largely credits the internet with eliminating many of the previously existing obstacles for women and minorities in business. She believes that not only does the online world present a level playing field for entrepreneurs, but it also allows them to do business on a global scale.

In April 2008, Baxter spoke at E-Magnify’s annual “Building a World-Class Business” conference and shared this sentiment with conference goers. She provided attendees with an inside look at how blogging and other online tools can help to empower businesses.

“Many online marketing techniques are available to everyone and most are free. The cost to market your business is not a major factor anymore and the internet gives anyone the ability to establish themselves as an expert in their field,” said Baxter.

In the future, Baxter hopes to be an established author, speaker and webpreneur. She would also like to continue teaching both minorities and entrepreneurs the power of the internet and how to use it to create longevity within their enterprises. Baxter sets her entrepreneurial prospects for the future high as well.

“I see Soul Pitt Media focusing on more internet marketing and search engine friendly web design in the future. I see The Soul Pitt community site becoming larger, more interactive, and a highly reliable source to go to for information on Pittsburgh’s minority community,” said Baxter.

Though she wears many hats as CEO, web mistress, author, technical diva, webpreneur, and graphic designer, Baxter remains focused on her vision of helping to recognize and eradicate the plight of minority business owners.

“You have to love what you do, and do it with the intent of helping others and knowing that success will come later,” said Baxter.

For more information on Soul Pitt Media please contact:

The Soul Pitt
6393 Penn Avenue, #317
Pittsburgh, PA 15206
412-904-1630

July 2007