National Small Business Week, an annual event that celebrates American small business and its importance to the U.S. economy, will kick off this year on Sunday, May 20.
The week begins with a three-day convention of small business owners May 20-22, which will be held in Washington, D.C., and is hosted by the Small Business Administration. The SBA created National Small Business Week in 2008 as a way to honor, promote and assist small business.
The Washington conference gives small businesses from across the country a chance to network with each other as well as with potential customers in private industry and government.
The National Small Business Week conference includes seminars and presentations by small business consultants, government officials, business financial services companies and large corporations that partner with small business suppliers. Almost all of the conference’s sessions will be webcast for interested parties who are unable to attend the gathering.
Some of the topics to be featured during this year’s National Small Business Week include:
- the importance of small business to “an economy built to last”
- small business marketing through social media
- getting your small business’s product noticed by big retailers
- getting your small business into the overseas export market
- government contracting basics for small businesses
- growing your business through sub-contracting to larger enterprises
A highlight of National Small Business Week is the announcement of the winner of the National Small Business Person of the Year award from among previously selected finalists in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. A diverse range of small entrepreneurs is nominated for the honor each year, with last year’s award going to a medical services company in Vermont. Runners-up were a Wisconsin brewery and an Italian restaurant in South Dakota.
In addition to the Small Business Person of the Year, awards are given at the conference to the year’s top family-owned business, top small business exporter, top home-based business, top minority-owned business, top veteran-owned business and top woman-owned business.
This year, the SBA is also sponsoring a video competition for the first time. Senior SBA officials will choose a winner among short videos submitted by small business owners who have benefited from the agency’s assistance. Each 1- to 2-minute video will illustrate how the SBA helped a particular business to grow, and all qualifying video submissions will be posted on the SBA’s YouTube channel.
For a reliable small business partner who can help your company prosper with expert bookkeeping, payroll and tax services, turn to the small business professionals at PADGETT BUSINESS SERVICES®. Padgett has more than 400 offices in both the U.S. and Canada to serve the small business community across North America.