SmallBusinessNewz

From the White House on down, plenty of governmental types will pay public recognition to the work of small businesses around the country. The start of National Small Business Week features events held in Washington DC and New York City, with other locations across the country to be disclosed.

One will have to hope these will be disclosed soon. The recognition of small business and its contributions merits the attention, but the official website for the week-long event contains a handful of inadvertent lessons about what not to do with online marketing.

Preparation matters. There is no reason the first day of the Week's events should lack a complete calendar of locations beyond DC and NYC, although additional sites were mentioned.

Also, the site's blog remains blank, with only this message in evidence: "Watch this space. In the coming weeks, we'll be posting regular updates to our event blog, and provide opportunities for you to get involved in the discussion around key issues facing the small business community."

When, pray tell? 2009? The coming weeks have passed.

If you promise, you must deliver. The Small Business Administration has a vested interest in the companies that matter most to its mission. A small business owner who treated customers this way may lose them over time. It would be a silly and avoidable situation, something no prudent small business owner wants to do.