There are many, many choices to make when running a business, and referrals can make choices easier. The recommendations below are either folks I’ve worked with personally or who come highly recommended.
Web Hosting and Domains
- I run a small, green web hosting company called Acorn Host.
- If you’d like to work with a larger company, WestHost and DreamHost are both excellent.
- If you need a VPS or dedicated server I’ve worked with and highly recommend ServInt and LiquidWeb.
- For domain name registration, I recommend Dynadot.
E-commerce
- Merchant account that I use and recommend: e-onlinedata
- Integrated payment processing and shopping cart: PayPal
- Hosted shopping cart that we often work with: Mal’s E-commerce
- For more complex e-commerce needs: ClearCart (hosted), Magento (open source)
Search Engine Optimization & Marketing (SEO, SEM, PPC)
- If you are in Portland, the Search Engine Academy offers great classes on SEO. They also have a list of graduates who offer SEO services.
- Another place to learn is Jill Whalen who has a great site and newsletter.
- If you want to really get into it, the WebmasterWorld forums are frequented by many industry experts. You might have to dig a little, but there is an amazing amount of information there.
Web Designers (anywhere)
- Sortfolio is a great tool to find designers, sortable by location and budget.
Web Designers (Portland-based)
- For complex content sites and non-profits: NetRaising
- For information architecture: RareHeron or White Lotus Design
- For programming and database work: TrueCast Design
- For brochure-type sites: Nedra Rezinas
- For ongoing site maintenance: Andrea Drury
- More great all-around web design firms: Watermelon Web Works and Copper Moon Design
Welcome, I'm Emma. I've been helping small biz owners get online for over 10 years. Here I present practical tips and perspective on the e-commerce adventure. 
