Feb 28 2008
Celilo Group Media, publisher of regional green media including the print guides Chinook Book, Blue Sky Guide and EcoMetro Guide, has launched a major new web platform at: https://www.ecometro.org/ containing frequent local content on green living and the most complete and transparent directory available of local merchants selling green products and services in Portland, Seattle, Oakland/Berkeley and Minneapolis/St. Paul. Subtitled “the best of green and local,” the site was developed by Portland-based 500lb Marketing Solutions.
“Taking all of the local green knowledge we’ve collected over the past eight years and making it available to everyone online was an enormous endeavor,” said Celilo Group Media President Nik Blosser. From dining and food to green fashion, gardening and building products, https://www.ecometro.org/ is the most complete source for finding green products and services in the four metro regions the site currently covers.
Key features of ecometro.com include:
- Local Search: Users can set a search radius of 5 or more miles to find products in their neighborhood. Users can also do a blank search by zip code to view a map of all nearby merchants.
- Comments and Reviews: Users rate and comment on businesses to encourage others to make green choices. Personal avatars and profiles make the ecometro.com community a personable and reliable network for information.
- Articles and Blogs by Locals, for Locals: In Portland and Seattle a rotating cast of local community members write about their experiences and adventures in green living in their respective cities. Any reader can email the bloggers or site editors with questions on green living, products or services and receive local answers with comments from the community. Current blog topics include kids and families, green building, bikes, green technology and bike commuting.
- Newsletter: Community members receive free themed monthly e-newsletters. The newsletters contain local event listings, featured local merchants and the latest reviews of green merchants by community members.
The site was developed by 500lb Marketing Solutions, a Portland-based full service interactive marketing agency. “We have been excited about ecometro.com from its inception,” said John Skelly, CEO of 500lb. “500lb has always believed that small changes can make a big difference, and we are happy to provide the technology that brings this valuable green information to the consumers’ fingertips.”