Starnes Media

What Starnes Media does

Starnes Media is a privately held hyperlocal media and digital marketing company headquartered in Homewood, Alabama, founded in 2008 by Dan Starnes. The company operates a portfolio of seven community newspapers — 280 Living, Village Living, The Homewood Star, Hoover Sun, Vestavia Voice, Cahaba Sun, and Iron City Ink — distributed via direct mail to approximately 110,000 homes across the Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area, supported by a daily email newsletter with 20,000 subscribers. A separate business division, Starnes Digital (launched 2016), extends the offering into programmatic display and video, pay-per-click, SEO, web design, geofencing (including household-level addressable geofencing using plat line coordinates), site retargeting, keyword search retargeting, contextual targeting, and OTT/CTV advertising.

The company's productized content marketing packages — Medical Guide, Home and Garden Guide, Real Estate Guide, Education Guide, and Women in Business — bundle professional photography, custom editorial content, multi-channel amplification across print and digital properties, and dedicated newsletter promotion. Pricing is partially disclosed: print advertising starts at less than $0.03 per household in 280 Living, and the Women in Business package is priced at $3,000 with a $500 deposit requirement.

Starnes Media serves local SMBs and mid-market clients across healthcare providers, home services and real estate, women-owned businesses, education providers, and professional associations including the Birmingham Bar Association Bulletin (a quarterly publication reaching approximately 3,500 lawyers and judges). Go-to-market combines direct sales (business development executives and marketing consultants) with self-serve online application flows for content packages. The company is founder-owned and bootstrapped, with no disclosed institutional funding.

Name

Starnes Media

Legal name

Starnes Media

Website

https://starnesmedia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Starnes Media is a privately held hyperlocal media company in Homewood, Alabama, operating seven Birmingham-area community newspapers reaching over 110,000 homes, productized vertical content marketing guides, and a Starnes Digital division offering programmatic, geofencing, PPC, SEO, and OTT/CTV advertising to local SMBs and mid-market advertisers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Homewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Print Advertising: Revenue generated from advertising in hyperlocal community newspapers delivered via direct mail. Includes display ads, classifieds, and sponsored content in publications like 280 Living, Village Living, Homewood Star, Hoover Sun, Vestavia Voice, and Cahaba Sun.
2. Content Marketing Packages: Productized advertising packages including Medical Guide, Home & Garden Guide, Women in Business, and Education Guide. Features include custom content creation, professional photography, advertorial stories, and digital amplification.
3. Digital Marketing Services: Programmatic display advertising, pay-per-click management, SEO services, web design and development, geofencing, retargeting, keyword search targeting, contextual targeting, and OTT/CTV advertising services.
4. Sponsorships: Sponsored content opportunities and advertising sponsorships within publications and special editions like the Birmingham Bar Association Bulletin.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Starnes Media sells advertising space and marketing services across seven hyperlocal community newspapers distributed via direct mail to roughly 103,500 households in the Birmingham-Hoover metro, supported by a daily email newsletter and individual publication websites. It also runs a digital marketing division (Starnes Digital) offering programmatic display/video, pay-per-click, SEO, web design, geofencing (including addressable household-level targeting), site retargeting, keyword search retargeting, contextual targeting, and OTT/CTV advertising. Productized content marketing packages (Medical Guide, Home and Garden Guide, Real Estate Guide, Education Guide, Women in Business) bundle custom editorial content, photography, and cross-channel amplification for advertisers.

Product overview

Starnes Media operates as a hyperlocal media company offering a portfolio of seven community newspapers (280 Living, Village Living, The Homewood Star, Hoover Sun, Vestavia Voice, Cahaba Sun, and Iron City Ink) and specialized content marketing products (Medical Guide, Home and Garden Guide, Real Estate Guide, Education Guide, Women in Business). The company expanded in 2016 with the launch of Starnes Digital, its digital marketing division that provides programmatic advertising, pay-per-click management, SEO services, web design and development, geofencing (including addressable household-level targeting), site retargeting, keyword search retargeting, contextual targeting, and OTT/CTV advertising. The hyperlocal publications reach over 110,000 homes in the greater Birmingham, Alabama area with direct mail delivery, while the digital services offer advanced targeting capabilities including programmatic video advertising.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 280 Living: Community newspaper serving the HWY 280 Corridor in Birmingham, Alabama with monthly print circulation of 25,000 households. Founded 2007.
• Village Living
• The Homewood Star
• Hoover Sun
• Vestavia Voice
• Cahaba Sun
• Iron City Ink

Products and services

• 280 Living Starnes Media's longest-running hyperlocal community newspaper serving the Highway 280 corridor in zip codes 35242 and 35043, with a monthly print circulation of 25,000 households and the largest circulation across all seven Starnes Media newspapers. Targeted at local advertisers seeking reach into the 280 corridor communities.
• Village Living Community newspaper for Mountain Brook, Alabama, serving zip codes 35213, 35223, and 35243 with a monthly print circulation of 13,500 households. Targeted at local advertisers looking to reach Mountain Brook consumers.
• The Homewood Star Community newspaper for Homewood, Alabama, serving zip codes 35209, 35226, and 35216 with a monthly print circulation of 14,000 households. Targeted at advertisers seeking Homewood-area household reach.
• Hoover Sun Community newspaper for Hoover, Alabama, serving zip codes 35216, 35226, 35236, and 35244 with the second-largest circulation at Starnes Media at 22,500 households monthly. Targeted at advertisers reaching Hoover households.
• Vestavia Voice Community newspaper for Vestavia Hills, Alabama, serving zip codes 35216, 35226, 35243, and 35242 with a monthly print circulation of 16,000 households. Winner of Alabama Press Association first place General Excellence, Advertising Sweepstakes, Best Production and Printing, and Best Sports Coverage awards.
• Cahaba Sun Community newspaper serving Trussville, Alabama, in zip code 35173 with a monthly print circulation of 12,500 households. Targeted at advertisers serving Trussville-area households and home services customers.
• Iron City Ink Hyperlocal publication serving Birmingham proper. Part of the Starnes Media portfolio of community newspapers, available to advertisers seeking reach into Birmingham city audiences.
• Birmingham Bar Association Bulletin Quarterly publication for the Birmingham Bar Association, provided to its membership of roughly 3,500 lawyers and judges in the metropolitan Birmingham area. Available for legal industry advertisers and sponsors seeking a high-quality professional audience.
• Under the Lights Annual high-school football preview magazine distributed just prior to the kick-off of high school football. Features award-winning coverage of schools in the greater Birmingham area and is available for advertisers targeting Birmingham-area sports audiences.
• The Guide to Homewood Annual magazine produced for the Homewood Chamber of Commerce serving as a guide to life in Homewood, Alabama. Available for Homewood-area advertisers through the chamber relationship.
• Medical Guide Healthcare content marketing guide published twice yearly across all seven hyperlocal publications, offering custom content creation, professional photography, SEO-optimized content, direct mail to 120,000 homes, year-long sponsored online content, and advertorial features. For healthcare providers including dentists, dermatologists, pediatricians, physical therapists, pharmacies, insurance providers, and home healthcare providers seeking patient acquisition and practice branding.
• Home and Garden Guide Content marketing guide published twice yearly for home services businesses, offering custom articles, professional photography, Q&A story publication, ad design with three rounds of revisions, and distribution via Starnes Media newspapers, websites, and newsletters. For builders, contractors, designers, decorators, plumbers, gardeners, landscapers, roofers, HVAC contractors, real estate agents, mortgage lenders, and other home-oriented businesses.
• Real Estate Guide Content marketing guide published twice yearly for real estate professionals and home-oriented service providers, including builders, contractors, design and decor businesses, plumbers, gardeners, landscapers, roofers, HVAC contractors, real estate agents, and mortgage lenders. Distributed via Starnes Media's publications and digital channels to reach Birmingham-Hoover homeowners.
• Education Guide Content marketing guide for educational services providers, including private schools, day care programs, art/music lessons, tutoring services, distance learning guides, and fall/summer camps. Includes a Q&A story publication, professional photography session (30 min to 1 hr), ad design with three rounds of revisions, direct mail to 120,000 homes, and inclusion in the 20,000-subscriber newsletter distribution across all seven hyperlocal publications.
• Women in Business Content marketing package featuring women business leaders, including professional photography, custom content creation, a social media content package, year-long website feature, and newsletter promotion, with package reach to 100,000+ readers. Includes a charitable partnership with Girls Inc. of Central Alabama. Priced at $3,000 ($500 deposit required) for women-owned and women-led businesses and entrepreneurs in the Birmingham-Hoover metro seeking recognition and marketing support.
• Programmatic Display Advertising Programmatic advertising using data-driven targeting to display highly targeted ads to ideal customers, including programmatic video capabilities with real-time bidding. For local businesses seeking precise audience targeting in the Birmingham-Hoover metro and beyond.
• Pay Per Click (PPC) Pay-per-click advertising management on Google and Facebook platforms, including keyword strategy and optimization services. For local businesses seeking immediate paid search traffic and lead generation.
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Local SEO services including Google My Business optimization and search ranking improvement for local businesses. For local businesses seeking organic visibility in search results across the Birmingham-Hoover metro.
• Web Design and Development Mobile-first, speed-optimized website design with conversion options, including free CRM setup, analytics configuration, and website performance reporting. For local SMBs needing a modern, conversion-focused web presence.
• Geofencing Location-based mobile advertising technology using GPS data to create virtual geographic boundaries around business locations, competitor locations, or areas of interest to target potential customers with mobile ads. For local businesses seeking to reach prospects near their storefront or competitive locations.
• Addressable Geofencing Household-level geofencing targeting using plat line coordinates to locate residents at specific addresses, supporting uploads of up to 1 million addresses per campaign with 30-day cross-device targeting (mobile, video, TV) at the household level. For local businesses seeking precise household targeting at scale.
• Site Retargeting Digital advertising targeting users who previously visited a website but left before completing a purchase, including basic static retargeting for B2B and advanced dynamic retargeting with machine learning for B2C commerce businesses with large product catalogs. For local and B2C businesses seeking to recover lost website visitors.
• Keyword Search Retargeting Retargeting individuals who have typed specific keywords into search engines like Google by displaying matching display ads based on search intent data. For local businesses seeking to convert in-market searchers based on their keyword intent.
• Contextual Targeting Advertising targeting users viewing website content matching specific keywords or categories, using keyword contextual targeting, category contextual targeting (300+ IAB categories), and combination approaches. For local businesses seeking brand-safe contextual ad placement.
• OTT/CTV Advertising Over-the-top and connected TV advertising reaching viewers on smartphones, laptops, game consoles, and streaming devices, with addressable, behavioral, and demographic targeting options across pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ad formats. For local businesses seeking streaming video reach.
• Programmatic Video Automated video advertising using programmatic technology with real-time bidding, including pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll, skippable, and non-skippable ad formats across premium publisher networks with transparent reporting metrics. For local businesses seeking scalable video ad buying.

Quantifiable outcome

• 110,000+ homes reached in greater Birmingham area
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Girls Inc. of Central AlabamaminorOthersCharitable partnership where Women in Business section participants help support Girls Inc. of Central Alabama, an organization that empowers young girls to be strong, smart, and bold. This partnership adds social impact dimension to the Women in Business content marketing package.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The N2 Company: Publishes a portfolio of hyperlocal lifestyle magazines (and digital companion properties) across thousands of U.S. communities and monetizes them via local advertising. Closely mirrors Starnes' model of combining community publishing with local-business advertising sales.
• CherryRoad Media: Acquires and operates small-market community newspapers paired with digital marketing services for local advertisers. Operates in a similar niche of locally-rooted print-plus-digital media serving SMB clients.
• American Consolidated Media: Owns a portfolio of community newspapers and local digital marketing products across multiple states. Directly comparable as a small-to-mid scale multi-publication local media operator with bundled digital services.
• Adams Publishing Group: Family-owned operator of community newspapers, magazines, and digital marketing services in small and mid-sized U.S. markets. Closely comparable footprint and integrated print + digital monetization model.
• Hibu: Digital marketing agency serving local SMBs with website, SEO, social, and targeted advertising solutions. Comparable as a local-business-focused marketing services provider targeting the same customer segment as Starnes Digital.
• Paxton Media Group: Family-owned community newspaper operator across the South and Midwest with growing digital marketing services. Operates in similar Mid-South / Southeastern geographies and offers integrated print + digital SMB advertising.
• Boone Newspapers: Family-owned community newspaper company across the Southeastern U.S. with adjacent digital services. Comparable community-newspaper operating model with similar geographic and customer profile.

Broad incumbents

• Lee Enterprises: Publicly traded operator of daily and weekly newspapers plus digital marketing services (Lee Marketing Solutions) serving SMB advertisers. Larger and broader in scope but operates the same print-plus-local-digital-advertising business.
• Thryv: SMB software and marketing platform providing websites, listings, paid advertising, and CRM to small businesses nationally. Competes for the same local advertiser wallet, scaled via technology rather than local sales reps.
• Gannett / USA TODAY NETWORK: Largest U.S. newspaper group with local publications across the country plus a dedicated SMB marketing agency (LOCALiQ). Competes with Starnes in local ad sales and sets the competitive ceiling for both print pricing and digital services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/starnespub

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Starnes Media