By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
Since its beginnings in July of 2007, Athens Now has been blessed to be the exclusive publisher of real estate listings for Troy Elmore Realty. Troy has been a true friend of the paper, patiently walking me through the vertical learning curve of becoming a publisher, and from time to time would give coaching and suggestions that were indeed helpful. In March, he decided to free up some space for other realtors and advertise with us when he has an auction. Steve and I have nothing but thanks for his support and friendship, and wish Troy well in all that is ahead for him and the whole Troy Elmore Realty family.
It is said that when God closes a door, He opens a window, and we are excited to announce the launch of a platform for area realtors that are interested in beautifully presenting their listings, making space for their trusted vendors, and as space allows, offering suggestions for both buyers and sellers to improve their experience. Kathy Lawrence of Redstone Realty is our first advertiser, and there is room for six more pages.
By way of history, Athens Now was founded by Wayne and Deborah Huff, and in its infancy, they were wanting to come up with a tag-line that would “describe the vibe” of the paper — its values, focus, reason for being and commitment to the community. Nothing came in terms of inspiration until one night Deborah had a dream. In the dream she heard the words “Information and Inspiration,” and that has been tucked beneath the header of each edition ever since. We in turn chose to keep that descriptor when we bought the paper in March of 2011. That phrase has been our “true north,” and what we aspire to be and say each time we go to print or online.
My reason for going into that bit of background is to let would-be advertisers (realtors or others throughout the paper) know that having high levels of integrity, customer service, and a desire to strengthen our community are non-negotiable. We truly want to “inspire and inform” from cover to cover, and are prayerfully hopeful that the people who choose Athens Now to get their message out love this place and its people the way we have come to since we took a “divine detour” and landed here 25 years ago.
The paper is published on the first and third Friday of every month and is distributed in two states, nine towns, and four counties. Four thousand copies are printed each run, and Times Daily in Florence, who publishes the paper, estimates that what is known as the “pass-along” rate is between 12,000 and 16,000. That term refers to when someone reads it in the doctor’s office and brings a copy home. The online version is read in over 80 countries and has well over a million hits. And, as everyone knows, once you are “out there” in cyberspace, you are out there forever. There is no additional charge for the online publication.
If you are a realtor and want to get in on this new development, we encourage you to move quickly. The buzz is building, and honestly, one of my favorite parts of this process is to discover a wonderful level of collaboration amongst those who are in the real estate business and technically are competitors. More than once I have heard, “Oh, you need to contact so-and-so at such-and-such realty. She’s good people, and would be perfect for this.” That coming from a competitor makes me want to cheer, and we look forward to helping you build your business as we make North Alabama even more beautiful, within and without.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
April 18, 2025
