Meet Samantha Oughtred | Founder and CEO of SAM+PR

We had the good fortune of connecting with Samantha Oughtred and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Samantha, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
I began SAM+PR right after completing my Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and Public Relations. We were about six months into COVID-19. I had been freelancing while taking online courses double full-time. I had two little girls at home with me, unable to go back to school because of the pandemic. Schools were completely closed in Savannah at the time. Child care was not an option, both from a financial standpoint and lack of resources available.

I landed a job with a non-profit and quickly worked my way up to Director of Development. Although I was working from home, my position required to me to be in front of my computer from 9-5 each day. Calls were often unplanned and lengthy, and sometimes my children needed my attention-especially after they returned to school I was often pressured to find childcare that wasn’t available. My salary was viable enough to cover after school care. I found myself freelancing on the side just to keep up with the cost of emergency childcare and the rising cost of living expenses.

In January of 2022, I decided enough was enough. At that point, I was working 50 hours per week for my salaried position and up to 30 per week freelancing. As a single mother of two little girls, I was fraught with guilt about not being able to spend enough time with them or provide for them. I left my position as Director of Development to commit to a better life work balance that was on MY terms so that I could properly care for my daughters during these “trying times”.

I still work a lot, but my stress levels are way down. Although I am meticulous in my work scheduling, but I enjoy my work. I get to help people promote themselves. I am a vector of hope for startups, non-profits, and women-owned businesses that are overwhelmed by the cost and anxiety of marketing their products and services. I am no longer pressured to neglect my daughters to spend time on projects that aren’t fruitful for us. Sometimes, I still pull 80 hour work weeks, but they are on my terms, so knowing that I am utilizing that time to build something sustainable brings me peace and hope for our future and creates a sense of balance for my family and for me.

What should our readers know about your business?
I have an incredibly sarcastic sense of humor, which sometimes surprises people when they know I have spent the majority of my professional career working with nonprofits. I began as an AmeriCorps VISTA with CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) in 2012. For those that don’t know, AmeriCorps is kind of like the domestic version of the Peace Corps. You are assigned a project locally and “volunteer” a 40 hour work week for a stipend that is well below the poverty line. I was assigned with our local CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), an organization that trains volunteers from the community to serve as a voice for abused and neglected children in the court system-most often in foster care.

This kind of work is…well…traumatic. I used my humor to cope with some of the traumas associated with what we worked, and as a creative side project, I created a sarcastic greeting card company, CardSastic.

Fast forward a few years, two kids, a pandemic, and a degree later, I rebranded CardSastic into SAM+PR. SAM+PR is an acronym for Strategic Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations. I am also Sam (Sam I am). Now I provide branding, website development, social media content and management, and public relations rather than just cutesy birthday invitations.

The thing that sets ME apart from other marketing businesses/agencies is that I have the strategic know-how, the creative juices, and the sarcastic wit (along with my love of puns), and empathy to create entertaining and impactful campaigns. Has it been easy? Hell no. I’m a single mom in an overinflated economy at the tail end of a pandemic! Would I change anything? I only wish I had pulled the trigger sooner on my company rather than settling for a position with an organization that didn’t quite suit me. I did learn some valuable lessons and make some lovely friendships though, so I don’t consider it a mistake,

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m not local to Atlanta, but because I’m a kid at heart and lover of the ocean, I could spend WEEKS at the Georgia Aquarium. I am originally from Chattanooga, So Atlanta is the stopover point for my girls and I when we go back to visit family from our current home in Savannah. My daughters and I sometimes stay at the Omni at the CNN center so that we can walk to the Aquarium, visit Centennial Park, and ride the Ferris wheel. I’m a mom first (thus the business change), so my cool factor is definitely limited.

In Savannah, however, we are definite beach goers. Every Friday after school, you can find us with our friends at the jetty, swapping surfboards and finding shark teeth along the shoreline.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to give a shoutout to all of the women in my life that have helped shape me as both a mother and a leader. I’ve had women in my life that have influenced and encouraged me to think beyond what society expects of me and to find what drives me to be successful and fulfilled.

Website: https://www.samprpro.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samprpro/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samprpro

Image Credits
Lindsay West, The Westward Photo