We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Margaret Geiger. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Margaret below.

Margaret, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you take vacations? Why or why not?

Vacations are a critical part of life. What’s the point of working hard if you don’t make time to enjoy it? I’ve been fortunate to have a flexible career that allows me to frequently travel and see the world. Life is too short!

I recently went on a Mediterranean cruise and visited Italy, Croatia, Montenegro and Greece. This was a trip of a lifetime and I’m so glad I could share it with my husband and parents – all of whom have never been across the pond!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I’ve always marched to the beat of my own drum. As a child, I would get into trouble because phrases like, ‘you can’t do that’ and ‘no’ were music to my ears. If you told me that, my ultimate goal was to prove you wrong. I spent the beginning of my professional career working for small to mid-level businesses in the entertainment and real estate industries as well as a fairly large advertising agency. I will always be appreciative of everything I’ve learned and the people I’ve met along the way because that is what ultimately brought me to this point.

I never dreamt I’d be owning a business one day, let alone a successful one. I come from humble beginnings and worked really, really hard to achieve my goals. I think I’ll never really reach the peak of success, because then, I wouldn’t have anything to work toward.

My mission is to help small businesses succeed. My slogan is ‘Big Ideas for Small Businesses.’ You can’t forget about the little guys. They are truly the backbone of our great country. I also believe in treating everyone with respect and honesty. I’d rather the client know upfront that something isn’t working then string them along while they lose money and their sanity. I put my clients’ needs first and always find new ways to help generate new revenue streams, increase their audiences and improve their overall brand identity. I hope my work and what I’ve done in the community will encourage and inspire others to start their own business.

My company, Twelve31 Media, specializes in social media management, public relations, graphic design and email marketing. Twelve31 Media was born on the necessity to help small businesses grow and thrive while providing budget-friendly services. We aren’t isolated by the four walls of a cubicle. The world is our office! We create content and actionable campaigns that generate engagement, drive sales and boost brand recognition. We believe the work for our clients is a partnership and collaboration. We are listeners, teachers and go-getters! With Twelve31 Media, you’re getting big agency services without paying big agency prices.

I’m a firm believer in the importance of building relationships, community involvement and always putting my clients’ needs first. I was quoted in The Wall Street Journal and have earned my clients features in The Huffington Post, Reader’s Digest, Southern Living, Coastal Living, Country Living, Travel Channel, Restaurant Insider, and many more renowned publications. I’m most proud of this coverage, all of the groundbreaking ceremonies and grand opening events I’ve spearheaded, and most of all, the numerous ‘job well-done’ and ‘thank you for all you do’ remarks I’ve received by my clients.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Everyone can agree that 2020 was a rough year. We all had to pivot in some shape or form. Life seemed to be moving in the wrong direction, businesses were suffering, people were losing their jobs and everyone was losing their sanity. As a relatively new business owner, I was questioning my future. Then, once the third quarter rolled around, something happened. I was getting calls left and right from business owners that needed marketing help. While I lost a few hospitality clients because they couldn’t keep their doors open, I generated a handful of real estate, property management and construction clients.

People were flocking to our state, more so, the Myrtle Beach area. They were leaving big cities with higher taxes and more regulations to live a more relaxed lifestyle. The real estate industry was booming and I was right there promoting our area, new home construction, and home sales and rentals. My client roster changed to these specific industries because that was what was thriving at the time – and still is to this day.

When times get tough, that doesn’t mean you should give up. Find new and creative ways to get through it, because, you will.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

When I was at my previous job at a large advertising agency, I wasn’t happy. I was overworked and underpaid (pretty typical, right?). I proved myself as a strong asset to the team and my clients, but the higher-ups always took the credit. So I thought, I’ve learned a lot, I’ve made a ton of professional connections, so why not start my own business? It will be on my time, I get to pick my clients and if I screw up, it’s on me, but if I succeed, it’s all ME.

I was approached by a couple friends and people I’ve met in the community. They owned small businesses and needed support but couldn’t afford thousands of marketing dollars a month with the agency I was at. This was like a lightbulb that went off in my head. There are TONS of small businesses out there that need help but simply can’t afford it or are trying to do everything themselves and their business is suffering because of it.

I left the ad agency and took on a flexible marketing director job at a local real estate firm. Then, I started Twelve31 Media as a side hustle, built up my clientele and then went full-time after a year. I’ve grown to be a six-figure business within just three years. It would have taken me 10 years or more to reach that at my previous job. I’m happy, have a flexible schedule, and best of all, my small business clients have someone in their corner to help their business thrive.

Contact Info:

• Website: twelve31-media.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/margaret1231media
• Facebook: facebook.com/twelve31media
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/company/twelve31media
• Twitter: twitter.com/twelve31_media