Today we celebrate National Selfie Day and all the creative women out there making big bank on their selfies. Since it was founded in 2010, Instagram has become a lucrative platform for social media stars, especially women. These female influencers can make anywhere from $1,000 to $20,000 just for sharing one brand-sponsored photo with their followers. In fact, the overall influencer market is now worth an estimated $2 billion and is expected to reach $10 billion by 2020, according to Adweek.
Here are some moms, a.k.a. #momfluencers, who have turned themselves into social media powerhouses. For most of them, it started with a few eye-catching selfies on Instagram or Twitter.
Kelly Oxford, @KellyOxford
In 2001, Kelly Oxford became a full-time stay-at-home mom and started an anonymous blog. She joined Twitter in 2009 and has amassed a huge following, currently clocking at 925,400 followers. Followers love her hilarious observations about motherhood as well as her sometimes politically-tinged comments. She was contacted by Hollywood agents and sold two TV show scripts, one to CBS and the other to NBC. Then, Oxford scored a book deal. Her semi-autobiographical book, “Everything Is Perfect When You’re a Liar,” was published in 2013. Today, she has 180,000 followers on Instagram and she frequently posts selfies with honest stories about motherhood.
Katie Sturino, @the12ishstyle
Katie Sturino is a body-positivity fashion blogger. She refers to herself as “Size 12ish in a Size 2 World.” Sturino started her blog, The12ishstyle.com, in order to introduce girls who wear sizes 12-18 to fashion-forward brands. She recently parlayed her social media success into her own innovative personal care brand, Megababe. Her products are designed to address common areas of discomfort for many women. Thigh Rescue reduces inner thigh chafing and Bust Dust combats boob sweat. Megababe is now available in 1,100 Ulta stores across the U.S. as well as online. Sturino currently boasts an impressive 186,000 followers on Instagram.
She is also a mother to three celebrity dogs who also have an Instagram following on their own: Toast (@toastmeetsworld), Underpants (@underpantsthedog) and Muppet (@muppetsrevenge).
Sia Cooper, @diaryofafitmommyofficial
Sia Cooper was an underpaid nurse and mother who started chronicling her fitness journey on Instagram. She went from living on less than $30,000 per year as a nurse to earning about $500,000 per year, all thanks to Instagram. About four years ago she launched
Diary of a Fit Mommy. The 29-year-old mother of two children, both under the age of four, has an impressive 1.1 million followers on Instagram.
Jill Smokler, @scarymommy
Jill Smokler founded her Scary Mommy blog in 2008. At first, it was just a personal blog where she wrote self-effacing posts about life as a mother. By 2014, Scary Mommy averaged 15 million monthly page views and employed six staff members. She currently has 934,100 followers on Instagram. In 2017, Jill was named one of the “Top Ten Parenting Influencers” by Forbes magazine.
Shanicia Boswell, @blackmomsblog
Shanicia Boswell is a full-time mom, twice-over entrepreneur and social media influencer. After noticing that there were not many black mothers blogging about parenthood, she founded Black Moms Blog, an interactive online community where she and other moms talk parenting, culture and lifestyle from a Black mom’s point of view.Today, Shanicia’s Instagram has 406,000 followers and she makes a living full-time of her sponsorships and ads on social media.