EXCLUSIVE I used to make $12k a month from content creation... but now I am struggling to find work
Lisa Jean-Francois, who is in her 40s, from Massachusetts, has been a social media star for over a decade.
She started off as a fashion influencer before switching her content to parenting after she became a mom.
With over 100,000 followers, she once made upwards of $12,000 per month as sponsorships came pouring in.
But in recent years, she has struggled to land brand deals and now, she is desperately looking for a job after realizing content creation is not something she can rely on forever.
So what went wrong? Well, Lisa laid bare her rollercoaster-ride journey and opened up about the downsides to social media stardom that no one talks about exclusively with the Daily Mail.
Lisa explained that she first found viral fame back in 2012 after she launched a blog that focused on 'showing women how to look good for less.'
'My first blog was called Beauty on the Cheap, where I focused on drugstore makeup,' she said.
Lisa Jean-Francois, who is in her 40s, has been a social media star for over a decade. She started off as a fashion influencer before switching her content to parenting
'And I featured clothes from... affordable fast fashion brands. It was all about making beauty and style accessible.'
By 2014 she was raking in money from ad revenue on her blog, and it dawned on her that she could make a full-time living from content creation.
She quit her job and began to build her brand on Instagram, but it wasn't easy.
She had to invest thousands of dollars, spending on cameras, editing tools, website designers, wardrobe, props, and more.
'I also paid photographers and video editors. People don't realize you have to spend real money to make your content look polished and professional. It all adds up fast,' she shared.
By 2017, her hard work had paid off. She was a full fledged 'fashion influencer,' bringing in anywhere from $8,000 to $12,000 a month, and sometimes even more if a 'big campaign came through.'
'By around 2017, it started to feel like a real, full-time career,' she reflected.
'Brand partnerships and ad revenue from my blog really started to come in consistently, and I treated it like a business.'
But while the pay was high, Lisa admitted that there were tons of downsides to the world of content creation.
She said there was a 'constant pressure to stay relevant' and 'keep up with the trends,' which was 'exhausting.'
Lisa also pointed out that you 'can't control how people perceive you,' which can be extremely difficult.
'It can feel inauthentic, too, trying to maintain a perfect image,' she added.
And while she was making a lot, she was still spending a lot to keep her content fresh.
'I never repeated an outfit on Instagram. It always had to be fresh and bold to stop people from scrolling,' she explained.
Lisa also recalled her followers leaving cruel comments about her body after she welcomed her son.
'Someone even suggested I should hide my belly pudge,' she said.
In 2021, Lisa posted an intimate video to Instagram opening up about an incident she had with her then-toddler son.
She explained that she had been angry with him and threw away one of his drawings, then felt terrible and apologized to the youngster.
The video resonated with tons of other parents and gained almost a million views, and it made Lisa realize that she could post more mom content.
At the time, she confessed that her mental health had been deteriorating and that as a new mom, it was becoming harder for her to keep up with her account.
'It was my first time showing my audience I was parenting differently, and the response made me feel people would be open to it,' she explained.
'At the same time, I was deep in my own healing journey. From 2019 to mid-2021, I was working as Head of Influencer Marketing & PR for a beauty brand, and I was treated horribly, my nervous system was shot.
'I had a new baby. I couldn't get on Instagram and talk about lipstick when my life felt like it was unraveling.'
Soon, she switched her focus on social media from fashion to 'conscious parenting,' and boy, was it popular.
Her videos exploded, leading to her having more viral fame than ever before.
'I never cracked more than 50,000 followers on Instagram [when I was a fashion influencer]. But the parenting content doubled that,' she said.
But more attention also meant more hate, as Lisa added, 'The harshest comments came when I switched to conscious parenting.
'Parenting is a hot-button topic. I had to weed through comments from people describing how they harm their own kids, or wishing harm on mine.
'Some people literally told me they couldn't wait to see my children shot or locked up because I chose not to hit them. That was far more painful than any comment about my body.'
In addition, Lisa explained that parenting isn't as much of a lucrative topic as fashion is, and she began to lose brand deals.
'I did a three-month partnership with L.L.Bean in 2021, in 2020 I went on a brand trip with Sperry. I mean business was booming,' she dished.
'Now it's like I don't even exist to businesses. For example, I worked with Hood Ice Cream for a couple of years, but once I [switched to parenting content], that stopped.
'Even when a local Cape Cod resort enthusiastically invited me recently, they ghosted me when I asked for basic coverage like meals in exchange for content.
'So it feels like I'm shut out [from brand deals] for reasons I don't fully understand. It's different now.'
But she said it 'feels more rewarding' and authentic posting about motherhood than fashion, so she has no regrets about making the switch.
'It's never too late to pivot. It's okay to outgrow something that once defined you,' she encouraged others.
Even so, Lisa is now coming to grips with the realization that she's not making enough from content creation to make it her full-time career anymore.
She recently launched her own jewelry line called The Consciously Lisa Collection. She also wrote a book on parenting and sells virtual styling consultations.
But she is now looking for a steady job - and she admitted that things are 'tough' right now because 'nobody will hire her.'
'I can't live off of the jewelry income and what I take home in a month isn't what I used to take home,' she admitted. '[I get] one brand-sponsored Instagram post [per month].
'Brands always chase what's new and fresh. If you don't build something you own, you're left with nothing when they move on.'
While reflecting on her journey as an influencer, Lisa - who currently has 124,000 followers on her account @ConsciouslyLisa_ - admitted that she wished she had done things different.
And she hopes that sharing her story will help teach others not to make the same mistakes that she did.
'After nearly 14 years [as an influencer], I know this space deeply, but I don't always feel respected in it,' she shared.
'I think every creator should diversify their income and build multiple streams at once. Brand money is great, I know creators who make $20,000 for a single post, but it's risky if you don't manage your money wisely.
'One reason I struggle now is because I didn't always spend wisely or keep good financial records.
'If I could do it again, I wouldn't have abandoned having a steady W-2 job entirely. I have a master's in writing, an undergraduate degree in English and journalism, I have experience teaching, marketing, and office management, but it all feels worthless now.
'No one will hire me. I wish I'd kept some steady income outside social media. It would have made these tough seasons easier.'
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