Do you personally know anyone who is making money blogging or instagramming?

[Anonymous]

A friend of mine does a home decorating blog. She has gotten free items to promote like paint, paint sprayer, and similar items.

[Anonymous]

I know David Lat from Above the Law. He seems to have done OK!

[Anonymous]

I know someone who had a successful blog on parenting (and specifically a child with autism) while she was a SAHM. Then her blog became more marketing and reviews of products as she became well known. She was then offered a social marketing job from one of the companies she was advertising and has worked her way up that company. So her blog ended up making her money indirectly. She didn't have a college degree and didn't think she had many job prospects. Her savvy at engaging people online led to a successful career.

[Anonymous]

A girl I graduated high school with started a lifestyle/mom IG page and now has a blog. She's gotten it pretty big with over 111,000 followers on IG and gets sponsors from big companies. Recently jimmy dean, halo top and olly nutrition. She's 28 with three kids under 4 living in Nashville now so has the "look/lifestyle".

[Anonymous]

I have friends who have a travel food blog. They quit their jobs and have been traveling for the past year. They make a little money from it. But they get free meals, experiences auch as a free safari to write about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know David Lat from Above the Law. He seems to have done OK!

Any idea of how much money he makes from that site?

[Anonymous]

Yes but it's not enough for her to quit her full time job.

[Anonymous]

On the YHL podcast, three bloggers (Making It Lovely, Emily Henderson and the Jungalow lady that I hate) talked about making anywhere from $5000-$25000 per sponsored post. That's insane but kudos to them, man.

[Anonymous]

A friend made money for many years running "The 'blog' of Unnecessary Quotation Marks" and published a book out of it. The "blog" ultimately ran its course, and she (wisely) ended it.

[Anonymous]

I used to have a product showcase blog -- similar to Mighty Goods -- and would get free products and some of the companies I blogged about asked me to join their ad and affiliate networks. I quit it after a year because I didn't have time to keep it up, but at the time (this was 10 years ago when blogging was fairly new), I was making about $150/month through ads and affiliate links.

[Anonymous]

I have a tennant in my commercial property that does YouTube and Instagram videos on nail ideas. Her videos went viral. She makes enough money that her husband was able to quit his profession to manager her brand. She's had an app developed and paid off their house. I think she's developing a line of nail polish atm. Also earns enough to maintain a small office and video production site in my plaza.

[Anonymous]

I have a random YouTube video that went viral. It has 1.5 million hits. After it started getting a lot of attention, YouTube contacted me and asked to monetize the video with ads. The 1.5 million hits have given me about $2000 in ad money.

[Anonymous]

A friend of mine in law school began a blog after being a summer associate at a law firm. His blog was called Anonymous Lawyer, and he wrote in the persona of a big-shot partner at a big law firm in LA. He "outed" himself on the front page of the NYT Style section when we were 3Ls, which led to a book deal (another friend who had summered at an entertainment firm helped him get an agent to rep him on the book deal).

He's now a freelance writer and never practiced law, which don't think he was ever that interested in doing. He wrote one other book, and I think he ghost writes as well as some tv/film work (writing scripts).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mom of my DD's BFF. Mommy blog. So fake compared to her real life. Hint: she buys clothes and housewares to stage the photos and then returns them.

Know a similar blogger who does give-aways, contests, and shills for online businesses (think Zappos and Blue Apron). Lots of pictures of herself posing in her new clothes, shoes, complete with faux self-criticism (still haven't lost those five pounds...does this look okay on me?) and then fawning comments (OMG! You look skinny! You're beautiful!). Many items get shipped back.

Agree. So fake.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know David Lat from Above the Law. He seems to have done OK!

Any idea of how much money he makes from that site?

I would love to know. I know Ellie Mystal from school and he seems to have quite a number of side projects somewhat related to ATL. I wouldn't think he makes anywhere near what he made at Debevoise, but it probably adds up to some decent money.