I had trouble figuring out how to start this post as not many of you really know much about me outside of being a mom and my mom life. I grew up with dyslexia and ADD. Growing up with two learning disabilities was pretty tough, but at the same time it’s all I ever knew. However, it’s made me who I am today for which I am very grateful. When I grew up, the school system was unfortunately not set up for children like myself, or at least that’s how I felt. I was very self conscious about my ability to concentrate, process information, and spell. I discovered a wealth of confidence and an incredible boost in my self esteem as I excelled in my passion, soccer.
When it came time to deciding on a career, I thought long and hard about my strengths and focused on choosing one in which I would find personal fulfillment. I loved connecting with people, was very competitive, and had a passion for innovation. I landed my first job at Eli Lilly and two years later at Johnson and Johnson. I worked in outside medical sales in Manhattan and loved every minute of it. I flew up the corporate ladder, receiving the highest title in executive sales before the age of 30. I was the youngest person in my company to attend the Johnson and Johnson Management Development University.
I share this with you for two reasons: first, for all the moms struggling with children with learning disabilities, please realize there is a light at the end of the tunnel and amazing things await these unique children as they grow and find their niche in life. Secondly, it’s never too late to change your path. I am a highly creative person, and my career was the furthest thing from it. I felt like I was walking around with an emptiness, like there was something more I was supposed to do in the creative world. If I didn’t take a risk and try something different, I would always wonder what if…
A year after a very lonely winter with a newborn, I decided to take a chance. I started the Mrs. Nipple blog and community because I felt like there wasn’t a space to connect with new moms during pregnancy and that first year home with a newborn. I also remembered having a million questions when I was pregnant. While registering, I so wanted to connect with real moms and not just websites filled with information. I was also blown away by the amount of women running small baby companies and so passionate about innovative baby products. I launched Mrs. Nipple November of 2017 and my empty creative tank started to fill.
It’s been an incredible few years! I’ve loved every minute of this journey. As I started learning more and more about blogging, I became extremely passionate about the business aspect of blogging and influencers. I also started doing a great amount of networking with brands. One common theme I heard from small, medium, and large sized companies was the obstacles they faced when trying to find influencers that both align with their brands and deliver results.
This didn’t surprise me. After over a year of market research, it was very clear that from a brand perspective it’s very hard to weed out the influencers from the people who want to be influencers but just inflate their follower count and likes and comments with unethical strategies. From a brand perspective, follow count, likes, and comments are how many brands decide if they want to work with an influencer. However there are more important metrics on which brands should be focused. At Mrs. Nipple + Co we’ve developed a vetting system which analyzes multiple data points so brands can be confident in their partnerships in the influencer space.
At Mrs. Nipple + Co. we also developed the highest level of respect for so many bloggers that are busting their backsides every single day with hundreds or even thousands of real likes, comments and followers but are having to compete with knock off influencers who hurt this entire market. I wanted to work with brands to help them develop an influencer strategy they can feel good about and help connect them with authentic influencers who are moms.
What I soon realized was millennial moms are all influencers in their own right. We naturally love talking about everything mom and what’s working and what’s not. That’s why I’m launching the first social media agency, Mrs. Nipple + Co. that is open to bloggers, mom coaches (anyone that guides a mom or mom to be in any way), and the everyday mom (moms that love telling their mom friends and family about everything baby). I wanted this entire community to have a space at Mrs. Nipple + Co. and be able to connect all of you with mom brands, either with paid partnerships, access to mom events, sampling programs plus have access to free products. There really is something for everyone of us!!
Please visit www.mrsnippleandco.com to learn more about my new influencer agency and be sure to sign up for potential brand collaborations.