Stars and influencers can make a whole lot of money for posting endorsements and ads on social media, but few command as much cash as Kim Kardashian.
According to STAT, the 37-year-old made a jaw-dropping $500,000 in 2015 for teaming up with a drug company to shill morning sickness pills on her Instagram page — which, at the time, amounted to a single post.
Duchesnay, the company behind the morning sickness pill Diclegis, paid her half a million dollars for the ad, which ended up causing them some trouble when Kim’s post prompted a warning letter from the US Food and Drug Administration.
Wow: Kim Kardashian was reportedly paid $500,00 for this 2015 Instagram post for the morning sickness pill Diclegis
Whoops! The mother-of-three was pregnant with Saint at the time, and had to go back and edit the text after the drug company received a warning letter from the FDA
Several of the Kardashian/Jenner women — including Kim, Khloe, and Kylie in particular — have scored big bucks by endorsing products on social media.
Sometimes, though, their posts have inspired backlash, like when Kim promoted an appetite-suppressant lollipop earlier this year.
But as it turns out, the star may have caused the most trouble with her highest-earning endorsement.
In 2015, Duchesnay paid Kim half a million dollars to promote Diclegis. As with many social media promotional deals, the company wrote out text for Kim to include in the caption of the post.
The problem was that the text only included the upsides of the drug — not the potential side effects. And as anyone who has seen an ad for medicine in the US knows, they’re required to list all of the possible side-effects.
More money! Kim has continued to work with the company and shared another ad while pregnant with Chicago
Playing by the rules: This time, the 37-year-old got all the relevant information into the captions the first time
According to Consumerist, Kim’s post simply said: ‘OMG. Have you heard about this? As you guys know my #morningsickness has been pretty bad. I tried changing things about my lifestyle, like my diet, but nothing helped, so I talked to my doctor.
‘He prescribed me #Diclegis, and I felt a lot better and most importantly, it’s been studied and there was no increased risk to the baby. I’m so excited and happy with my results that I’m partnering with Duchesnay USA to raise awareness about treating morning sickness.
‘If you have morning sickness, be safe and sure to ask your doctor about the pill with the pregnant woman on it and find out more.’
The post prompted the FDA to send Duchesnay a warning letter, telling them they could no longer use Kim’s post as it was, since it was ‘false or misleading in that it presents efficacy claims for Diclegis, but fails to communicate any risk information associated with its use and it omits material facts.’
Not her fault! Kim was given the text to include by the drug company, which left out the important informaton
Rolling in it: She has also promoted another morning sickness pill for the same company, though it’s unclear whether she made an additional $500,000 per post
Yikes! Kim has been in trouble for other endorsements in the past, like the one she posted for an appetite suppressant lollipop
This was in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
Kim went on to edit the caption, using the hashtag ‘#CorrectiveAd and writing, ‘I guess you saw the attention my last #morningsickness post received. The FDA has told Duchesnay, Inc., that my last post … was incomplete because it did not include any risk information or important limitations of use for Diclegis.’
She then added the pertinent information — and presumably kept that $500,000.
Kim went on to work with the drug company again while pregnant with Chicago in 2015, posting two more ads and likely raking in even more money.
She also promoted Bonjesta, another morning sickness medicine made by the same drug company.
Score! Meanwhile, little sister Kylie Jenner can make up to $1 million for a social media post
Competitive: They have both promoted the same products at times, like these gummy vitamins. It’s unclear whether Kylie made more than Kim for the same post
While Kim’s paycheck is certainly impressive, it turns out that she’s trailing her younger sister, Kylie.
According to a report from D’Marie Analytics published earlier this year, a single post by Ms. Jenner commands $1,000,000.
‘Kylie is an undeniable global brand, which may make some roll their eyes,’ D’Marie Analytics CEO, Frank Spadafora, said in a press release, according to People.
‘But the reality is this young, female entrepreneur’s savvy helped her reach a milestone in the influencer marketing and advertising industry which many seasoned professionals have failed to achieve.’