Three years after she and husband Prince Harry abandoned the site, Meghan Markle is reportedly planning to return to Instagram.

And it’s not because she wants a place to post cute family pics for the benefit of her far-flung relatives.

No, industry experts say Meghan stands to earn as much as $1 million for a single piece of sponsored content.

And since the Sussexes’ other media ventures have thus far met with mixed results, it’s easy to see why that would be a very attractive prospect for the duchess.

But one PR expert warns that Meghan runs the risk of permanently damaging her brand by returning to social media.

“The Sussexes currently exist outside of, and above, the celebrity ecosystem; they possess an otherness that sets them apart from your garden variety A-lister,” royal commentator and expert Daniela Elser explained in her column this week.

“There is a world of difference between someone like Kim Kardashian, whose fame, wealth and nearly unthinkable reach is built solely on her (or at least her mother’s) cunning and a woman whose global fame is entirely down to her membership via marriage of an ancient institution entirely founded on the concept of hereditary privilege.”

Elser argues that Meghan exists on higher tier of celebrity by virtue of her marriage and title.

But once the duchess begins posting sponsored content on Instagram, says Elser, she’ll sully not only herself but the institution she married into.

“The minute that Meghan goes live,” Elser writes, she’ll experience “a reverse Cinderella scenario,” in which she and Harry will “be turning themselves back into ordinary pumpkins, no better, no worse than some Bachelor semi-finalist keen to dip their wick into some of that nice teeth-whitening spon-con cashola.”

Meghan won’t be working with just any brands, or course.

Insiders say her first social media partnership will be with luxury jeweler Cartier.

But for many royal traditionalists, the idea of a member of the Windsor clan shilling for any company is repugnant.

“Reopening her social media accounts risks further inflaming the narrative that Meghan quite likes attention,” writes Edward Coram-James for Express.

“Furthermore, having active and product promoting social media accounts is not considered very royal behavior,” he adds.

“If she opens her social media accounts, using her titles and royal influence as key elements of her brand, but uses them for product placement and political messaging (remember, the royals are supposed to be commercially and politically neutral), it will open her up to a lot of potential criticism of abusing the cultural norms that go with a thousands of years old tradition.”

Meghan has not yet announced her return to social media, but fans of the duchess believe she’s dropped plenty of hints.

An account with the handle @meghan began gaining traction earlier this month, despite the fact that it hasn’t followed anyone or posted any content yet.

Fans were quick to notice that the profile pic is a stock photo of peonies, which are believed to be Meghan’s favorite flower.

And on the strength of that observation alone, the page has already amassed more than 121,000 followers.

Needless to say, that number will skyrocket if and when Meghan confirms that the account is actually hers.

And while no one doubts that she’ll be able to earn some big bucks by posting the right content, it’ll be a long time before we’ll know if this is the right move for Meg in the long run.

Meghan Markle Will Cheapen Her Brand, Become “Just Another Celebrity” With … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.