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How to Get Verified on Social Media

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How to Get Verified on Social Media

Social media verification is an important step for a number of companies and other people trying to present themselves online. Websites such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram will usually request some kind of personal information from a user to verify that the person is who they say they are, and in return, the website will place a checkmark or some kind of badge on the account that notifies other users that helps develop a certain level of trust.

Verification is one of the first steps in most social media marketing strategies. When a social media account becomes verified, it immediately gains credibility and can also help improve possible networking options.

Getting verified on social media websites can be difficult, but the reward is usually worth the effort. Without an enormous following, as is common with many high-profile celebrities, verification is far from automatic for most other people.

People who have attempted to become verified and failed should know that they may not have been properly following the applicable rules. This blog post will be designed to give you some helpful overviews of seeking verification on websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, and Snapchat.

The Importance of Becoming Verified on Social Media

The blue checkmark on Twitter was one of the first social media websites to use verification, and many people today rely on that blue checkmark to confirm that an account on that website is actually run by the person it claims to be. Verified accounts immediately stand above other accounts and stand out as the accounts worth paying attention to.

Verification is important because when somebody is incredibly popular, there will always be the chance that there are several other accounts with the same name that are not operated by that person. This is important because some people or companies will attempt to create accounts that may even identify themselves as official accounts for larger companies but are not actually connected to said companies.

People will frequently have to do some research when determining whether social media accounts actually belong to the people or companies that the accounts claim to be operated by. Verification is helpful because it can remove the need to perform any homework.

The number of followers and the type of content on an account will usually be the surest signs of how authentic an account is, but verification is the simplest way. Here is how you can get verified on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, and Snapchat.

How to Get Verified on Facebook

Facebook uses a blue verification checkmark for major media organizations, global brands, or public figures, while a gray checkmark denotes other businesses also deemed to be authentic. Getting verified on Facebook begins with making sure that a Facebook page is completely updated.

Profile pictures need to be updated and profile information has to be filled out. People who have not been posting regularly will need to wait until they have regularly posted for a consistent amount of time before attempting to become verified.

Facebook states that it looks at a number of factors when evaluating Facebook accounts to determine if they’re in the public interest and meet verification criteria. In addition to following Facebook’s terms of service, an account also needs to be:

Authentic: Your account must represent a real person, registered business or entity.
Unique: Your account must be the unique presence of the person or business it represents. Only one account per person or business may be verified, with exceptions for language-specific accounts. We don’t verify general interest accounts (example: Puppy Memes).
Complete: Your account must be active and have an about section, profile photo and at least one post.
Notable: Your account must represent a well-known, often searched person, brand or entity. We review accounts that are featured in multiple news sources, and we don’t consider paid or promotional content as sources for review.

Facebook notes that providing false or misleading information during the verification process can lead to removal of a verified badge as well as additional action to delete an account. When you think you satisfy these terms and are ready to proceed, you can complete a Request a Blue Verification Badge form.

If your account represents a person, you will need a copy of your official government-issued photo identification such as a passport, driver’s license, national identification card to validate your request. If your account represents an organization, you will need a copy of a phone or utility bill, a certificate of formation, articles of incorporation, or tax exemption documents.

With business verification on Facebook, the process begins by going to the Security Center. If you use Monthly Invoicing to pay for ads on Facebook, you don’t have to submit documentation for business verification.

Enter your business details and click Next. The business information you provide during the business verification process will become publicly visible if your Page has a large audience or runs ads about social issues, elections, or politics in the United States.

You will then select the correct business from the list, or select None of these match if you don’t see your business on the list. Select a phone number that you have access to from the dropdown menu and click Next.

Choose to receive the verification code on your business phone number via a text message or phone call, or via email. Business verification usually only takes a matter of days but could take weeks in some cases.

How to Get Verified on Twitter

Twitter states that a blue verified badge on Twitter lets people know that an account of public interest is authentic. To receive a blue badge, an account must be notable and active.

A Twitter account must represent or otherwise be associated with a prominently recognized individual or brand, in line with the notability criteria described below. In addition to confirming the identity of the controller of the account, Twitter will verify the following types of accounts based on the criteria described:

Government: Accounts of key government officials and offices, including heads of state, elected officials, appointed ministers, institutional entities, ambassadors, and official spokespeople. Official candidates for state- or national-level public office may also be verified in certain countries, where available resources allow us to do so fairly and equitably. To qualify, there must be a public reference to the account on an official government or party site or publication, or multiple references in news media. Twitter may also independently confirm qualifying affiliation through direct outreach. Official accounts of public utilities and other services may also be verified, as may people in leadership positions and official spokespeople.
Companies, brands, and organizations: Accounts representing prominent organizations, and secondary affiliated accounts, including companies, brands, non-profit organizations, as well as their leaders and other prominent executives. To qualify as prominent, accounts must meet 2 of the following requirements:
presence in public indices, including but not limited to Google Trends, public stock exchanges, Wikipedia (including multiple references to unaffiliated external sources), and databases such as Charity Navigator;
3 or more featured references within the 6 months prior to applying in news outlets that meet the News criteria below; or
follower count in the top .1% of active accounts located in the same country.
News: Any official accounts of qualifying news organizations, as well individual accounts of journalists employed by qualifying organizations may be verified, if the account is public (does not have protected Tweets) and refers directly to the name and official URL of the qualifying organization and otherwise meets the criteria laid out in this policy. Qualifying organizations include newspapers; magazines; broadcast, cable, satellite, and streaming TV and radio news networks, stations and programs; digital news publishers; podcasts; and similar media, and must adhere to recognized professional standards for journalism such as those laid out by the Society of Professional Journalists, Independent Press Standards Organization, and International Federation of Journalists, or have committed to the International Fact-Checking Network’s code of principles. Independent or freelance journalists may be verified if they can provide at least 3 bylines/credits in qualifying publications published within the 6 months prior to applying.
Entertainment: Accounts of major entertainment companies, such as film studios, TV networks, and music entities may be verified. Official accounts of productions associated with these entities, such as films, events/festivals, or TV shows, may be verified if:
the connection to a verified organization is clear on the account’s profile; and
the website associated with the production or entity, or similar official public source, includes a link to the profile

Individual accounts of artists, performers, directors, and others in similar public-facing roles associated with such entities or their productions may be verified if:

the website associated with a verified entity, or similar official public source, includes a link to the profile;
and
they have five production credits on their IMDB profile, or
they have three or more featured references within the 6 months prior to applying in news outlets that meet the News criteria above.

Sports: Accounts