How do you get verified on Instagram? We all know what that blue tick represents when it comes to our Instagram profiles. It brings instant credibility to our profiles and shows people that we are truly the real deal. This means that anyone who visits your account will know that you’re legit, and accredited, which of course, is going to increase the chances of them following you.
So, what’s the deal with Instagram verification, then, and how do you make it happen? Until late 2018, Instagram didn’t have a way of requesting to be verified. This means that it was all up to them, and you have to be one of the lucky ones that were chosen.
However, these days, it’s a bit different – you can request to be verified, and if you tick all the boxes, Instagram can verify you. Keep in mind, though, that not everyone who submits a form to be verified gets it because there is a criterion that Instagram follows.
How to Get Verified on Instagram
- Go to your account settings by clicking on the three lines in the top right-hand corner of your profile. Scroll down until you see Settings, and then click on it.
- Find ‘request verification’ and click on it.
- Once you’ve made it here, Instagram will ask you to submit these things: your Instagram username, your full name, what you’re known as on Instagram, the category that your account falls into, and a photo ID.
- Once you’ve done this, all you have to do is click on the ‘send’ button and wait for an answer. Instagram doesn’t make it super clear how long it’s supposed to take to hear back, which means that it could be anything from the same day to a couple of weeks. Just be patient!
What Else is Considered
Instagram does say that there are a few things their users have to have to qualify for verification on their account. If you want to increase your chances of being approved, let’s take a look below:
- Authenticity: you’ve got to be able to prove that you are who you say you are. This means that you can’t be trying to copy another Instagram user, and you can’t be a fan account for someone that you look up to.
- Uniqueness: Instagram is always on the lookout for specific pages and profiles that exude uniqueness in their content. This also means that the content you put up needs to be original – there’s nothing wrong with reposting other people’s content, but if you want to be verified, your content has to be your own.
- Complete and Public: Instagram needs your account to be switched to public if you plan on being verified. You also need to make sure that you have completed your bio, which of course, includes having a high-quality profile picture, and posts that you regularly upload to your account. The better your bio is, the more likely Instagram is going to verify you. If you want to learn how to optimize your Instagram bio so that you can get verified, check out these Instagram marketing courses.
- No Cross-Promotion: you aren’t allowed to have ‘add me’ links, that ask people who visit your account to follow you elsewhere online on other social media platforms. You should only be linking people to your website or online store.
- Noteworthy: it wasn’t that long ago that Instagram only stuck to verifying celebrities. However, that has all changed – but you have to be already somewhat noteworthy. If you want to be verified by Instagram, you have to already have some press about your brand outside of Instagram itself.
Once You’ve Submitted Your Request
- You Don’t Have to Have a Certain Number of Followers: don’t worry – Instagram doesn’t have a minimum number of followers that your profile needs in order to get verified. However, if you’re someone who wishes they had more followers, don’t stress – having millions of Instagram followers also doesn’t necessarily guarantee that you will be verified either. There are so many other factors to consider, as you can see above that your follower count is only one small part of it. If you want help growing your follower count, though, you may want to check out companies like Stellation Media, who have experienced team members who can help you.
- There Are No Reasons for Rejection: while you may get a bit of an insight into what helps you get verified, Instagram is pretty tight-lipped about what doesn’t qualify you for verification, too. If you do get rejected, they will let you know that your account hasn’t been verified – but they won’t go into any further details. It’s a little bit annoying, but you can always resubmit your request after 30 days.
- You Can’t Submit Features: there is no way to show Instagram that your brand has been featured in new articles outside of the social media app. While they will do their own research, there’s no guaranteeing that they’re going to see everything. With this in mind, we guess that the more press that’s out there, the better a chance you have. It’s also worth remembering to keep your business name the same whoever you talk to – otherwise, Instagram could miss an important feature.
- The Timeline Isn’t Known: as we mentioned briefly above, there is no knowing when Instagram will approve or reject your request – you’ve just got to sit tight until the news comes through.
- Instagram Will Not Ask You to be Verified: Instagram never contacts its users and asks them to try and get verified, and if you do get an email like this, there’s a good chance that its spam. Don’t click on it, and don’t share any personal information with them. In the same vein, a third party cannot help you get verified either, no matter how much money you pay – so don’t waste your time!
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there’s a lot to getting verified on Instagram – more than you may have thought.
The other thing to take away from this article is that there are no guarantees – but this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t give it a go, anyway.
Remember, you can always try again after a month, so make sure to be persistent – you never know when Instagram will send that coveted blue tick your way!
