The credibility of the content offered by a brand or celebrities on social networks can be enhanced through the verification of their social network accounts with a verification badge. These coveted checkmark verification badges offer a number of benefits to verified account holders including improved credibility, better social presence, as well as the ability to appear more "present" with fans. This article will walk you through the various benefits of holding a verified account, and will give you some quick tips on how to verify your account.
Benefits of Verified Social Media Accounts
As explained above, the verification badge on social media profiles can bring a number of benefits to users. First and foremost, verified accounts can protect the integrity of account holders and help prevent identity theft. Information that comes from a verified account helps fans weed out credible information from information they accumulate from outside sources or imposter accounts.
In addition to protecting the online identity of a brand, verified accounts also help brands attain better visibility. When fans search for a notable user profile, the presence of the checkmark will alert them that the verified profile will offer them the most relevant information to their search. The increased impressions on the page will help brands increase their performance on the social platform and ultimately contribute to brand credibility.
Brand credibility on social media is becoming increasingly important in today's social-media driven communications. Pages with high credibility promote interaction between the brand or user with their fans, prospects, or customers on a more personal level, building trust and better public reception.
How To Request a Verified Account Badge
Most popular social networks (including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram) give high-profile users the ability to request a verification badge. Each major social media platform has a slightly different approach to account verification.
Verify a Facebook Page
Verified Facebook profiles or pages are marked by a blue badge. This certification is given to pages for celebrities and public figures, trademarks and companies, as well as media agencies.
If you'd like to verify your Facebook page, you must submit an application form to the social network. This application form must be accompanied by an official document authenticating the identity of the user. Learn more about Facebook's verification process here.
Verify a Twitter Account
On Twitter, verified accounts are marked with a blue badge located to the right of the account name. This badge will appear next to a user's account name when searched for by a third party.
Twitter automatically generates badges for certain high-profile accounts including celebrities, politicians, government agencies, businesses, and media folk. However, if the network does not automatically verify your account, it is possible to "claim" your Twitter account and verify your page. You may do so by simply displaying a link to your website on your Twitter profile and placing a link to your Twitter profile on your site. This will alert Twitter that your account is associated with your business.
N.B. A verified account can lose its certification upon modification of information such as your user name, or if the user violates Twitter's conditions of use.
Verify an Instagram Profile
Instagram badges are currently limited to public figures, celebrities and brands. Users who would like to have some sort of account verification are encouraged to link their profiles to other social media accounts with a verified badge. For more information, you can follow this in-depth guide here.
Verify a Pinterest Page
The URL of a web page is displayed on the Pinterest page of the user. This solution is particularly recommended for companies who want to establish a link between their Pinterest account and their official website.
The procedure involves the integration of an HTML validation code on the company's website. Connect to Pinterest and click on Settings. Next, head to the Profile section. Enter the URL of your website into the Website field and then click on Verify website. A custom HTML file will be generated. Once complete, download the file and place it at the root of your website to verify your account.
N.B. Alternatively, Pinterest account validation can also be confirmed through meta tags.
Image: Unsplash.
