If you have spent quite a bit of time on Instagram so far, you have probably scrolled through your feed, and seen quite a few accounts that have a blue checkmark next to their name. You have probably wondered how you can get verified yourself on Instagram.
The thing about being verified on Instagram is that everyone is out there seeking validation, but how do you actually receive it from Instagram itself?
Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms out there, and it has become an inherent platform for brands, businesses, and influencers.
In the world’s current climate, having thousands of followers on Instagram has meant that people are able to use their platform to nurture a full-time job.
The problem is, there is no set formula for becoming famous on Instagram overnight. It takes strategy, time, and really good-quality content to gain more followers on Instagram.
Luckily, we’ve got some tips and tricks today for you to read through so that you can get a better understanding of how to get real Instagram followers, and ultimately how to be verified by Instagram itself.
What Does Being Verified on Instagram Mean?
Instagram says that they give verification out to their users when they have established themselves as a public figure, authentic presence, celebrity, or global brand.
Accounts that had the blue checkmark are the real deal and are guaranteed to have a lot of genuine Instagram followers.
You will notice that the majority of celebrities out there are verified, due to their authenticity.
The other benefit here is that a lot of people will make up fan accounts, or even pretend to be a celebrity at some point, so it is helpful for the celebrity to be able to verify that they own the official Instagram account associated with their name.
You might be surprised to find out that a lot of these fan accounts have a lot of followers, so if the profile is convincing enough, you might think that they are the real deal.
The only thing that separates a fan account from a real account is a verified blue checkmark.
Why Do You Want to be Verified on Instagram?
Of course, these days, one of the biggest goals when it comes to Instagram is to get verified. When you are using Instagram as a business tool, being verified adds a level of credibility to your profile.
That blue checkmark holds a lot of power, and when you have it right next to your name, your profile comes across as authentic, and gives your Instagram followers a good reason to trust what you are producing when it comes to your content.
Now that you know what a blue checkmark is, and what it does when it comes to your credibility on Instagram, let’s talk about how to get verified on Instagram.
How You Can Get Verified on Instagram
The thing about being verified on Instagram is that it isn’t just given out to anybody. You’ve got to try to figure out how to get verified on Instagram, and here are a few good places to begin.
Come up with High-Quality Content
Figuring out how to get verified on Instagram organically begins with establishing a strong presence on the platform.
The thing about Instagram is that it is a visual platform, which means that it is all about aesthetics, so producing content that is high quality and offers a consistent theme for your audience is a great place to begin.
As an example, how do you think influencers attract more followers? The majority of the time, it is because these content creators know how to create content that is appealing to their audience.
Their content is visually compelling, and it encourages their followers to interact with it and want to continue following them to see even more content. What kind of content should you post?
Well, the most successful Instagram profiles out there post videos and photos to their feed, as well as share content through their Instagram stories, reels, and even IGTV videos. Talking with your followers on Instagram stories is another way to get a boost in your engagement.
We also think that it is really important to be active on Instagram in general. Creating one piece of content that is high quality is really good, but it isn’t enough.
If you want to get verified and grow your account, you need to be posting high-quality content over and over again.
This is going to condition your followers into believing that you are never short on inspirational content, which is going to increase your credibility.
The more time and effort you can put into the quality of your content, the more successful you are going to be, and the closer you are going to get to that coveted checkmark.
Grow Your Following
Sadly, creating content that is eye catching is only half the battle. The more real followers that you have on your Instagram profile, the more likely Instagram is going to verify you.
Having a big and authentic following is going to get you closer to being on the radar, and if you are trying to gain more Instagram followers, you can do so by creating content that is amazing, interacting with other accounts, and using an Instagram growth service.
Growth services like Growthoid are going to make sure that you can organically gain followers for your Instagram profile and stay away from things like bots.
One of the things that you are going to love about using Growthoid for your Instagram growth is that it is the type of software that is going to target the best people for your content.
How does Growthoid do this? By asking you in the beginning for a list of people that you consider to be your competitors on Instagram.
Once they have received this, they will be able to head over and interact with this community, and ideally, these people are going to come back and check out your profile instead.
All you need to do on your end is to continue to post high-quality content that is going to encourage them to follow you and continue to follow you for a long time.
The fact that Instagram has grown exponentially in popularity has resulted in a huge amount of competition among users to have more likes and followers.
Companies that are looking to work with influencers and users are aware that people purchase likes and followers.
If you purchase your engagement, this can hurt your profile in many different ways. This is why if you want to be verified on Instagram and seen as legit, you will need your follower count to reflect your engagement ratio.
Use Hashtags the Right Way
Yes, there is a right and a wrong way to use hashtags. Another way to grow your profile and eventually be verified by Instagram is to use hashtags, but you’ve got to use them the right way.
If you want to move forward towards the end goal of your Instagram profile, you’ve got to really think how you can jazz up your hashtag strategy.
We recommend that you use anywhere from eight to 14 hashtags on every post. If this number isn’t working for your brand, then we suggest that you play around a little bit, and see what ends up being the magic number.
We also suggest that you try using a combination of generic hashtags, and ones that are more relevant to your brand. You can even come up with your own branded hashtag.
Whatever hashtags you choose, just make sure that they are highly relevant to your content. It is really important that you don’t use hashtags that are spammy, or those that are likely to get you banned.
Do a little bit of research to figure out trending hashtags, so that you can incorporate these into your Instagram strategy.
Also, make sure that you don’t just put hashtags on your posts, you can also put them on your Instagram stories, and IG TV videos.
When you use hashtags the correct way, you are able to successfully grow your account, and get it closer to being verified.
Improve Your Engagement
We all know that Instagram engagement is really important. The more engagement you get on your content, the more likely Instagram is going to prioritize that content, which means that more people are going to see your posts and your account will keep growing.
There are a number of ways it successfully increase your engagement.
We suggest that you look at your Instagram insights so that you can improve your engagement strategy and see what kind of content is performing really well, so that you can create that content again so that your followers are always getting what they want out of it.
Obviously, we are also big fans of Instagram stories, because this is a great place to focus on improving your engagement.
We suggest that you use question boxes and poll stickers so that you can get your followers talking, and make sure to respond to any direct messages that you get.
Videos are also a great way to increase your Instagram engagement.
In fact, sponsored videos are going to get three times the engagement of sponsored photos, so we definitely suggest that you make the most of the fact that Instagram offers a number of different mediums for your content.
Post at the Best Times
Posting at the right time of the day is really important if you want to make sure that the right people are seeing your content.
However, the right time of day is going to vary depending on your brand, and what industry you fall into, so it is going to take a little bit of time to figure out the best time for your brand.
There are reports out there that claim that the best time of day is between 2:00 PM and 3:00 PM, and this is central time.
If you aren’t sure when to post on your Instagram feed, start here, and then you can adjust the time based on how your followers are interacting with your content.
You also need to be aware of when the majority of your followers are online. There’s absolutely no point in posting your piece of content first thing in the morning if the majority of your followers are still waking up and have never thought to check Instagram yet.
Don’t be Spammy
If you are trying to do everything you can to get the verified checkmark, the last thing that you want to do is be spammy with your Instagram strategy.
In fact, being spammy with your Instagram strategy is one of the fastest ways to lose your reputation, and even get banned off the platform.
So, as we have mentioned already, purchasing your followers is definitely a no-no, because this is going to throw your engagement rate out of whack, and make your account look really fake.
It is also against Instagram’s terms and conditions, so again it is probably going to get your account restricted or suspended completely.
Try to avoid spammy tactics, and make sure that everything is above board if you want to be verified.
How to Ask for Instagram Verification
There has always been a bit of mystery surrounding Instagram verification. Just recently, Instagram answered a lot of people’s prayers by removing the question of how exactly to get verified on Instagram by letting users apply for it themselves.
In fact, applying for verification on Instagram is pretty simple, and you can do it directly through the app.
Just note that if you run more than one Instagram profile, make sure that you are logged into the right one that you want to verify.
Next, once you are in the app, open your profile, and select the icon that has the three lines in the top right corner of your screen. This is going to bring up the Instagram settings menu.
Go all the way to the bottom, and select the button that has a gear that says ‘account’, which is going to direct you to the ‘request verification’ tab.
The form that you will see is the official Instagram verification submission within the app. If you receive an email, or something else about how to be verified on Instagram, this is most likely a scam.
At the top of the menu, you will see that it says apply for Instagram verification, and below is the form where you will put your full name, category, nickname, and then attach a valid ID to confirm your identity.
What Should You Do if You Cannot Get Verified?
Being verified on Instagram can be a lengthy process and unfortunately, you might not end up getting it.
If you aren’t getting anywhere with being verified on Instagram, then take a step back and look closely at your profile and take a bit of time to reflect on your Instagram engagement strategy, to see if there are any flaws in it.
For example, you might have fake Instagram followers and you didn’t even know it. The reason that your verification request gets denied might not be the same reason that somebody else’s was.
So, at the end of the day, it is up to you to figure out why your account isn’t being verified, and how you can change this.
If your verification request has been denied, then we suggest that you spend a bit of time focusing on your Instagram marketing.
Creating as much high-quality content for Instagram as you can and interacting with their followers is going to put you on the right path.
Also, consider working with a company like Growthoid that can help you increase the number of genuine, real followers that come and check out your Instagram profile.
Also, stay away from any strategies or tactics that are going to be spammy, like buying your followers.
Once you have a more authentic group of followers that are engaged with your content, and you have a track record of posting content that is high quality, you will be able to submit your verification request once again.
This time, there is a better chance that you are going to be verified.
Is it for Everyone?
Now that you have a little bit more of an understanding on how to be verified on Instagram, you can decide if it is worth your time or not.
As you can see, there is a lot of planning and work that goes into being verified by Instagram, so it is important that you have a good reason to be verified before you begin.
At the end of the day, there are a lot of advantages to being verified on Instagram, including an increase in credibility, and an increase in your social presence.
Being verified on Instagram is going to prove your potential and optimize your searches, and it is also going to help you gain more Instagram followers, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t be successful without that blue checkmark beside your name.
There are thousands of brands, businesses, and influencers that have become extremely successful on the app, and they are making lots of money through their Instagram profile without the blue tick, so there’s no reason why you can’t either.
