I tested Meta Verified for over a year. Here's my verdict (May 2024)
Last year, Meta launched Meta Verified, its paid subscription that gets you the blue verification badge ("blue tick"), among other perks. I have now tested it for over a year and want to give you my honest opinion: is it worth the money?
As always, if you prefer to listen to the podcast episode instead of reading it, then click on the player below. Follow my podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Deezer, and all the other platforms to get notified as soon as a new episode becomes available!
So, what is Meta Verified?
Meta Verified is a monthly subscription available for both Facebook and Instagram accounts as well as WhatsApp business numbers. An initial test was launched in February 2023 in Australia and New Zealand (this is when I signed up) before it was rolled out further to the US and other countries. The idea behind the subscription is to help your community understand who is behind your account and to decrease the number of impersonators on the apps.
The most prominent feature of the subscription is probably the blue verification badge behind your handle, also known as "the blue tick".
How much does Meta Verified cost?
Fees vary depending on your region, whether you verify your Facebook or Instagram account and whether you are getting Meta Verified for creators or for businesses. In New Zealand, you are paying between $19.99 NZD (FB) and $29.99 NZD (IG) per month. In the US, Meta Verified for creators costs you $11.99 USD a month if you sign up on web and $14.99 USD a month if you sign up through iOS and Android systems. For Meta Verified for businesses, you will pay $21.99 USD per account on web and $27.99 USD per account on mobile.
What is included in a Meta Verified subscription?
Currently, the following perks are included in the subscription:
Verification badge: The blue tick helps your community know that it's the real you. Meta uses a verification process for which you have to upload a government ID to ensure the account's authenticity. Probably the most known feature & the reason why most people will want to sign up for it.
Impersonation protection: Meta actively monitors your account and protects it from impersonators. This is a useful feature for accounts that are often victims of copycats.
Direct account support: This feature gives you access to a REAL person at Meta whom you can consult for any account issues you are experiencing. If you have ever tried to get in contact with either Facebook or Instagram, you know that this is a game-changer. Then again, Meta's support is notoriously bad and you can also access it through your Ads Manager.
Improved discovery: Initially, Meta Verified came with "increased reach" but this was taken away again once it rolled out in more countries. Now we get "improved discovery" which refers to the fact that you are more visible because you have a blue badge - nothing more. Other "new ways of being discovered" include comment filtering on Facebook which allows users to only see comments by Meta Verified accounts (not sure if anyone actually uses this feature though).
Exclusive stickers for your stories AND 100 stars per month on Facebook (only with Meta Verified for creators): Probably the least interesting feature.
What's the difference between Meta Verified for creators and for businesses?
There's not much difference in terms of features (apart from the exclusive stickers). Whether you get Meta Verified for creators or businesses depends on the type of account. "For Creators" is designed for content creators who want to verify their identity. You will need to provide a government-issued ID that shows the name in your profile & matches your profile photo.
Since businesses usually don't have IDs, business accounts that aren't personal brands can sign up for Meta Verified for businesses. For the remainder of this blog post, I will focus on this type of Meta Verified.
Who is eligible?
To sign up you need to:
Be at least 18 years old.
Be located in a country where Meta Verified for businesses is available.
Have two-factor authentication enabled on your personal account.
Have full control of a business portfolio.
Not exceed the number of times that you can make changes to your business portfolio within a certain time period (e.g. changes to portfolio name).
Follow terms and conditions.
Read more here.
👀 Things to consider before signing up:
You won't be able to change your profile picture or your name without having to go through the verification process again
It's an additional monthly (business) expense
You still need to be able to put out high-quality content and have a strong strategy. The blue badge is not going to solve your lack of strategy or fix any other problems in your business.
👉🏼 My verdict: is Meta Verified worth the money?
At this point in time (April 2024), I am no longer Meta Verified. After consulting my data from the last year of being verified, I have made the decision to cancel my subscription because it did not make a significant (enough) difference for me. In the end, it's just another business expense that needs to be justified and for me, it simply wasn't.
The only reason why I have kept it for so long was the peace of mind that came with direct account support. But in the last few months, I have consistently invested in growing my email list AND come to the conclusion that I have the knowledge and skills to rebuild an account should it ever disappear. So it simply wasn't worth the $29.99 NZD each month.
I would recommend it if...
You want to help your community understand that it's really you (this is a security & trust consideration)
You heavily rely on your accounts for marketing & are afraid they might get suspended/hacked
You can afford the monthly business expense (even if it doesn't deliver "tangible" results)
You don't want to sign up for the status alone (that effect has worn off)
👀 My final note: Why not pool that monthly fee together & invest it in a 1:1 Power Hour with me so we can grow your accounts with proven strategies instead? Book your strategy session here.