What is Meta Verified and Should I Use It?

ICYMI: Meta (the parent company of Facebook and Instagram) is testing out a new program called “Meta Verified” across these two platforms.

The announcement came in late February of 2023 via CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s Instagram account.

So- what does “Meta Verified” even mean? 

Essentially, it will be a monthly subscription (starting at $11.99) for the following… 

• A verification badge

• Increased protection against impersonation accounts

• Increased visibility (in searches and recommendations) 

• Greater access to customer support. 

So in addition to paying for our blue checkmark, we get a little more protection and support from Meta.

I feel simultaneously excited and annoyed. Here’s why: 

I’m excited about “Meta Verified” because of the increased level of customer support. Let’s all be honest, Meta had nowhere to go but up when it came to customer support. It was literally non-existent.

I’ve had clients lose accounts to hackers and my Facebook has even been put on probation twice due to hackers (which is scary because Facebook is like… my entire job)! 
And do you know what resources my clients and I had when it came to these hacking issues? Essentially NONE. Recently I was able to connect with a Facebook employee (or AI robot) via chat, but that’s the first time I’ve ever received any assistance from Meta. 

Any level of security and connection we can get from their team is essential to keeping our accounts safe, running and secure! I’ll take all the help we can get. 

I’m not excited about “Meta Verified” because of a few reasons:

1. I think it’s going to be hard to convince clients that this service is worth their money. 

2. Clients may view this as “cheapening their brand” and not want to pay for verification. 

3. If everyone opts in to this service, it will cheapen and dilute the current service offerings.

• For example, if we’re all using this new feature, how great is their customer service going to be?

4. It expands the “pay to play” mentality on Meta platforms. 

• A lot of small businesses are not able to compete with the large ad budgets of corporate competitors. Small businesses already feel lost in the shuffle if they are depending on organic reach on social media. If we continue to give more and more money to Meta, they are going to continue requiring money to use their services with any success.

As I’m writing this, there is not an update for when “Meta Verified” will reach the United States or if they’ll continue with the program after testing it in Australia and New Zealand, but I’ll be interested to see how it’s received by the market.

I’m all for extra security and customer support, but how sad that an $11.99 membership (at least) is what’s required to achieve those two things?