This new offering provides brands with tools to better stand out in Feeds. In addition, you can avail of the benefits for a low price of CAD 36.99 /month per Facebook Page or Instagram Account. Ironically, however, the existence of such a package somewhat erodes the marker’s reputational value.
Welcome to Canada!
Under Meta’s new program, brands that sign up to get the blue tick will also get:
Proactive impersonation monitoring for added brand protection.
Access to support and help troubleshooting account issues.
New ways to be discovered by being featured as a Meta Verified business, including appearing at or near the top of search results and as a recommended verified business to follow in feed.
The last element here is still in testing and is probably the most contentious. Meta had initially offered a similar exposure boost as part of its Verified Creators package. Shortly after launch, however, it was removed, seemingly because it impacted the user experience. Now, Meta’s trying it again, but this time for brands. If paying for content can manipulate search results, then that reduces trust in Meta’s discovery systems.
Overall, the value of offering paid verification ticks is questionable. Paid verification identifiers dilute the reputational boost that the verified tick provides. Once brands can buy a marker, it no longer holds the same value. However, according to Meta, the program addresses a long-standing need.
“We’re starting with subscription features that help small businesses achieve what they want most on the platform: to establish their brand and be discovered by new customers. As we learn from initial testing, we’ll continue to evolve our business offerings to add more value for businesses of all sizes, such as more tools for people to easily discover and engage with verified businesses on our apps.”
Meta is already experimenting with a dedicated “Meta Verified” Feed on Instagram. While there is clear additional promotional value in verified profiles, its value for regular users remains somewhat unclear. Hiding the toggle within the Instagram logo menu also means many users will not even know it exists.
The Wrap
That is the delicate balance that Meta must now tread to ensure its systems do not significantly favor paying brands. At the same time, Meta has to add some incentive to get the same brands to pay. Overall, we can assume that paid verification does not improve the user experience, but the demand is there. After all, if anything helps Meta make money, then it’s automatically a good idea, right? On that note, Meta expands paid verification to Canadian brands. Here come Canadian blue tick accounts!
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