That Blue Tick is the ultimate benchmark, you must win over to show off your social media game. With Instagram, it seemed fairly simpler to just hit a certain number of followers. With the latest Instagram follower count verification update, Instagram aims to be more inclusive for all. Hence, the Facebook-owned photo social media app is tweaking its account verification processes. More specifically, your follower count on Instagram will no longer be relevant to get that esteemed blue tick ahead of your name on Instagram.
Instagram has announced that it is introducing new standards and procedure to avail account verification on the platform. The verification sign — or what is simply called the Blue Tick — sends out the signal that the account is actually run by the suggested public personality. However, it isn’t that easy to get your account verified on Instagram. There is certain criterion that you must fit in first. However, much of it is about to change with the Instagram’s latest announcement.
How Instagram Follower Count Verification Update aims at Inclusivity and Transparency
Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram announced the update through his latest Facebook blog post. He wrote that the platform is making Instagram account verification more transparent. He added the higher count of Instagram followers was never really a part of the official criteria for account verification.
But, Mosseri did acknowledge that a higher follower count still gave popular users a considerable advantage. He noted that there were certain systems in place which prioritized Instagram accounts with high followings in order to get through tens of thousands of requests the team receives every day.
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Furthermore, as part of the policy improvements, Instagram is not only making follower count irrelevant but is also changing the way it measures an account’s notability during the verification process.
Remarkably, the move will also include more media outlets from the Black, Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities in its list of press articles to check a person’s notability. Facebook owned image and video sharing platform hopes that the new updates will make the account verification process more inclusive.
Inspiration Behind The Instagram Reform #BlackLivesMatter
It is worth noting that Instagram’s latest update isn’t a random policy change coming from the social media giant. The thought behind this decision actually roots back to the incident of George Floyd’s death and consequent #BlackLivesMatter campaign across the social media.
Adam Mosseri had also posted a response video during the campaign to share his views on the issue. More notably, he also pledged to push for more efforts especially at Instagram to address the systemic biases. He had added that the company will review all of its products, policies and practices to improve Instagram’s overall systems.
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Mosseri shared that Instagram has also appointed a dedicated Equity team to better understand and address bias in our product development and people’s experiences on Instagram. It will also be co-ordinating with the Responsible AI team to develop new features that can better serve the underrepresented communities. In a major addition to its C-suite, Instagram is also planning to hire a special Director of Diversity and Inclusion.
