Are you looking to get verified on TikTok, but don’t yet have a large following?
Many people don’t know this, but having a large following is not actually a requirement when it comes to getting that coveted blue checkmark next to your name.
So, in this article, we’ll look over how you can get verified without a large following, and what you need to do to maximize your chances of getting verification.
Let’s get into it!
Why TikTok Verifies Accounts
Before you can learn exactly what you need to do to get verified on TikTok, it’s important to understand why TikTok verifies accounts in the first place.
Believe it or not, verification isn’t meant to reward accounts that have reached a high number of followers, nor is it meant to grant additional visibility to large accounts.
Instead, the sole purpose of verification on TikTok is to prevent impersonating, fake accounts, and TikTok users from being mislead.
If you think about it, this is a really serious issue.
People put a lot of trust in the people that they follow. They are called influencers for a reason – they literally influence people’s opinions, actions and ways of thinking.
Because of this, social media platforms have always experienced people creating fake accounts, pretending to be someone else. They may copy their profile picture, repost their content, and even try to match their name as closely as possible.
If the original creator isn’t verified, people may not know which account is the real one – and follow the fake account by mistake.
So, by verifying the accounts of notable people, TikTok can ensure that public figures are who they say they are, and prevent people from being mislead.
What does this mean for you?
The more likely you are to have people impersonating you or confusing you with someone else, the more likely TikTok is to verify your account. This means they may look for other signals of your notability outside of TikTok, even if you don’t have a following on TikTok itself.
In fact, you don’t even have to post on TikTok at all to get verified – if you are a notable figure outside TikTok, then they will verify you just to prevent other people from impersonating you on their own accounts.
Anyhow, let’s look over some specific things TikTok looks for when verifying accounts.
How To Get Verified On TikTok Without Followers
No followers? No problem!
By trying out some of the tactics listed below, you can become eligible for verification TikTok, even if you don’t have any followers on the platform.
In fact, you don’t even need to necessarily be a celebrity or public figure to make this work, and some of the tactics are completely free to try out!
1. Get Press
If other social media platforms like Twitter or Instagram are anything to go by, then getting press makes a big difference.
This makes sense. Even if you don’t have a big social media presence, people that have been featured in mega publications are notable figures, that can benefit from being verified.
What many people don’t realize however is that you can essentially get featured on major news networks like NBC, Fox, and CBS for quite cheap – as little as $10!
There are a number of press release services on Fiverr for example that will allow you to pay a small fee in order to get placed on these major networks.
Although this costs a little money and isn’t a guarantee that you’ll get verified, it has helped many others in the past get some recognition in the past.
Therefore, it’s worth trying out! (And let’s be honest, being able to say you’ve been featured on all these major news networks is actually pretty cool!)
2. Get Verified On Other Platforms First
If you’re already verified on another platform (such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram), it will be much easier to get verified on TikTok as well.
Although the exact methods each platform uses to determine eligibility for verification differ, many of them are based on the same underlying factors.
So, if you get verified on one, then it’s obvious that another platform has already sort of vetted you – allowing other platforms to follow suit without much risk on their part.
While getting verified on one platform does not guarantee verification on another, it does speed up the vetting process – and drastically increases the likelihood.
So, if you already have a large following on another social network and you believe you may be able to get verified on it, try applying for verification there first.
This is a free way to get verified on TikTok as well, even if you’ve yet to build a following on TikTok itself.
3. Become A Recognizable Public Figure
Finally, the last thing that will help you get verified without a current TikTok following is to build your public presence outside of TikTok, and become a more prominent figure in your space.
The more recognized, famous, and notable you are in the world, the more likely you are to ‘skip the line’ so to speak, and receive verification with a low number of followers.
For example, celebrities or brands that sign up to TikTok for the first time may receive verification before they even post their first video.
Why?
Because TikTok has already proven and recognized that they are likely to be impersonated once they begin posting – or even before that.
As we know however, TikTok doesn’t grant verification to everyone that wants it.
Instead, it is reserved for those that are already in the public eye – and are prone to people impersonating them.
Note: You do not need to become famous to the mainstream in order to be eligible for verification. If you are a content creator for example and are notable in your specific niche / industry, this may be enough to get verified. This is why you may occasionally see people with that blue checkmark, even if they have under 1,000 followers. This account for example was verified at only 900 followers!
Followers Do Make A Difference!
So far, we’ve looked at three different ways that you can become eligible for verification on TikTok, even if you do not have a lot of followers on the platform.
However, I think it’s important to state that followers do make a difference, and are one of the most important factors that TikTok uses when determining who to award verification to.
In fact, even if you don’t meet any of the other criteria listed previously – you haven’t been featured in the press or been verified on other platforms for example, you can still receive verification on TikTok through your follower count alone.
So, despite the fact that it is technically possible to receive verification without a large number of followers, it may just be easier to focus on publishing quality videos and growing your TikTok following.
Conclusion
Thankfully, a large number of followers is not needed to get verified on TikTok.
Although having a large following makes it easy, you can still get verified if you have a notable public presence outside of the TikTok platform. This is so TikTok can avoid other people impersonating you and misleading other TikTok users.
I hope that you’ve found this article helpful. If you have any other questions about getting verified on TikTok, please ask them using the comment form below.
Wishing you the best,
– James McAllister
Leave a Reply