I got the blue tick on Instagram. Here's why it matters

That 'verified' badge matters more to some than others. Here, I discuss verification, validation, shyness, the need to be seen and heard and why my new Instagram strategy is making me buzz...

Last week, I was thinking about my Instagram account: what I like about it, what I don’t and how I’d like to use it, moving forward.

I’d read this brilliant article by Nicola Washington about the best ways to use Instagram as a writer and it had sparked some new ideas.

I liked the question about whose content you like to see and I realised that what I love is quotes that make me think more deeply about the world.

Words.

And what I don’t like is when those words are interrupted by a photo of the person’s face or something about their private life.

I also don’t really like seeing Reels very often.

Or feeds that are full of negativity and ranting.

So I decided that I would offer what I like to receive: hopeful words.

Quotes.

And to stop putting my bloody face on the grid.

Instagram is part of my business

It felt good to be reassessing how I use the platform, as it is very much a part of my ‘business’ as a freelance writer.

My Instagram account has led to lots of work opportunities - directly and indirectly - and I think this is something people forget when the handle is your own name.

I’m not an influencer and I’m not a person just sharing bits about my life - I’m a writer, with a career, using Instagram as part of my (hate this term, sorry) funnel.

So I need to make sure the posts are what my readers want and need from me and that they are in some way connected to my paid work (my non-fiction books, Substack).

I went back to some words one of my followers kindly used to describe my writing:

Calm, clear, comforting and hopeful

and decided that these words should define the quotes and passages I put out.

So I now keep them in mind, when thinking about what I’d like to say online.

I’m buzzing to be back with a new approach.

Getting verified

While getting excited about taking a new direction with my content, I started digging around in the settings and saw that ‘get verified’ section.

I’ve probably applied for that verified badge (the blue circle with a little white tick in it that appears next to some people’s names on Instagram) about thirty times.

It was annoying, because many of my peers were being verified but I wasn’t.

I gave up.

Except last week, I thought: maybe I’ll give it one last try. And I was instantly verified. It was bizarre.

And validating.

I’ve been putting out content on Instagram since 2015. Pouring my heart and mind into the words and stories and ideas I share. At last, it was being recognised.

I was being recognised.

Verification, validation and success

I write quite a lot about success (pieces like this one on why some people are so successful) because I’m interested in how we measure it.

Some people say that success is about being surrounded by love, community and having just your essential needs met (food, water, shelter, warmth).

It then makes those of us who feel quite ambitious, in terms of our career, wonder if we are a little vacuous, or focused on the wrong things.

Of course love matters more than a blue tick on Instagram. But does that mean the blue tick shouldn’t matter at all?

Well, I have a theory.

Those of us who were shy as children - if you’re interested in shyness, I wrote a whole book on it - may feels that as adults, we’re keen to be seen and heard.

And the online world is a brilliant platform for us to start experimenting.

It’s much less daunting than standing up in front of 20,000 people in real life but we start to feel, when our posts are seen on Instagram, like people want to hear from us.

Not everyone, of course, but some people.

More people than we had listening to us as children, I’d imagine.

I’ve recently been diving into the world of neurodivergence and I’m delighted to see to many autistic people sharing their experiences so boldly and beautifully.

People like @neurodivergent_lou and @elliemidds and @elizafricker_missingthemark.

(I’m keen to find some autistic men who talk openly about their experiences growing up, if you have any recommendations).

The online space can feel safer and more accessible to those of us who felt different or ‘othered’, as children.

And so when we put out posts that resonate and start conversations and have meaningful DMs with people who we feel are like us… well, that really does matter too.

I know that the blue tick (white tick in a blue circle) won’t be stroking my hand through illness but it may just give my work a little boost.

And work matters to me. It’s meaningful and purposeful and it’s a large part of my focus, outside of motherhood.

I love writing and sharing my words and sometimes, these verifications and external validations help us to do more of the thing that we love doing.

So that’s why it matters to me.

Annie x