Starting April 21, verified check marks will be necessary for brands running ads on Twitter. Unless they’re spending over $1,000 a month, that is.

A copy of the email was posted on Twitter by Matt Navarra.

Why we care. To avoid paying the $8 a month for verification, your business will either need to spend $1,000 a month in ads or have a gold checkmark (which also costs $1,000 a month and indicates that you’re a “verified business”). Either way, Mush really wants his $1,000 a month from you.

IMO, it’s a confusing mess for businesses and advertisers trying to navigate Twitter’s new verification requirements, potentially deterring smaller advertisers and reducing the platform’s overall appeal. As if that was even possible at this point.

Not totally unreasonable. There is no official information on Twitter’s ad account pages indicating that only verified accounts can advertise, but it is reasonable to require verification for advertisers if it helps reduce spam or discourage malicious actors from using the platform. For this to be genuinely effective, however, a more rigorous vetting process beyond requiring a credit card and phone number would be necessary, as the $8 monthly fee alone is not a significant deterrent for scammers.

Going forward, it appears that those wishing to post an ad or promote a tweet must pay either $8/month for Twitter Blue or $1,000 per month to be recognized as a verified organization. An exception may be made for accounts with a grey checkmark, designated for official government-related accounts such as agencies, embassies, parliaments, and the like.