Twitter is now making it easy for anyone to apply for a verified account

Yearning for that elusive blue "Verified" checkmark badge next to your name on Twitter? The social media network is now making it easier for anyone to apply for the coveted check mark that is usually reserved for high-profile accounts of politicians, celebrities (including social media ones), companies and other figures of "public interest," such as the White House, President Barack Obama, Katy Perry and Pope Francis.

"We want to make it even easier for people to find creators and influencers on Twitter so it makes sense for us to let people apply for verification," Tina Bhatnagar, Twitter's vice president of User Services, said in a statement. "We hope opening up this application process results in more people finding great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience."

Twitter will now allow anyone to apply for a verified account on their platform using a simple online form. However, the company does note that it will only approve "account types maintained by users in music, acting, fashion, government, politics, religion, journalism, media, sports, business and other key interest areas."

Still, the process to try and get your account verified and claim one of those little blue ticks does seem to be much more straightforward than before.

IBTimes UK tells you how to apply for a verified account by following the steps below:

• Before starting the online verification process, make sure your profile is completely filled out with your basic information, including a profile photo, header photo, bio, birthday, verified phone number, email address and website.
• You will also need to set your tweets to public rather than private in Tweet privacy settings
• Since the new application does require you to have an avatar, Twitter recommends that the photo you choose to go with should be an accurate one of yourself. If you are verifying a company or corporation, use the company's branding or logo for the profile and/or header photo.
• Use your real or stage name if you are verifying an account for an individual.
• If you are applying on behalf of a company, use the company's official name and an email address associated with the company or corporation.
• You may also be asked for some additional information as well such as why you deserve to have your account verified and what your impact in your specific field is. You can also include links to prove your newsworthiness as well.
• If the account being verified is that of a company, include the company's mission statement.
• The company may ask you to provide a copy of a government ID for verification such as a passport or driving license to prove you are who you say you are.
• To submit a verification application, fill out this form and Twitter will respond to your request with a verdict in an email. If your request is denied, fret not. You can always reapply for the same account after 30 days.

Besides boosting a user's following and letting other users know that an account is legitimate, Twitter's new verification process could also help the company cut down on abusive users and behaviour on the platform since the blue tick will be refused to those who hide behind anonymous accounts.

Since the verification process was launched back in 2009, Twitter says it has verified about 187,000 users out of an estimated 320 million monthly active users.