> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.referly.so/docs/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Connect and verify your social accounts > Add and verify your website, YouTube, X, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn accounts in your Referly affiliate portal to get the Verified badge, show real follower counts, and get into more programs. Anyone can type a username into a form. Verifying proves the account is actually yours — and that changes how brands treat you. A verified account carries a **Verified** badge and your real follower or subscriber count everywhere a brand looks at you. When someone is reviewing a stack of applications by hand, a verified channel with 40,000 subscribers and a blank profile are not close calls. Verified accounts also feed your marketplace match scores, so better-fitting programs surface higher for you. If you do one thing to get into more programs, do this. ## Where to connect your accounts Two places, and they hold the same information: * **During onboarding**, at the **Website and socials** step, the first time you enter a program's portal. * **Any time after that**, in **Settings** → **Personal Information** → **Website and Socials**. You also have a set in your Influencer dashboard at `influencers.referly.so`, which can push your accounts out to every program at once. More on that below. The page only appears in programs whose brand asks for social accounts, so you won't see it everywhere. ## Add an account Each platform has its own field. Type your handle — the prefix in front of the field shows you the format expected: | Platform | What to enter | Example | | --------------- | ------------------------ | ---------------- | | **Website** | Your domain, no protocol | `yourdomain.com` | | **YouTube** | Your channel handle | `yourchannel` | | **X (Twitter)** | Your handle | `yourhandle` | | **Instagram** | Your handle | `yourhandle` | | **TikTok** | Your handle | `yourhandle` | | **LinkedIn** | Your profile slug | `yourprofile` | Your entry is saved as you go, and a link appears next to it so you can open the channel and check you typed the right one. To add a second account on the same platform — a main channel and a niche one, say — select **Add another**. To take one off, select **Remove**. ### When a platform is required Brands choose which platforms to ask about and how strict to be: * Some ask you to **add at least one** account, any platform. * Some mark specific platforms **Required** — the word appears next to the field, and you can't finish onboarding without them. * Some go further and require the account to be **verified**, not only entered. If you can't continue, the message at the bottom tells you exactly what's missing — which platform to add, or which one to verify. ## Verify a social account For YouTube, X (Twitter), Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn, verification is a sign-in. You're sent to that platform's own sign-in page. Sign in to the account you entered and approve the permission request. Referly reads your public profile and audience numbers — it never posts anything. You're returned to where you started, and the account now shows **Verified** with its follower or subscriber count next to it. Sign in with the account you actually entered. Signing in with a different one is the most common reason verification doesn't stick. ### Instagram: business and personal accounts Instagram has two paths, shown as tabs when you start verifying: * **For business/creator accounts** — select **Connect Instagram** and sign in. This imports your audience data along with the verification. Your Instagram account has to be a Business or Creator account linked to a Facebook Page. If it isn't, you'll be told no Business or Creator account was found. * **For personal accounts** — verify with a code instead. Copy the six-digit code shown, add it temporarily to your Instagram bio, then come back and select verify. Once it's confirmed you can take the code straight back out. ### LinkedIn and TikTok Both verify by signing in, the same as the others. If TikTok reports that your account isn't authorized, or LinkedIn refuses the permissions, that's the platform rejecting the request rather than something wrong on your side — try again shortly, and contact the program's team if it keeps happening. ## Verify your website Your website works differently, because there's no account to sign in to. You get two options, shown as tabs. ### Using Google Analytics The quicker route. Select **Connect Google Analytics** and sign in with the Google account that has access to your site's analytics. Referly matches your domain to a property and verifies it automatically — and imports your traffic data at the same time, which is worth having. If your domain can't be matched automatically, you'll be shown a list of your properties and asked to pick the right one. ### Using DNS The route for sites without Google Analytics, or when you'd rather not connect it. Switch to the **Using DNS** tab and you'll see a table with a **Type**, a **Name**, and a **Value**. Add that record to your domain at whoever manages your DNS — your domain registrar or hosting provider — then come back and select verify. DNS changes take a few minutes to spread, so if the first attempt fails, wait a little and try again rather than assuming you got it wrong. ## What verification unlocks * **The Verified badge.** It appears next to that account everywhere the brand sees you. * **Your real audience numbers.** Followers, subscribers, and views are read from the platform rather than typed in by you. * **Audience insights for the brand.** Verified accounts share age and gender breakdowns, top countries, and traffic sources, depending on the platform. Brands use this to decide whether your audience fits their product. * **Better marketplace matches.** Your audience size feeds the **Audience fit** part of your match score, which decides how high a program ranks for you and what turns up under **Recommended for you**. Without a connected account, that part of your score can't be calculated. See [Join a program](/docs/help-center/affiliates/join-a-program). Very small accounts may show follower counts but no demographic breakdown. Platforms hold that data back below a certain audience size to protect their users' privacy — it's their rule, not a Referly limit. ## If verification fails Work through these in order: * **Check the handle.** An invalid handle blocks verification before it starts, and the field tells you it's invalid. Open the link next to the field — if it doesn't land on your profile, the handle is wrong. * **Check which account you signed in with.** The account you approve has to be the one you entered. * **For Instagram, check the account type.** The business path needs a Business or Creator account linked to a Facebook Page. If yours is personal, use the bio code path instead. * **For a website using DNS, give it time.** Confirm the record is saved at your DNS provider exactly as shown, then wait a few minutes and retry. * **For a website using Google Analytics, check the domain matches.** Sign in with the Google account that actually has access, and pick the property manually if you're offered the list. * **Try again later.** A failure can be the platform being temporarily unavailable. If it keeps happening, message the program's team from **Messages** in your portal. ## Connect once, apply everywhere Adding the same five accounts to every program you join would be tedious, so you don't have to. Connect and verify your accounts in your Influencer dashboard, and when you save you'll be asked **Apply to all your programs?** Choose **Apply to all** and they land in every program at once. You can also set this to happen automatically from **Settings** in your Influencer dashboard. Any program you join from that point copies your accounts across as part of joining — so the work you do once carries into every program after it. See [Your profile](/docs/help-center/affiliates/profile) for the rest of what propagates. ## Related Where the socials step sits in your first-time setup. Everything else in your settings, and what brands can see. How verified accounts improve your match scores. Find your way around the portal and your Influencer dashboard.