Vero is the latest social media app, that is taking on the big boy’s; Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. With all the scandal around privacy and constant ad’s on Facebook, Vero might be the app of tomorrow. The appeal of Vero comes from the fact that the company promises to not track data and that it will keep the app ad-free. Vero, which is Latin for the word “Truth” was created by the Lebanese billionaire, Ayman Hariri.
So how does it work? When you join, you sign up with your name, email and phone number — there are no usernames on Vero. It’s different from Instagram in that you can share more than just photos. You can also share links, music, movies/TV, books and places. And unlike Instagram’s algorithm, Vero’s feed shows up in chronological order. Just like the other social media platforms, you can follow your friends, brands and verified celebrity users.
There are three big differences between the big social media brands such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and what Vero is offering: no ads, no “trending” algorithms, and, eventually, the running of a paid subscription. At the moment Vero is offering the app free for life.
When Vero says that there will be no ads, that is to say that you will only ever see content from people or brands that you follow. Vero allows brands, companies, and charitable organizations to set up accounts on Vero complete with merchant or donation links for selling directly to Vero users — but you will only ever see those posts on your feed if you choose to follow those accounts. As well, you have the option of privately setting the friends you connect with into three categories — Acquaintances, Friends, and Close Friends — and you control who sees the content you post.
There are six different types of content you can share on Vero: Images/videos, Links, Music, Movie/TV, Books, and Places. Content is displayed in the main feed based on when it was posted, so you’ll never miss a post from a friend because an algorithm decided to show you something else instead. There’s the “Collections” tab right on the home screen that makes it really easy to browse through each post category and see everything that you and your friends have shared. From there, you simply start posting and building your network to reap the benefits of an old-school social platform which doesn’t run on an ever-changing algorithm.
Down to Business
For business users platforms like Facebook and Instagram have changed up their algorithms so much in recent years, making it more difficult to receive views and engagement organically. Posts only show up for users based on the type of content they’ve previously engaged with, which often leaves business users losing out on plenty of views and choosing instead to pay for added reach rather than enjoying the free and low cost marketing potential social media used to offer. Vero has easy integration with your website. You can post a link on your feed. This combination is huge! People will be able to see a preview of your post and click straight through to your website
There are benefits to being an early user. With any new social app, it is always a great idea to join early to secure your name. Hashtags are not new, we’re used to using them on both Instagram and Twitter. The beauty of a new platform is that it opens up relevant business hashtags that have become overused elsewhere – especially on Instagram. It’ll be worth having a look at these and checking out some new connections that may have become lost among the noise elsewhere, as well as using them to get your business known.
As with every new platform, there are a lot of unanswered questions. How much will a subscription cost and will the general public ‘get it’? Will it survive beyond the initial hype? Who will use it – male or female? Young or old? Somewhere in between? Until these questions start to get answered it’s hard to tell whether this platform will be right for your business or not.
Speaking from my own personal experience using Vero, I enjoy using Vero and I will continue to build my profile. A social media platform is only as good as the users who use it. Remember that you are the product.