Back in dark ages, *cough* a few months ago, you couldn’t post directly to your Instagram using publishing tools. Instead, you would receive a push notification on your phone, and manually send it out. Now, that isn’t terrible, but imagine companies like ours that handle multiple Instagram accounts, posting multiple times per week.
That is why we are SO grateful that the platforms we’re listing today have made the user experience incredibly efficient. We have compiled the ultimate guide to the top three posting platforms, and broken down the steps on how to set up direct posting!
Buffer
Buffer is our favorite social media scheduling tool that can help you post to social media consistently while helping you track your most popular content. Until recently, Buffer offered to post to Instagram, but it required push notifications which they called Reminders. Now the process for business Instagram accounts (still using personal Instagram? Convert yours today!) is seamless and we couldn’t be happier and the steps couldn’t be easier!
Sign In to Buffer, and select your Instagram account on the left-hand side of your dashboard
Below the composer box, you should see a blue message Set up Direct Posting for Instagram click it!
Facebook requires Instagram business profiles to be connected to a Facebook Page, so to post to an Instagram account, Buffer will need to authenticate the account through Facebook. With that in mind, click Continue & Authenticate with Facebook
Enter your Facebook credentials (for your personal account that manages your business page) and click Continue
Finally, click Finish and Return to Your Dashboard
This is an awesome way to share your content! Any posts you already have queued to Instagram will not publish directly, but any new posts will!
Hootsuite
Hootsuite is another popular platform that helps users get the most out of their scheduling experience. If you are using Hootsuite to publish to Instagram, here’s how to set up Direct Posting!
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner of the dashboard, and then select Manage Social Networks
Click (Add) + Private Networks in the bottom-left corner of the dashboard
Click Select Destination and then select the organization to add the business profile to, or select Private Social Networks
Select Instagram from the list, and then click Connect with Instagram
Enter your Instagram credentials, click Log In, and then click Authorize
If the connected Instagram account is a business profile, click Authenticate with Facebook
Enter your Facebook credentials, and then click Log In - as with Buffer, it needs to be the personal account that has admin privileges to your business account, and the Facebook Page connected to your Instagram account.
When prompted to authorize access to your Instagram business profile, click OK
You’re done!
Is your Instagram account already connected? No problem, simply logout of Instagram natively in your browser before adding each new Instagram with the following steps.
If your profile is connected in an organization:
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner of the dashboard, and then select Manage under the organization name.
Enterprise organizations: Click Social Networks, and then select the profile from the list on the left.
Team/Pro organizations: Click the Instagram profile.
Click the Profile Settings tab.
Click Connect with Instagram .
Enter your Instagram credentials, click Log in, and then click Authorize.
If the connected Instagram account is a business profile, click Authenticate with Facebook.
Then click I’m Ready.
Enter your Facebook credentials, and then click Log in - the Facebook user signing in must be an admin of the Page associated with the Instagram business profile.
You will be prompted to authorize access to your Instagram business profile. Click OK.
Click Done.
If your profile is connected under your private social networks:
Click your profile picture in the top-right corner of the dashboard, and then select Manage social networks.
Click your Instagram profile.
Click Connect with Instagram.
Enter your Instagram credentials, click Log in, and then click Authorize.
If the connected Instagram account is a business profile, click Authenticate with Facebook.
Enter your Facebook credentials, and then click Log in - the Facebook user signing in must be an admin of the Page associated with the Instagram business profile.
You will be prompted to authorize access to your Instagram business profile. Click OK.
Click Done.
If you currently have single-photo posts scheduled to our business profile, they will publish directly to Instagram at the scheduled time. This service does not yet work for videos, but you can still use the mobile notification workflow to post those!
Sprout Social
Sprout Social also supports single image Instagram posts directly to your feed, no more additional workflows!
Once you’ve converted your Instagram to a business account, you will need to validate the converted account in Sprout by adding the Instagram Business Profile add-on.
Done! Everything switches over automatically!
Join us in a big “HIP HIP HOORAY!” We are SO excited that our favorite platforms are making the user experience even better!
If you have more questions about Instagram check out our website, we offer services that can help! Be sure to check out our blog to read more in our Instagram Series!
