Share posts to Instagram

Compose posts in your Hootsuite dashboard to share to Instagram. Posting to Instagram is different from publishing to your other social networks. Instagram posts need to be published via the Hootsuite and Instagram apps on a mobile device. When you send or schedule to your Instagram profile from Hootsuite, a notification is sent to your mobile app. From the notification you can easily publish the post via Instagram. You'll need the Instagram app and the latest version of the Hootsuite app installed on your mobile device (requires at least iOS 10 or Android 4.4).

Posts that contain an image can be sent or scheduled to Instagram and other social networks at the same time.

When you add your Instagram profile to Hootsuite, you will be prompted to set up publishing in your mobile Hootsuite app.

To set up publishing to Instagram on your mobile device

1. Open your Hootsuite app.
2. Tap Settings (Android: Settings are in the main menu ).
3. Tap Notification Settings.
4. Toggle Instagram notifications (Publish to Instagram) to ON. A green toggle means enabled.

These notifications inform you when posts are ready to be published to Instagram. More than one team member with publishing access to an Instagram profile can turn on notifications for that profile. Likewise, users can add and turn on notifications for more than one Instagram profile.

 Posts will be unsuccessful if these notifications are not turned on. Signing out of your Hootsuite app turns off all notifications.

To share a post to Instagram

1. In the Hootsuite dashboard, select the social profile(s) that will send the post from the Social Profile Picker (top left).
2. Optional: Click Compose message to enter a caption for your photo. Emojis are supported, and captions can contain a maximum of 30 hashtags. Links will not hyperlink when posted to Instagram.
3. Click Attach media .
4. Click Select files to upload, select a file, and then click Open. Or, Enterprise users can click Content Library and then select an image.
     If multiple images are attached, only the first one will post to Instagram.
5. Click Send Now (or Scheduling to schedule publishing for later).
     Instagram notifications need to be turned on in your mobile Hootsuite app to publish to Instagram.
   A notification will be sent to the mobile device(s) that have turned on notifications for the profile.
6. Open the Hootsuite app on your mobile device, and tap Notifications .
7. Tap the new notification indicated by a blue dot.
8. Tap Open in Instagram. You will be launched into the Instagram app.
9. Optional:
   • Tap Format  to change your photo's orientation.
   • Select a filter.
   • Tap-and-hold in the caption box and then tap Paste to paste in your composed caption.
   • Tag people or add location info to your photo.
10. Tap Share.

 The Hootsuite app does not detect which Instagram profile is signed in to your Instagram app. If you publish to more than one Instagram profile, ensure you are signed into the Instagram app with the same profile you selected in Hootsuite, so that you send the post to the correct profile.

When more than one user receives notifications for Instagram posts, tap the notification to see if the post has already been published. The Open in Instagram button will change to Shared by (name) when published.

Tap Shared by (name) to mark the post as not shared or to share the post again.

Have more questions? See our Instagram FAQ

Share to Instagram from Hootsuite for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch

Share to Instagram from Hootsuite for Android