by
Daniel Enikanoselu on Daniel Enikanoselu
How to Do Instagram Automation for Free
For a long time, Instagram was very strict towards allowing third-party apps to post directly to Instagram. That was a big problem for people who were used to using scheduling apps to publish their posts on various platforms. However, there has been a breakthrough in that area. In this post, I will be teaching you how to do Instagram automation for Free.
There are quite a few apps that have gotten the access to post directly to Instagram. These posts could be published immediately or scheduled to be published at a later time.
Specifically, I will be teaching you how to use Buffer and Hootsuite to schedule your Instagram posts for free.
How to Use Buffer
With the Buffer app, you can schedule and plan your Instagram posts in advance. Buffer even offers an easy way to measure the performance of your content as well (on the paid plan).
The interesting part of the Buffer app is the reason why we’re talking about them today – a free plan. Buffer has a free plan that allows you to manage up to 3 profiles.
That could be your Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for starters. If you think you need to add more profiles, you will have to upgrade to a paid plan.
However, let’s get on with how you can start doing Instagram automation for Free…
STEP 1 – Connect your Instagram Business Profile
Under the options button from your profile, you will find the “Switch to Business Profile” option there. Tap on it and follow the instructions to complete the process.
N.B: You must have a Facebook “page” before you can switch to a Business Profile on Instagram. Instagram will direct you on how to connect your Facebook page to your Instagram account.
STEP 2 – Connect your Instagram Account to your Buffer account
From your Buffer account, you will see the “Instagram connect it now” tab as shown below. You can connect from there. As well, you could use the “Connect More Profiles and Pages” tab below the Instagram tab.
Then, you can proceed to connect your Instagram account with your Buffer account. Follow the instructions given by buffer to complete the process of connecting your business account to enable Instagram direct scheduling.
STEP 3 – Schedule your Instagram Posts to Buffer
After the connection is done, you can now begin to schedule your posts. Easy as pie 🙂
…and let’s not forget the interesting part of this…IT’S FREE!
Photo credit: Buffer
Buffer’s direct scheduling currently works for single image posts alone. Go here to read extensively about Buffer’s scheduling limitations.
How to Use Hootsuite
Hootsuite is more of a monitoring app, however, it’s a great app for scheduling content for your social media channels as well.
The Hootsuite process is similar to that of Buffer. With that in mind, the very first step will be to – Connect your Instagram Business Profile!
See STEP 1 under the “How to Use Buffer” to know how to connect your Instagram Business Profile.
So, let’s jump right in! Let me show you how the steps look on the Hootsuite dashboard, and where to find them.
STEP 2 – Add your Instagram Account to your Hootsuite account
You have to add your Instagram account to your Hootsuite dashboard first. Just like you can see below, you have to use the “Add Social Network” tab.
Afterwards, the below image will pop up. Navigate to the “Instagram” tab, and then, click on the “Connect with Instagram” button.
STEP 3 – Schedule your Instagram Posts to Hootsuite
There’s a box that drops down when you click on the drop-down arrow as seen in the below image. Select the Instagram account you have added from there.
Then proceed to type in your post caption as you can see below. The “attachment” icon is used to add the image you wish to post.
The “calendar” icon below gives you the scheduling option. From there, you can decide what date and time you want your post to be published.
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