How to Schedule Instagram Posts (3 Methods + Bonus Tips)
Learning to schedule Instagram posts is the easiest way to save time so that you can focus on creating incredible content.
Learning to schedule Instagram posts in advance is the easiest way to save time on the platform so that you can focus on what matters.
Whether you’re the owner of your own business or the manager of a global team, the more complex your Instagram marketing efforts are, the more helpful a scheduling tool becomes.That’s because consistent, high-quality content is easier to plan, craft and share when some of the grunt work has been automated.
Of course, there is lots to consider when choosing an Instagram scheduler.Do you use a business or creator profile? Do you need to schedule Instagram Stories ? And what level of detail do you need from your analytics?
In this article, we’ll go through the best Instagram scheduling tools for Business, Creator and personal accounts, so that you can spend more time focusing on your greater goals.
Visual learners: Watch this video for demos of how to schedule Instagram posts and stories with Creator Studio and Hootsuite.Everyone else: keep reading.
Bonus: 14 Time-Saving Hacks for Instagram Power Users.Get the list of secret shortcuts Hootsuite’s own social media team uses to create thumb-stopping content.
Yes.Here are all the types of Instagram posts you can schedule in 2021, plus the tools you can use to schedule them with:
If you have a business or creator profile on Instagram, you can use Facebook’s native Creator Studio to craft and schedule Instagram posts from your computer.Here’s how:
That’s it! Now you can lean back and check your DMs .
Pro tip: It’s currently not possible to post or schedule an Instagram Story from Creator Studio.To do that, you’ll want to check out our post on how to schedule Instagram Stories .
It’s also not possible to schedule Reels yet.
Next up, we’re going to look at how brands with business profiles can use third-party apps like Hootsuite to schedule Instagram posts.
Aside from being able to use a tool that schedules Instagram content in advance, the advantages of a business profile over a regular profile include advanced analytics (not just Instagram Insights, but also access to third-party analytics, which have their own advantages ) as well as the ability to run ads, add links to your Stories, et cetera.
Before you start, make sure to switch to an Instagram Business or Creator account — it’s free, and it only takes a minute.If you’d rather stick to a personal account, we have a section for you coming up.
If you’re using Hootsuite, it’s easy to link your Instagram account.From the Hootsuite dashboard :
For more details on this process, check out our very thorough help article .
In your Hootsuite dashboard , click the Create icon, then select Post.
In the Post To field, choose your preferred Instagram account from the list.
Now go ahead and upload your visuals (or select them from your content library).You’ll also want to write an engagement-driving caption , add your hashtags , tag relevant accounts, and add your location.
Your draft will show up as a preview on the right.
If you haven’t already prepared your image for Instagram, go ahead and click Edit Image to crop your visual to the required aspect ratios (that is: 1.91:1 or 4:5), filter it, and otherwise perfect it.
Bonus: 14 Time-Saving Hacks for Instagram Power Users.
Get the list of secret shortcuts Hootsuite’s own social media team uses to create thumb-stopping content.
Even if you’re a one-person team, don’t skip this step.Instagram is an image-focused platform and nailing your Instagram aesthetic is fundamental to winning over your audience.
All right, now comes the easy part.Click Schedule for Later in the bottom right, and select the date and time you’d like your post to go live.
When should you schedule it? That depends on your audience.The Instagram algorithm prioritizes recency as it decides which posts to show people.On the other hand, if you’re interested in the overall best time to post to Instagram, we have an analysis here.
Pro Tip: Hootsuite’s AutoSchedule feature will automatically select the best time to post for optimal engagement from your audience.
That’s it! You can review your scheduled posts in the Hootsuite Planner , and edit them there before they go live, as well.
Finally, let’s take a look at the Instagram scheduling process for those of us using personal profiles.
If your Instagram profile is neither a creator nor a business account, don’t worry.You can still schedule your posts, there are just some extra steps involved.
In short: Hootsuite sends you a mobile push notification at the scheduled time, which reminds you to log in and tap publish.
For self-evident reasons, we’ll pretend that your preferred management platform is Hootsuite.From the Hootsuite dashboard :
At the same time, you’re going to want to set up the ability to use mobile push notifications.Follow these steps on your phone:
You know the drill: write a good caption , use the right hashtags , tag relevant accounts, and add your location.
If you want to level up your posts, check out our list of Instagram marketing tips .Or else read up on the latest Instagram trends in 2020 .
Here’s the key difference between business and personal accounts: scheduling your posts for a personal account requires publishing via mobile notification.
You’ll still want to check your Instagram analytics and make sure you select the best time to post .
Go ahead and pick your time and date, then click Schedule.
When the time comes, you’ll receive a push notification on your phone to remind you to post to Instagram.Note that this is essentially the same process for scheduling your Instagram Stories (no matter what kind of account you have).
The process for posting looks something like this.The Hootsuite app will take care of most of the work, but you need to open Instagram, paste your caption in, select your photo, et cetera.
Not tough brain work, but do schedule five minutes to triple-check that everything’s right.
And voila! You’ve done it!
If you’re ready to take the plunge and get real efficient with your posting habits, these tips will help keep you ahead of the game.
In general, posting when your followers are online is key, because the Instagram algorithm prioritizes recency.This means that, generally, a newer post will show up higher on your followers’ newsfeed than an older one.
But, the right Instagram analytics tool will tell you when your audience is most likely to be online and/or engage with your post.
For the Hootsuite social media team, that time is 8AM-12PM PST, or 4-5PM PST on weekdays.For you, it might be different.
Luckily Hootsuite’s Best Time to Publish feature can show you your best time to post on Instagram based on your posts from the past 30 days.It groups them by weekday and hour, then calculates the average impressions or engagement rate to identify the time slots where your posts had the highest impact.Then it suggests the best times for you to post moving forward.
Source: Hootsuite
It will also suggest time slots that you haven’t used in the last 30 days so that you can shake up your posting habits and test new tactics.
If we’ve learned anything in 2020, it’s that the world is changing faster and faster.
When it comes to Instagram scheduling, going much farther than a week in advance can start to increase the risk of something going sideways.You don’t want to cause a social media crisis for your brand by posting something insensitive.In fact, if something unexpected occurs you may need to pause your posting calendar entirely and use your social channels to communicate through a crisis .
Our advice: keep your finger on the pulse, and stay nimble.
If you do schedule your posts far in advance, it’s not the end of the world.Sometimes you need a full two weeks of vacation!
Just make sure you’re using an Instagram scheduler that allows you to press pause on all upcoming content if a crisis or emergency suddenly occurs.
With Hootsuite, pausing your scheduled social media content is as simple as clicking the pause symbol on your organization’s profile and then entering a reason for the suspension.
(This is actually one of our favorite Hootsuite hacks .)
Source: Hootsuite
Yes, the miracle of Instagram scheduling means you can now increase your quantity of posts without sacrificing quality.But should you?
The short answer is “maybe.” The long answer is “maybe, if you can maintain consistent quality at that pace over the long term.”
But great engagement rates have more to do with consistency than frequency.Remember that the Instagram algorithm prioritizes good relationships: if your followers are engaging with your content, the algorithm will show more of it to them.
No matter how busy you are, make sure you take a fresh look at that copy before it goes live.
And for big teams with a lot of moving parts, an internal multi-stage approval system is ideal for preventing a gaffe.
But though words are important to any social media post, visuals are key on Instagram.
Get yourself an Instagram scheduler that allows you to edit your photos in the same dashboard you publish from.It’ll save you that much more time and ensure that your images are fully optimized before you post.
Shout out to Hootsuite’s image editor, which can crop your image to the correct size for any social network .It also has an extensive filter library (useful for those of us who would rather leave photo editing up to the professionals).Watch the video below for a preview of the tool.
The best part about scheduling Instagram posts is that it frees up your time to take a look at the big picture.What’s earning likes ? What’s falling flat? Maybe you could even run some A/B tests, get mathy about it.
Choose your preferred Instagram analytics tool and get cracking.
Use Hootsuite to schedule Instagram posts at the best time, respond to comments, track competitors, and measure performance—all from the same dashboard you use to manage your other social networks.Start your free trial today.
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