Hootsuite & Instagram | 13 Things You Should Know

The addition of Instagram as one of the supported social media platforms on Hootsuite opened more possibilities for digital marketing professionals.

As it is, it eliminated the need to transfer media from the desktop to your smartphone, as Instagram remains a mobile-only social media platform.

That allowed marketers to save time in the long run.

But with recent changes, what can users expect from the integration of Instagram and Hootsuite now?

Here are 13 things you need to know:

Table of Contents

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1. Does Instagram like Hootsuite?

Instagram allows third-party Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) like Hootsuite to post directly on the site.

So far, their partnership seems as though it is working out well!

Especially since both Instagram and Hootsuite are such large names in social media and social media management.

Read more here about the most common Instagram problems.

2. Is Hootsuite Approved by Instagram?

Instagram allows Hootsuite to post on its site, but with a certain degree of limitation, as it does with most third-party apps.

This is safe to use and approved by Instagram.

3. Is Hootsuite Good for Instagram?

Hootsuite is an excellent tool for managing Instagram, especially when used for business.

The integration of Hootsuite and Instagram has both entrepreneurs and organizations in mind, meaning that it allows Hootsuite to help social media influencers and businesses get the most out of sites like Instagram.

4. Is Hootsuite safe for Instagram?

There have been issues of Instagram accounts reported as compromised due to third-party APIs like Hootsuite.

It is worth noting that this happened not only with Instagram users who use Hootsuite but also those who use other services like Buffr.

While Hootsuite had expressed that it is not involved in any illegal or unethical practices for social media publishing, Instagram had cautioned users about third-party APIs, which is indirectly the root of the compromise glitch.

Instagram and Hootsuite have since then worked out this glitch, with the former expressing its support.

5. Is Hootsuite an Instagram Partner?

Hootsuite was one of the pioneer services that was certified as an Instagram partner in November 2015.

This certification recognizes the services of Hootsuite as beneficial to digital marketers, as it falls within the three (3) specializations listed by Instagram: ad technology, community management, and content marketing.

6. Does Instagram Block Hootsuite?

For the most part, Instagram grants Hootsuite permission to post.

Except for an incident when Instagram had a glitch with regards to third-party APIs, Instagram only blocks verified services from access when you do not permit it during the setting up of your social media accounts.

7. Can Hootsuite Post Instagram Stories?

Instagram does not allow third-party APIs like Hootsuite to post stories.

However, you can use Hootsuite to assist you in scheduling stories for Instagram.

8. Can Hootsuite Post Several Photos in an Instagram Post?

Hootsuite now allows you to publish several photos for Instagram, as long as they meet the required dimensions.

9. Can Hootsuite Post Several Videos in a Single Instagram Post?

As long as you meet the requirements of Instagram for videos of 15 seconds duration with a resolution of at least 720p and at most 1080p, you can post a total of 10 videos on Instagram, using Hootsuite.

Note that the video dimensions can be in portrait orientation when posted.

10. Does Hootsuite Schedule Instagram Stories?

While Hootsuite cannot post your stories directly on Instagram, it can help you schedule them.

To do this, you will need your Instagram and Hootsuite app updated to the latest version:

Go to the Hootsuite “Dashboard” and click the drop-down arrow and select “New Story.”
Choose which Instagram profiles the Story will appear in, and then choose the photos and videos that will be placed in the Story.
- You can choose up to 10 media files.
Arrange them in the order of how you want them to appear by dragging and dropping them into the list on the left side of the Dashboard.
Select “Edit Image” under each photo or video to resize them to fit the dimensions of the Instagram stories.
- The Transform option lets you adjust the size.

At this point, you can also adjust your images, such as fix the focus, add filters, to enhance your Instagram stories.

Note that any text or stickers you put with the editing tool are not interactive yet. You will adjust these later in the Instagram app itself.

Once done, click “Save.”

In the scheduler, check how your Story looks like in the preview window.

You can add interactive components such as links, and hashtags through the Clipboard text box, so you can transfer when finalizing the Story with the Instagram app.

The next thing you need to do is to enable mobile notifications by clicking the “bell icon.”
- That is a one-time-only action, so you do not need to repeat it the next time you schedule a Story.
Click “Schedule for Later” and choose the date and time the Story should be published and Done. Then click the “Schedule” button.
Now you need to complete and publish your Story.

For this step, you need to be on the mobile app on your phone.

Once it is time for your Story to go live, you will receive a notification from Hootsuite.

Open the notification, where you will get a preview of the Instagram story.
- Click “Open” on Instagram, and make sure you are logged into the assigned profile.
Using Instagram, click the camera icon, and tap the “gallery icon.”
- You will find here the content you chose for your Story under the most recent items.
If you are doing several media for your Story, click on Select Multiple, and choose all the photos and videos you uploaded through Hootsuite, then click next.

Here, you can add all the interactive components you want, such as hashtags and links.

You can make further adjustments if you wish, such as adding stickers.

Once you are done adding other elements to your Story, click on Send To and verify if you are on the right profile.

Once you verify it, press the Share button beside your Story, and it will go live.

If you notice, the process for scheduling Instagram can be tedious, given the app switching and manual actions you need to do.

Here’s few things in our article that you should know about Hootsuite & Hashtags

11. Does Hootsuite Post to IGTV?

Unfortunately, you cannot.

If you want to schedule a post for IGTV, you need to use the Facebook Creator Studio.

12. Why is Hootsuite Not Posting to Instagram?

The first thing you need to check is if you granted Hootsuite permission to post on your Instagram account.

Hootsuite can also work with HashTags..

The next thing you need to check is whether the Instagram account selected is a business profile. Recent changes in Instagram only allows business profiles to post directly on your profile.

This change is like Facebook, wherein only pages can benefit fully from Hootsuite.

The limitation is not surprising, as Facebook owns Instagram.