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Hootsuite Problems: 15 Most-Common Issues (Solved)

Hootsuite is a powerful tool when it comes to social media management. But because Hootsuite has so many capabilities, it can be overwhelming if you run into an issue. 

Here is a list of the 15 issues you may encounter when using Hootsuite, including suggested fixes. 

1. Hootsuite Does Not Load

You are excited to take social media by storm, and armed with Hootsuite, you are ready to win the game of digital marketing!

But alas, while other sites are loading just fine, Hootsuite is not working and refuses to load.

Chances are, the problem lies with your local network. 

Your Internet connection might have been programmed to block some of Hootsuite’s content, which might cause it not to load at all. 

To resolve this, you need to get in touch with your IT department or access the router settings to lift certain domain names. 

For Hootsuite to work, you must have some domains Whitelisted. Check the sources at the bottom of this page for the list of Whitelisted domains.

It is also possible that Hootsuite is down. 

Check the site DownDetector, and search Hootsuite. This site will tell you if other users are also experiencing issues with Hootsuite at the moment.

You can also check out our article about why your Hootsuite account may be running slowly.

2. Hootsuite Disconnects Your Social Media Accounts 

You may log on to Hootsuite and realize that one of your social media accounts has been disconnected. Don’t panic! 

A disconnection usually occurs as a security measure to prevent unauthorized people from accessing your Hootsuite account. 

The most common reason an account is disconnected is as a security precaution in the following scenarios:

  • When you change passwords on a social media account, the account automatically disconnects from Hootsuite as a security measure. Should you encounter a disconnected profile on your Hootsuite after changing your password, just reauthorize or sign in again to grant it access. 
  • Facebook and Instagram usually disconnect from Hootsuite after 60 days, after which you need to link your account again.
  • If you use LinkedIn with Hootsuite, be aware that it automatically disconnects or revokes access to third-party services, including Hootsuite, after a year. 
  • Social media platforms linked to Hootsuite may also disconnect Hootsuite if they detect unusual activity from your account. 

These security protocols may seem like a hassle, but they are in place to help keep your accounts secured. 

If an account is unlinked from Hootsuite accidentally, usually the fix is simple: Just reauthorize your account or sign in again.

3. Hootsuite Is Not Showing My Newsfeed 

The point of Hootsuite is to merge all your social media profiles into one spot so that you can keep an eye on all your social media accounts without switching around in windows and tabs. 

Unfortunately, with updated privacy policies enforced by different social media platforms, this is no longer totally possible. 

If you are looking for your personal Facebook feed with your friends or LinkedIn updates, you will need to go to the actual sites. 

Twitter is the only social media network that allows the full synchronization of newsfeeds or updates from your following list onto Hootsuite. 

4. Hootsuite Is Not Posting to Facebook 

You may encounter login problems with Hootsuite – but it’s more common with posting issues. You may wonder why Hootsuite is not posting to your Facebook profile when it can post to your page or groups. 

Because of Facebook’s privacy policy update, Hootsuite cannot post on personal Facebook profiles. It can only post to Facebook fan or business pages and groups for which you have administrator privileges.

Unfortunately, there is no workaround for this. Unless Facebook decides to lift this restriction, that’s just the way it is.

Note that this limitation is not just for Hootsuite; it affects other similar services. 

To learn more about how Facebook and Hootsuite integrate, you can check out the article Hootsuite & Facebook | 23 Answers You Should Know.

5. Hootsuite Does Not Want to Connect with My Instagram Account 

The integration of Instagram to Hootsuite was a move welcomed by many business owners and digital marketers. But in order to integrate Instagram with Hootsuite, your Instagram account must be a business profile.

When Facebook bought Instagram in 2012, policies were changed. One of the altered policies was about the type of Instagram accounts that can be added to third-party services like Hootsuite. 

If you cannot add Instagram to your Hootsuite account, it probably means the account you are adding is not a business profile. 

To learn more about how Instagram and Hootsuite work together, check out the article Hootsuite & Instagram | 13 Things You Should Know! 

6. Hootsuite Won’t Show LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn does not allow posting to groups from Hootsuite.

The LinkedIn and Hootsuite integration works well when posting updates to your own profile or business pages, but it will not allow you to post to LinkedIn groups from Hootsuite

If you want to post to groups, you will need to do so directly on LinkedIn.

7. Hootsuite Disconnected My Twitter Account 

If your Twitter account is unexpectedly disconnected from Hootsuite, that may be a reason for concern.

Twitter does not impose login restrictions like LinkedIn, Instagram, or Facebook, and it does not usually unlink itself. 

Twitter might have detected suspicious activity from your account and unlinked itself from Hootsuite. You may want to check your login activity and see if there are unfamiliar devices or locations logged in. 

8. Hootsuite Won’t Work with Email Marketing Tools 

Hootsuite aims to provide integration with your business’s different marketing services, but you may encounter problems with email marketing. 

Here are common inquiries when it comes to email marketing: 

What email marketing service can Hootsuite use?

  • Hootsuite currently only integrates with the email marketing services Mailchimp and Constant Contact. Between the two, Mailchimp has better user feedback.
  • Hootsuite’s email marketing integration focuses mostly on monitoring the results of your campaigns.
  • Stats of email marketing in Hootsuite focus on clicks, updating lists, and merging results with your other social media efforts.
  • See our article about email marketing with Hootsuite for more information.

What can I use to send out emails with Hootsuite?

Hootsuite itself cannot send out emails through your email marketing service. You must schedule and send emails through the email service itself.

Note that if you see a plug-in touting its ability to send email through Hootsuite itself, steer clear. Only install plug-ins or apps that are authorized by Hootsuite in its directory. 

Keep an eye on our article which explains about Hootsuite: 3 Open Source Alternatives

9. Hootsuite Won’t Show YouTube Analytics 

One of Hootsuite’s best features is the Analytics function, which lets you view the analytics reports for your social media profiles or accounts. 

But Hootsuite does not automatically load YouTube analytics data onto the dashboard. 

The only Analytics function Hootsuite automatically covers are Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. 

But that does not mean you cannot integrate YouTube analytics! 

You can install Youtube analytics onto your dashboard with Channelview Insights. 

ChannelView Insights is a Hootsuite plug-in that lets you integrate YouTube analytics onto your dashboard. It costs $7.99 a month, but it comes free when subscribed to Hootsuite’s Enterprise plan.

10. Hootsuite Analytics Data Is Not Updating 

Hootsuite Analytics was designed to provide users with an overview of how effective your social media strategy is. 

You get the numbers on how many people saw your post, how many reacted, and commented on it. 

But you might notice, especially if you managed to publish viral content with numbers quickly racking up, that the numbers are not updating. 

You don’t need to panic, as the numbers here are not real-time numbers that update every minute. 

If you want to get updated stats on your social media content, you need to give it some time, maybe a few hours, and then refresh the Dashboard for updated figures. 

11. Hootsuite Does Not Publish Scheduled Posts 

Sometimes your posts fail to publish as scheduled. While it is not supposed to happen, there are reasons why your content can sometimes fail to publish. 

Here’s what may be going on:

The social media network is not connected to Hootsuite. 

As mentioned above, there are instances when access is revoked to your social media sites. You might have overlooked these revoking schedules, or you changed passwords. 

Should this be the reason why your post failed to publish on time, you’ll need to renew access to the affected account on Hootsuite and then publish it. 

The scheduled content is a duplicate of another published post. 

Duplicate posts get flagged by the algorithms of social media platforms. And this can sometimes lead to banning or suspension of your accounts. 

When you push a single post to different groups or accounts simultaneously, this can be perceived as inauthentic behavior and could be flagged. 

If you published the same post to multiple accounts and later find your post is missing, it may have been flagged and deleted as spam. 

To resolve this issue, you need to make your content as unique as possible.

Do not make your posts look automated. Customize them for each account, especially if you want to reach a particular audience.

The post contains harmful content. 

Some posts are rejected because they are flagged as having inappropriate content that could be considered offensive.

Reports are created when a user flags content as inappropriate, which the social media networks then flag and take down. 

If you think your post was mistakenly flagged, you need to reach out to the social media network that took down your post and explain why it should be allowed. 

12. Hootsuite Auto-schedule Does Not Produce Satisfactory Results 

Hootsuite’s auto-schedule function can be a bit of a double-edged sword.

When you select auto-schedule from Hootsuite, it spreads out your posts in a given date range and chooses a time to post it for you. But sometimes the results are not what you hoped for. 

Hootsuite is not upfront with how the algorithm that determines the best time to post works. Does it use what time people generally are online? Or does it base it on your following or market? It might also be based on your location. Hootsuite is not transparent on how this algorithm works; apparently, it’s a trade secret!

So, if auto-schedule isn’t giving you the results you want, you may want to take matters into your own hands.

Study when your audience is online and most engaged, and schedule your posts manually based on the data. You can get this data in the Insights function of Facebook and Hootsuite analytics.

13. Hootsuite Bulk Uploader Is Not Queuing My Posts Correctly

The Hootsuite Bulk Uploader helps you save time in posting all your content. 

Instead of manually opening a composer window and scheduling the post, you can upload a single file with all the captions and links you want to share with your audience. 

But there is a proper format to follow if you want to use the bulk uploader, and it’s important to use it. 

First, the file that contains all the text, time, and links should be in a CSV spreadsheet file format.  

Next, you need to make sure your CSV contains the following information, in three columns: 

  • Date and time of publishing, wherein you input in a single cell the date and time with this format: “MM/DD/YYYY HH: MM.” The time must use the 24-hour format.
  • Copy or caption of the post in the second column and
  • Links, if any, for the third column. 

You must also note that CSVs do not recognize images or emojis. 

So, once the bulk uploader successfully accepts your CSV file, you will need to edit the individual scheduled posts to include photos and emojis, as needed. 

Also, the Bulk Uploader can only process up to 350 posts at a time. So if your campaign exceeds that limit, consider dividing your CSV files per social media profile. 

14. Hootsuite Won’t Install Apps 

Hootsuite apps are extra features or services that help improve your social media operations. These apps have different purposes and can consist of free apps or paid subscriptions. 

Should you be unable to install a particular app on your Dashboard, check for the following: 

  • Cost of the app. Is the app free, or does it need a monthly payment on top of your existing Hootsuite plan? You may need to add payment information. 
  • Check the requirements of the app. Each app lists the requirements to install in its details, like if it only works with a particular level of Hootsuite subscription. 

15. Hootsuite Could Not Add My WordPress Site 

Hootsuite offers minimal integration with website content management. As of this writing, the only type of website able to integrate with Hootsuite is a WordPress.org, self-hosted website. (Hootsuite cannot integrate with WordPress.com personal blog sites.)

With a self-hosted WordPress site, you can publish and monitor your site’s content via Hootsuite.

If you have a WordPress self-hosted website and you want to integrate its management into Hootsuite, it needs to meet the following requirements: 

  • It must be using at least version 3.4 of WordPress
  • It must also be XML-RMC enabled 

The only way to have your WordPress website linked to your Hootsuite Dashboard is to meet the requirements above. 

If you want to know more about integrating websites and Hootsuite, please read the article Can Hootsuite Manage A Website? (Solved!).

General Pros and Cons of Hootsuite 

Hootsuite has most of the tools you need for social media marketing management. 

  • You get a remarkable number of the tools to help you plan and execute your social media campaigns.
  • Hootsuite gives you a content planner, a media library, unlimited post scheduling at every payment level, access to analytic tools, and a plethora of free and paid apps that integrate with other services. 
  • When you go for higher-tier plans, you gain access to team collaborations, in-depth social listening, and even employee advocacy. 

Hootsuite is easy to understand.  

  • Chances are, if you are familiar with the interfaces of different social media platforms, you will not have a hard time navigating Hootsuite
  • Hootsuite uses a neat interface, divided into boards and streams, to help you keep your social media organized.
  • On the content management side of things, you have a calendar layout and a draft space that you can use to queue posts for approval from the team. 
  • Hootsuite also provides training that will help you master the Hootsuite interface and social media management in general. 

Hootsuite gives you value for money. 

  • Hootsuite uses a freemium model for its business. That means you can access the basic functions for free. But the free plan has limitations, and you may want to consider upgrading to a paid subscription. 
  • With a paid subscription, you get to unlock more tools and functionalities on Hootsuite.
  • If you work in a non-profit organization and find Hootsuite a bit steep, you can apply for a non-profits discount that gives up to 50 percent off.

The upfront amount you pay for a Hootsuite subscription might seem overpriced compared to other providers. Still, if you analyze what you are getting versus what its competitors offer, Hootsuite generally comes out on top.

Cons 

  • The upfront cost of Hootsuite is higher than other social media management tools. 
  • The Free plan does not provide as many services.
  • There are limitations to some social media networks, and it does not integrate all services.

Final Thoughts 

Although Hootsuite has added limitations over the years, it remains a powerful tool for social media management.

For the most part, these limitations are not entirely because of Hootsuite. It is because the social media platforms had to update their policies to protect their subscribers. 

Chances are, if you encounter any problems you cannot figure out yourself, these can be resolved through Hootsuite’s active helpdesk on Twitter. 

You can check out our other articles on Hootsuite here.

 

Sources

Domain names to whitelist

Hootsuite Help

Hootsuite Twitter Helpdesk

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