How to schedule Instagram posts from a professional or personal account
- Scheduling Instagram posts can help you stay relevant and active on social media.
- You can schedule Instagram posts with Creator Studio if you have a professional account.
- If you only have a personal account, you can use a third-party app like Buffer.
Having a steady presence on social media is vital to being relevant, and gaining and maintaining followers. When you're using Instagram as a way to promote your business or brand, consistency is even more important.
Scheduling your posts ahead of time can be a helpful way to keep up with posting regularly, even if you aren't able to dedicate time to it every day. For those who are interested, there are several options - including Instagram's Creator Studio and third-party apps like Buffer - to get it done.
How to schedule Instagram posts on a professional account using Creator Studio
You must have a professional Instagram account to schedule a post through the Creator Studio.
Professional accounts can be either a Business Account, meant for businesses and brands, or a Creator Account, meant for anyone with over 10,000 followers.
Quick tip: To access the Creator Studio, you can convert your personal account to a business account or to a creator account.
1. Link your Instagram account to Facebook's Creator Studio, if needed.
2. In Creator Studio, select Create Post, located in the left sidebar. Then choose either Instagram Feed or IGTV.
3. Upload and create your post, including your desired caption, hashtags, and mentions.
4. Click the down-carrot, located next to the blue Publish button.
5. In the pop-up, select Schedule.
6. Add your desired schedule details and then click Schedule.
Note: When you link your Instagram account to the Creator Studio, it will give anyone who manages Facebook pages associated with your Facebook account access to your Instagram.
How to schedule Instagram posts on a personal account using the third-party app, Buffer
If you keep your personal account, you can schedule Instagram posts using a third-party app like Buffer.
To schedule posts on Buffer from a personal account, you'll need to have the Buffer app downloaded on your iPhone, iPad, or Android, and have both reminders and push notifications enabled on the app.
1. Create a free or paid account on the Buffer website.
2. Link your Instagram account to your Buffer account.
3. On the Buffer website, select the Publishing tab, located toward the top-left corner of the screen.
4. If you have more than one connected account, click the desired Instagram account, located on the left side of your Buffer dashboard.
5. Click Queue, located in the top toolbar.
6. Select What would you like to share?
7. Upload and create your post.
8. Next to Add to Queue, select the down-carrot.
9. In the pop-up menu, click Schedule Post.
10. Add the desired scheduling details and hit Schedule.
11. When the publish date and time comes around, you'll get a push notification from the Buffer app on your phone reminding you to post. Select the notification.
12. Tap Open in Instagram.
13. Add your photos and caption, plus any desired changes, like filters or other Instagram features, and then tap Share.
Tips for scheduling Instagram posts
- Try to get a professional account. Converting your personal account to a business profile can help you access more convenient scheduling options.
- Look at metrics like impressions. If you can, use Instagram's account insights to figure out when your audience is on the app, so you can target posts for better engagement.
- Use it to double-check posts. If you have a personal account, consider setting up a scheduled post five minutes before you want it to post, that way you can double-check everything before you post.