Last summer, social media managers everywhere rejoiced when Hootsuite finally added Instagram to it’s list of supported platforms.

Sort of.

Unlike with posting to other platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, Instagram posts still required a human to publish the scheduled content at the appropriate time. What Hootsuite did, essentially, was save your image and text and then send a reminder to your phone that content was ready to be published.

But all that has changed. Hootsuite announced on January 30 that Instagram posts of single images could now be automatically published to the platform at the scheduled time – making the lives of marketers and small-business owners everywhere that much easier. Videos, unfortunately, still need that human touch before getting published.

Now is the perfect time to set up a business account on Instagram if you haven’t already. Here’s how:

1. Download the app on your phone (you can’t publish to Instagram from a computer)

2. Sign up using your Facebook account, or enter your email address and password

3. Be sure to turn on the Business Account option, found in settings

4. You can then fill in your business address, hours, and contact info

5. Authorize the platform in Hootsuite by adding a social network (this can be done from the mobile app or a computer)

Once you’ve integrated Instagram with Hootsuite, you can start scheduling your posts from the Publisher tab on the left side of the screen. It’s that easy!

If you’re already using Hootsuite and Instagram, all you have to do is reauthorize the app (found under Manage Social Networks), and your posts will be automatically published for you.

Keep in mind that before you start posting you should think about your social media strategy and make sure that your posts have a purpose, are engaging for your audience, and that the overall strategy is in line with (and supported by) your overarching content and digital marketing strategies.

It may sound like a lot of planning now, but you’ll be grateful when you pull out that content calendar in the middle of a busy month and realise the hard work has already been done for you.

Confused about how it all ties together? No idea what a content strategy is, or having trouble setting up your social accounts? Give us a call – whatever your question, we’ll help you find a solution that works for you.