Getting advanced analytics, engagement, and locations for your Instagram account

If you already have your Instagram channel connected to Buffer but want to take advantage of additional features like using Analyze, Engage, or adding a location to your Instagram posts, you'll need to take a few additional steps to convert your Instagram account in Buffer. This article will walk you through the requirements and the process to get you set up.

In this article:

  1. Required Settings
  2. How to convert Instagram to get new features
  3. Troubleshooting

Required Settings

Here are the core requirements that need to be in place for you to convert your Professional Instagram account to Buffer to access Buffer’s analytics and engagement features:

✅ Instagram needs to be a Business or Creator Instagram account.

✅ Instagram needs to be linked to its own Facebook Page (not profile).

✅ An Admin with “full control” needs to connect the Instagram account to Buffer.

✅ All permissions for all Pages and Instagram accounts need to be selected (even for those you are not connecting to your Buffer account).

How to convert Instagram to get new features

In order to add locations to your Instagram posts, or access advanced analytics and engagement features on our paid plans, you will need to follow the steps below. 
Please note: 
  • If you are trying to connect your Instagram account to Buffer, you need to follow the steps in this guide first. The steps below can only be followed after you have connected to Buffer. 
  • If you don’t have your Instagram account linked to your Facebook page yet, that is part of Step 6 below.
  1. Make sure your Instagram account is already connected to Buffer. Follow these steps to connect, then come back to Step 2 below to continue the conversion.
  2. On your desktop browser, log into Facebook.com.
  3. Click your avatar in the top right-hand corner then click “See all profiles”. Here’s what that looks like.
  4. Click on the Page you want to work with. If you don’t see your Page, please see this guide to check if you have a Page.
  5. While on your Page, click here to view your linked accounts and click the Connect Account button. 
  6. If your Instagram account is a Personal account, you’ll need to continue the prompts to convert it to a Business account in order to complete linking Instagram to your Page. Otherwise, you are all set.
  7. Next, in Buffer, head to the Channels page.
  8. Click the three dots on the right of the Instagram channel and select Link Account to Facebook to complete the process.

Link Account to Facebook screen

Note: If you choose to convert an Instagram Personal account to a Professional account, we will retain your scheduled and sent posts within Buffer. However, you will not see any data associated with your sent posts that were published while you were on a Personal account.

Troubleshooting

Here are the steps that we’ll work through, in order:
  1. Checking the link between Facebook and Instagram
  2. Checking your admin settings and permissions for Buffer within Facebook
  3. Reauthorizing your connection between Buffer and Facebook

📝 If your Instagram account is currently a personal account, it will need to be converted to a Business or Creator account to connect to Buffer. This happens when it is linked to your Facebook page as described in the next section below. Not sure what type of account you have or how to convert it? See the steps in our Instagram Connection guide.

Instagram needs to be linked to its own Facebook Page (not a personal account). Please check within Facebook to make sure that your Instagram account is properly linked to a Facebook Page with these steps. Note: This is not the same as linking it in your Meta Account Center.
  1. Log into Facebook on your computer.
  2. Click your avatar in the top right-hand corner then click See all profiles. Here’s what that looks like.
  3. Click on the Page you want to work with. If you don’t see your Page, please see this guide.
  4. Now go to this screen to see if Instagram is linked to the Page. Here’s an example of how it should look if it is successfully connected (screenshot).
  5. If your Instagram is not linked and you see this screen, click Connect account to link your Instagram to your Facebook Page (this will convert it to a Professional account if it is a Personal account).

Checking your admin settings 

In order to connect or refresh your Facebook Page in Buffer, you’ll first need to be set up as an admin of the Facebook Page with Full Control. This is also necessary to review Instagram connections in Facebook.
Because your Admin settings and permissions are controlled in your Facebook account and they control your Pages and Portfolios, please head to this section of our Facebook Admin guide to walk through those steps. 

Reauthorizing the connection between Facebook and Buffer 

Sometimes the authorization access token between Buffer and Facebook needs to be renewed in order to get things to work properly. This can happen for a number of reasons, such as if you have not chosen the right permissions during the connection process or you have connected a Facebook or Instagram account in the past. If everything else looks to be in place, give these steps a try by heading to this section of the Facebook guide.

Still having trouble? Reach out to us at hello@buffer.com and let us know the error you see and we’ll be happy to troubleshoot with you!

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