Instagram Publishing: Rules, Methods & Steps in SmarterQueue

Publishing to Instagram through SmarterQueue depends on your profile type, post format, and Instagram’s API restrictions. Some posts can be published automatically, while others require manual steps. Knowing these differences ensures a smooth scheduling experience in SmarterQueue.

📌 In This Article

Instagram Profiles & Their Posting Capabilities

How you publish to Instagram with SmarterQueue depends on your Instagram profile type and the content format you’re posting:

  • Instagram Business and Creator Profiles can be directly connected to SmarterQueue, allowing for direct publishing of most post types. 
  • Personal Instagram Profiles can’t be connected to third-party scheduling tools due to Instagram API restrictions. If you’re using a Personal Profile, convert it to a Business or Creator Profile to connect it to SmarterQueue.

Direct vs. Manual Publishing

Instagram posts can be published in two ways:

  • Direct Publishing: SmarterQueue automatically publishes the post at the scheduled time without requiring any additional steps.
  • Manual Publishing: SmarterQueue sends a notification to your mobile device when it’s time to post, and you must complete publishing manually via the Instagram app.

Some posts are always manually published due to Instagram API limitations. See our helpful flowcharts below to figure our direct vs. manual publishing. 

Enabling Direct Publishing

To use Direct Publishing, you need to ensure it is enabled under Social Profiles in SmarterQueue for your connected Instagram Profiles:

  1. Go to Profiles in SmarterQueue.
  2. Locate your connected Instagram profile.
  3. Ensure Direct Publishing is enabled.

If Direct Publishing is not enabled, SmarterQueue will automatically default to manual publishing via notifications, even for posts that would be eligible for direct publishing.

Additionally, make sure you always select “Attempt Direct Publishing” when creating an Instagram post in the Post Editor to ensure that SmarterQueue publishes eligible content directly.

📝 Note: If Direct Publishing isn't working, revoke and reconnect your profile to ensure full permissions are granted. 

Understanding Direct vs. Manual Publishing

Before scheduling an Instagram post, it’s important to understand how different factors, like your profile type, post format, and media guidelines affect whether a post is published directly or requires manual publishing. 

Depending on the type of content you're publishing and the profile you're publishing to, you may need to use the mobile app or will have the ability to choose between the two options.

Additionally, the media that you add to your post will also influence how the post is published:

Instagram Post Types, Requirements & Publishing Rules

Each Instagram post type has specific formatting rules and publishing restrictions. Understanding these helps ensure your content displays as expected.

Some rules apply to all Instagram posts:

  • Character Limit: 2,200 characters.
  • Links: Links added to Instagram posts will not be clickable, displaying as regular text in captions. 
  • Mentions: Mentions require the exact @username, as Instagram does not support search. They become clickable once the post is live. 

Additionally, Instagram's API has post-specific rules: 

Instagram Single Image Feed Posts

  • Direct Publishing: Supported.
  • Image Size Recommendations:
    • Recommended: 1080×1350 pixels (4:5 ratio).
    • Supported Ratios: 1.91:1 to 4:5.
  • Cropping: Instagram will crop images that exceed the recommended dimensions.

Instagram Carousel Posts

  • Direct Publishing: Supported for image-only carousels. Mixed media carousels are not available at this time.
  • Image & Video Requirements:
    • Images: 1080×1350 pixels (4:5 ratio, same as Single Image Posts).
    • Videos: Max length of 60 seconds per video.
  • Cropping: Instagram will crop images that exceed the recommended dimensions. All images in the carousel will be cropped to match the aspect ratio of the first image. 

Instagram Reels

  • Direct Publishing: Supported, but manual publishing is required if adding trending music or other Instagram-only features. 
  • Video Requirements:
    • Aspect Ratio: 9:16 (vertical).
    • Length: between 3 seconds and 15 minutes.

Instagram Stories

  • Direct Publishing: Supported for single-image and video Stories on Business profiles. If published directly, any text added in SmarterQueue will not appear in the final Story.
  • Manual Publishing: Required for multi-image Stories on Business profiles, all Stories on Creator profiles, and any Story needing text, stickers, music, or interactive elements.
  • Image Requirements:
    • Recommended Size: 1080×1920 pixels (9:16 ratio).
  • Video Requirements:
    • Length: between 3 and 60 seconds per video.
    • Recommended Size: 1080×1920 pixels (9:16 ratio).
  • Cropping: Instagram automatically scales and crops content.

How To Create & Schedule An Instagram Post

  1. From the Publish view, click "New Post" in the upper-right corner.
  2. Select a Category to organize your post (required) and your Instagram profile:
  3. Select the post type: Feed/Reel or Story.
  4. Write your caption (including any hashtags or mentions).
  5. Add images or videos following Instagram’s media requirements.
  6. Select the publishing method: SmarterQueue will indicate if Direct Publishing is available, or if Manual Publishing is required, in which case you will receive a mobile notification.
  7. Choose your posting timing preference.
  8. Set your post to Evergreen if you want to repurpose it.
  9. Click “Save Post”.

How To Publish Manually Using The SmarterQueue Mobile App

Some Instagram posts require manual publishing via the SmarterQueue mobile app. If a post requires manual publishing, or you simply chose to publish manually in the Post Editor, SmarterQueue will send a push notification to your mobile device at the scheduled time.

Steps To Complete Manual Publishing:

  1. Tap the notification on your mobile device. You'll see a preview of your post. 
  2. Tap “Post To Instagram”. Your caption will be copied directly to your clipboard.
  3. The Instagram app will open automatically for you to set up your post:
    • Single-image: Your image will automatically open in the post editor.
    • Carousel: Press the “plus” icon to create a new post and select all the images, already saved to your camera roll. 
    • Reel: If prompted on post type, select “Reel” and the video will automatically open. If not, press the “plus” icon to create a new post and select the video, already saved to your camera roll. 
    • Single-image Story: Your image will be pulled directly into the Stories editor. 
    • Multi-image/Video Story: When prompted on post type, select the "X" in the top-left corner, then press the "plus" icon to create a new Story post. Select the images/video, already saved to your camera roll. 
  4. Apply filters, cropping, tagging and paste the caption back into the post. 
  5. Complete publishing in Instagram.

📝 Note: If you miss a notification, simply open the SmarterQueue mobile app. You will find all manual posts that are waiting to be published under “Pending Posts”.

Common Questions

1. Why can’t I connect my Personal Instagram profile to SmarterQueue?

Instagram no longer allows Personal profiles to be connected to third-party scheduling tools. To use SmarterQueue, you must convert your profile to a Business or Creator profile.

2. Why is my content not being published directly on Instagram? 

Make sure that Direct Publishing is enabled in the Profiles section of SmarterQueue. When enabled, SmarterQueue will always attempt to publish directly whenever possible. If Direct Publishing is unavailable due to your profile type or media, the post will default to Manual Publishing via notifications.

3. Why was padding added to my images?

If any image is too wide or too tall for Direct Publishing, SmarterQueue will automatically add padding to ensure it meets Instagram’s posting guidelines. Check our recommended image size guidelines to avoid this.

4. Why did the Instagram app open the wrong Instagram profile when I was publishing manually? 

Before opening a manual push notification from the SmarterQueue app, ensure you’re logged into the correct Instagram profile in the Instagram app. If you manage multiple Instagram accounts, Instagram may default to the last used account, so double-check which account is active before opening the notification. You can also mark posts as Done in the SmarterQueue app after publishing. This will remove them from your pending list to avoid confusion later on. 

5. Why does my Instagram app look different from the steps shown?

The iOS and Android versions of the Instagram app may have small differences. While the overall publishing steps remain the same, some UI elements may appear differently, and certain prompts (such as selecting a post type) may be missing on some devices.

6. Why do I need to switch my post type to “Story” in the Post Editor for Story posts? 

Switching to Story not only ensures the posts are published correctly but will also change how your content is displayed when using the Visual Instagram Planner. Stories will show up above your feed inside of circle icons instead of crowding the feed. They will also be displayed as Story posts in the Queue, to help you easily keep track of things.