Hootsuite Debuts Deepest Instagram Integration Yet
One of the most notable tech companies in Canada has answered the most frequently posed question they receive with a new announcement.
Hootsuite has unveiled a deeper integration with Instagram, providing customers with the option to directly schedule and publish on the massive photo-sharing social channel directly through Hootsuite’s dashboard.
The Vancouver-based Hootsuite is the most widely-used social media management tool in the world and boasts more than two million photos and videos shared every month through Instagram, so this new feature is one that will be used by many right away. In fact, it was the most requested feature for the company to introduce, as Instagram is the fastest growing social channel on Hootsuite.
Through new features in the Instagram Graph API, Hootsuite customers with an Instagram business profile can schedule and post photo content directly. This lets brands organize their content much more effectively through an easy-to-use and secure platform. Before this, using Instagram on anything but a mobile device was clunky and time-consuming at best.
“Brands are under constant pressure to maintain a consistent presence across all their social media accounts,” said Jeremy Wood, Hootsuite’s VP of product marketing. “Being able to queue posts to go out at the times that make sense for businesses and their customers is key. With this new API update, they can now securely schedule and publish their Instagram content right alongside their other existing social accounts.”
Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, has been notoriously tight-lipped on introducing features like these and letting both single users and entire platforms use the social media outlet in this fashion. But with more than 25 million businesses now with Instagram profiles, the company realized it had to increase access to its features and usability.
“We’ve been working closely with the Facebook and Instagram teams to move towards an API integration that supports these features,” said Wood. “This is the first time Instagram has opened up the API to allow this functionality. We’ve been working with their team to ensure the rollout and experience is optimal for our customers, and will continue to build and add further functionality in conjunction with the team at Instagram moving forward.”
This new announcement from Hootsuite builds on Instagram’s overall improvement to their Graph API, which allows for businesses to better manage their organic presence. Features like insights and comment moderation were recently introduced, and this new scheduling feature allows for better planning and secure account management, as the need for employees to share login credentials is gone now.
Hootsuite topped the 2018 Canadian Narwhal List for tech companies, meaning they are the most likely to grow to the highest value and go public soon. There have been rumours from the company that they will file for an IPO soon, but it remains to be seen when or if it will happen.
