Instagram Integration¶

Connect your AI assistant to Instagram for automated DM responses and comment engagement.

Requirements at a Glance

Instagram Business or Creator account (not personal)
Connected to a Facebook Business Page
Admin access to both accounts

What You Get¶

DM Automation¶

Automatically respond to Instagram Direct Messages with your AI assistant.

Comment Responses¶

Engage with comments on your posts using intelligent, contextual replies.

Unified Inbox¶

All Instagram conversations appear in your Functional AI dashboard.

Requirements¶

Requirement	Details
Account type	Instagram Business or Creator account
Facebook page	Connected to a Facebook Business Page
Permissions	Admin access to Instagram account
Functional AI	Active account with configured assistant

Business Account Required

Personal Instagram accounts cannot use the Messaging API. You must have a Business or Creator account.

Setting Up the Integration¶

Step 1: Prepare Your Instagram¶

Ensure you have a Business or Creator account
Connect to a Facebook Business Page (required by Meta)
Have admin access to both accounts

Step 2: Connect in Functional AI¶

Go to Integrations or Social in your dashboard
Find Instagram integration
Click Connect

Step 3: Authorize with Meta¶

You'll be redirected to Meta's OAuth authorization flow. This secure process lets you grant Functional AI limited access to your Instagram account.

Understanding the Permissions¶

Permission	Why We Need It	What We Can Do	What We Can't Do
instagram_manage_messages	To read and respond to DMs	View incoming DMs, send replies	Access your personal DMs or post DMs
instagram_manage_comments	To respond to comments	Read comments on your posts, reply	Delete comments, moderate all comments
instagram_basic	To identify your account	Get profile name, avatar, account info	Access insights, followers, or posts
pages_manage_metadata	Required by Meta	Connect Instagram to Facebook Page	Post on your behalf or manage page

Facebook Page Requirement

Meta requires Instagram Business accounts to be linked to a Facebook Business Page. This is Meta's requirement to enable the Messaging API.

Authorization Steps¶

You'll be redirected to Meta's authorization screen
Log in to your Facebook account (if not already logged in)
Select the Instagram account to connect
Select the connected Facebook Page
Review the permissions requested
Click Allow to grant permissions

What happens behind the scenes

sequenceDiagram
    participant User
    participant FunctionalAI
    participant Meta
    participant Instagram

    User->>FunctionalAI: Click "Connect Instagram"
    FunctionalAI->>Meta: Redirect to OAuth with scopes
    Meta->>User: Show permission screen
    User->>Meta: Approve permissions
    Meta->>FunctionalAI: Return authorization code
    FunctionalAI->>Meta: Exchange code for access token
    Meta->>FunctionalAI: Return long-lived token (60 days)
    FunctionalAI->>Instagram: Subscribe to webhooks
    Instagram->>FunctionalAI: Confirm webhook subscription
    FunctionalAI->>User: Connection successful

Token Management: - 60-day token expiration - Automatic token refresh - Encrypted storage (Fernet) - Webhook verification (HMAC-SHA256)

Step 4: Configure Settings¶

After connecting:

Select which assistant handles Instagram
Configure DM webhook settings
Configure comment webhook settings
Set response delays (optional)
Save settings

Configuration Options¶

DM Settings¶

Setting	Description
Enable DM webhooks	Toggle auto-responses to DMs
Assistant	Select which assistant responds
Response delay	Add delay before responding

Comment Settings¶

Setting	Description
Enable comment webhooks	Toggle auto-responses to comments
Reply to all comments	Respond to every comment
Reply to questions only	Only respond to comments with questions
Keywords	Only respond when specific words are mentioned

Response Delay¶

Add a human-like delay before responding:

Instant (0 seconds): Immediate response
Short (5-15 seconds): Brief pause
Medium (15-30 seconds): More natural feel
Long (30-60 seconds): Very human-like

Natural Engagement

A slight delay (10-20 seconds) makes interactions feel less robotic, especially for comments.

Best Practices¶

For DMs¶

Good assistant instructions:

You are the customer support assistant for [Brand] on Instagram.

Keep responses:
- Concise (Instagram messages are typically short)
- Friendly and personable
- On-brand with our social voice

Handle:
- Product questions
- Order inquiries
- General support

For complex issues:
- Collect basic info
- Let them know a team member will follow up
- Provide email: support@example.com

For Comments¶

Guidelines: - Keep responses short and engaging - Match the tone of the post - Be selective (don't spam every comment) - Add value, don't just promote

Example responses: - Question: "What size should I get?" → Helpful sizing advice - Compliment: "Love this!" → Brief thank you - Issue: "Had a problem..." → Empathetic response + DM offer

Managing Conversations¶

Viewing Instagram Messages¶

Go to Conversations
Filter by Instagram channel
View all DMs and comment threads

Replying Manually¶

For conversations needing human touch:

Open the conversation
Type your reply
Send

Your reply appears as if from your Instagram account.

Escalation¶

Set up rules to flag conversations for human review: - Negative sentiment - Specific keywords ("refund", "problem") - User requests human contact

See Channel Rules for configuration.

Understanding Message Flow¶

User sends DM or comments
        ↓
Instagram sends webhook to Functional AI
        ↓
AI assistant processes message
        ↓
Response sent back to Instagram
        ↓
User receives reply
        ↓
Conversation logged in dashboard

Attachments¶

Receiving Attachments¶

When users send you images, videos, or other media via DM:

We display them in your Conversations dashboard
Media remains hosted on Meta's servers (we store a link)
Attachments may expire over time as Meta manages their CDN

Supported incoming types: Images, videos, audio, reels, stickers

24-Hour Window & Attachment Expiration

You can only respond within 24 hours of the user's last message. Instagram media links may also expire over time - save important files locally.

Sending Attachments¶

When replying manually from the Conversations dashboard:

Message Type	Supported Attachments
DMs	Images, videos, audio
Comments	Text only (no attachments)

Not supported: Documents (PDFs, Word files, etc.) - Instagram doesn't allow these in DMs.

If you try to attach an unsupported file, your text message will still send, with a note explaining the attachment couldn't be included.

AI and Attachments¶

The AI assistant is aware when users send media but cannot analyze image or video contents. Consider training your assistant to:

Acknowledge when media is received
Ask clarifying questions about the content
Offer human support for visual inquiries

Limitations¶

Platform Restrictions¶

Restriction	Details
24-hour window	Can only respond within 24 hours of user message
No proactive messaging	Can't message users who haven't messaged first
Rate limits	Meta imposes API rate limits
Content policies	Must follow Instagram's community guidelines

Webhook troubleshooting

Instagram uses webhooks to notify us of new messages in real-time.

Common Issues:

Symptom	Likely Cause	Solution
No webhooks arriving	Subscription expired	Reconnect Instagram account
Webhooks delayed	Meta platform lag	Check Meta Status
Some messages missing	Rate limit hit	Reduce message volume
Signature verification fails	App secret changed	Reconnect integration

Security: - Signature verification (HMAC-SHA256) - Duplicate prevention (5-minute window) - Rate limiting (100 webhooks/user/minute) - Timestamp validation

Troubleshooting¶

Quick Diagnostics¶

Problem	Check	Fix
Can't connect	Business/Creator account?	Switch to Professional Account
No messages	Webhooks enabled? OAuth active?	Check integration settings, reconnect
No responses	Within 24 hours? Assistant public?	Check timestamp, make assistant public

24-Hour Response Window

Instagram only allows responses within 24 hours of the user's last message.

Detailed connection troubleshooting

Can't Connect:

Account is Business or Creator type (not Personal)
Instagram connected to Facebook Business Page
Admin access to both Instagram and Page
No active restrictions

Steps: 1. Instagram App > Settings > Account > Switch to Professional Account 2. Connect to Facebook Business Page 3. Clear previous authorizations: Facebook Settings > Business Integrations 4. Try connecting from different browser

Messages not appearing

Send test DM from another account (should appear within 5-10 seconds)
Check integration settings for error badges
Verify authorization: Facebook Settings > Business Integrations
Check Meta platform status

Responses not sending

24-Hour Window Check: - Calculate time since user's last message - If > 24 hours: Cannot respond - If < 24 hours: Check other issues

Common Issues: - Private assistant → Make assistant public - No assistant selected → Select in integration settings - Invalid token → Reconnect Instagram - Test manually in dashboard to isolate issue

Privacy & Compliance¶

Data Handling¶

Messages are processed by your AI assistant
Conversations are stored securely
Follow Instagram's data policies

User Experience¶

Consider informing users they're chatting with AI
Provide option to reach human support
Respect opt-out requests

Testing¶

Before Going Live¶

Connect a test account if possible
Send test DMs from another account
Comment on test posts
Verify responses are appropriate
Check dashboard logging

Ongoing Monitoring¶

Review conversations daily
Check for inappropriate responses
Adjust settings as needed
Monitor engagement metrics

Next Steps¶

Configure channel rules
Set up Facebook Messenger (similar process)
Monitor conversations