Are you an aspiring business owner who wants to take your digital marketing game to the next level? Maybe you simply struggle to keep up with content post demands and want a tool that can help you improve time management and productivity – giving you more time to do what you do best, run your business! An Instagram post scheduler might be the solution for you. But what is it, and how do you use it to schedule Instagram posts – Let’s find out!
Is Scheduling Instagram Posts Possible?
Yes, it is possible. Instagram had grown from its humble beginnings when it launched in 2010 to the behemoth of a social media app we know today. The app currently has more than 2 billion users.
For businesses to effectively capitalize on this abundant source of potential customers, they need to schedule Instagram posts in advance. Schedule posts on Instagram in advance has numerous benefits, which we will discuss in the next section. Scheduling posts is very important for any Instagram content strategy!
Benefits of Instagram Scheduled Posts
1) Improve Time Management
Have you ever had that overwhelming feeling that something needed to be done yesterday, and now you are struggling to finish it – rushing, neglecting key features, knowing that the task could have been done so much better? An Instagram post scheduler prevents this from happening.
When you use an Instagram posts scheduler, it allows you to allocate a few hours every week to produce and schedule posts for the week. This allows you to save time you already don’t have.
2) Boost Your Productivity
We all know what happens when we go on social media – “a quick scroll through the feed posts before I post won’t hurt my time.” Twenty minutes fly by, and you still haven’t posted. Now combine that number with five days a week, and you are already at 100 minutes of doing nothing to help your business.
Scheduling Instagram posts in advance help boost your productivity & help gain more followers. With an Instagram scheduler, you can simply schedule all the posts for the week at once – this allows you to resist the temptations social media has to through at you.
Some scheduler apps also have a built-in social media management tool. These tools often have handy features that provide analytics of your posts. They can also boost your productivity by doing ordinary or repetitive tasks for you.
3) Easier To Create Higher Quality Content
Circling back to that social media management tool, it will often have features that can enhance your posts on Instagram. Better content gives you a much better chance of going viral with Instagram than randomly posting poor content.
When you set a time each week to construct your posts, it allows you to take more time and produce higher-quality content – fine-tuning the details that will really make your posts pop and make that user engagement shoot through the roof.
4) Get Over Creator’s Block
It’s a scenario that most of us have experienced. The time has come for you to make a new post, only you don’t know what to post. Your thoughts are blank. This can be very frustrating – trust me, I know!
When you post with an Instagram scheduling app, it gives you time to brainstorm new ideas for posts and write them down ahead of time. When the time comes for you to schedule your Instagram content, you can simply refer back to what you have written and use that as inspiration.
5) Run Several Instagram Accounts At The Same Time
I get it, it’s difficult enough to manage one Instagram account. You have to make posts, go live, and even create Instagram live events! Now you tell me that I can run several Instagram accounts simultaneously. Well, that’s the beauty of a scheduling app. When you use it correctly, it’s so effective in boosting all the previous benefits that it allows you to manage several accounts at the same time easily – you can even micromanage them!
Best Tools To Schedule Instagram Posts
1) eclincher
Okay, so eclincher is hands down the current best scheduler for the Instagram app. This tool is packed with amazing features that make running your Instagram business account a walk in the park.
Some of the features eclincher has are:
- Content calendar – allowing you to post consistently when you want and where you want. It saves you time and recycles your best-performing posts on Instagram to your content library. This tool will help you elevate your Instagram video marketing to the next level!
- Revolutionary Analytics – eclincher has some of the best analytics I have seen. The tool collects social data to highlight key features of where you can improve, what hashtag works, what post gained the most impressions, etc. All these analytics are optimized to give you the edge in digital marketing.
- Brand Management – The tool collects brand mentions, tag relevant accounts and helps you to choose the best keywords to optimize your post to reach more Instagram users.
2) Later
Later is a good alternative to eclincher, which also provides you with some handy features like:
- A visual planner
- The ability to find user-generated content
- Detailed Instagram analytics
3) Hubspot
If the first two tools don’t match your needs, Hubspot might be the Instagram post scheduler for you. Hubspot has a wide selection of tools to offer. However, the marketing tool is the most suited for Instagram posts. The tool provides the following:
- Lead generation
- Publish automatically according to your posting schedule
- Analytics of your posts
Directions: How To Schedule Instagram Posts
Every app or tool will have its own extra step or deviation from the norm. But you can expect the directions to be more or less along the lines of:
1) Create a business account
If you already have a personal Instagram account, you can simply switch to a business account in settings. A business account has other perks besides the post scheduler. You get access to Instagram insights, a contact button linked to your Instagram account, and you can also promote posts on Instagram.
2) Link Your Social Media Account To Your Social Media Management Platform
Next, you must link your Instagram account to your preferred social media management platform. I use eclincher, so your next steps might differ from mine.
3) Plan and Then Create Posts
Now the fun begins! After you have successfully linked your account with your social media manager, you need to start to plan your posts. Remember, your posts need to be creative, engaging, and unique. You want users to click on your Instagram profile – clicks turn into sales!
Once you have thought about what post you want to create, you need to create it. Use the Instagram analytics tool from your social media tool to optimize your post to reach the most users possible.
4) Schedule Your Instagram Posts
Finally, after you have created your social post, you will need to schedule it. Remember, there are times when users (your potential customers) are most active – posting at this time will yield the best results. Use your Instagram analytics tool to help you decide what time is the best for posting and construct your posting schedule around that.
Tips To Schedule Instagram Posts
1. Know The Times Your Audience Is Most Active
Did you know that certain times during the day yield better user engagement than other times? You need to capitalize on these hours when user engagement is at its peak. I would even recommend going live on instagram during these popular time zones! Your social media publishing tool will provide you with the information on which times are the best to post for your specific demographic. But as a general rule, you can expect people to be most active during these peak hours:
- Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Saturday and Sunday, 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.
2. Be Very Specific With Your Captions
Keywords, keywords, keywords! When you use the right keywords, it can boost your post to reach new highs on Instagram. But it has to be the right keywords! Eclinger will help you find the correct keywords for your caption, use the appropriate hashtag and even help you with trending songs (for that extra boost to land in more users’ feeds).
3. Reply To Comments & Engage With Your Audience
People appreciate it when you take the time to reply to them in the comments – it makes them feel acknowledged and important. When you engage with your audience, it automatically boosts the public’s view of you. If you want to build a following on Instagram and a loyal customer base, remember to take the time to reply and engage with your followers. Instagram reels are also a great way to engage with your audience on a daily basis.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a free way to schedule Instagram posts?
Yes, there are free Instagram post schedulers. However, these apps are very limited and would most likely restrict scheduling posts to a single photo and basic Instagram analytics. You will not be able to post stories or carousel posts. Free Instagram post scheduler apps you can try are: Tailwind and Combin
What is the best Instagram post scheduler?
Eclinger is the best Instagram post scheduler. The tool has market-leading analytics tools and is backed by experts with years of experience specializing in helping businesses reach optimal results on social media platforms with digital marketing.
Why can’t I schedule posts in Instagram?
You need to have a business account to schedule Instagram posts. Simply switch to a business account in settings and download an Instagram post scheduler like eclincher to schedule Instagram posts on your preferred Instagram account.
How do you schedule a story on Instagram 2022?
You cannot schedule Instagram stories directly from within the app. You will need to download an Instagram post scheduler like eclincher. To schedule a story, you can follow the guidelines as outlined in this article using your Instagram scheduler tool to schedule Instagram stories.
Final Thoughts
An Instagram post scheduler is a powerful tool businesses can use to climb the saturated Instagram feed and promote user engagement. Ultimately improving their digital marketing effectiveness. If you like what you read and want to take your digital marketing on the Instagram mobile app to the next level, feel free to reach out to us here at eclincher. You can either book a meeting or try a 14-day free trial and see if the tool works for you.
