Wonder how to have multiple users on one Instagram account? For larger businesses, the only option is to use Instagram Direct Message (DM) API connected to an Instagram CRM. Many Instagram CRMs on the market have limited messaging functionality, presenting a challenge to companies looking to use Instagram Business Account with Multiple Users. In this article, we’ll explain how you can solve the Instagram Business Account Multiple Users problems with respond.io for different use cases. Plus, we'll discuss how to use respond.io with Instagram DM API integration for Sales and Support. You'll also learn how to use respond.io to run Click to Instagram Direct Ads and improve Team performance.
Instagram Messaging for Different Business Sizes
There are three options to respond to Instagram messages - the Instagram Message Inbox, Facebook Business Suite Inbox and Instagram Direct Message API. Each of them comes with different messaging capabilities and features.
Ultimately, there's no one-size-fits-all Instagram Inbox. You should opt for the Instagram DM Inbox that suits your business needs. Below, we’ll cover the features of each inbox, the business size it caters to and how it meets their needs.
Instagram Message Inbox
Instagram Message Inbox is ideal for sole proprietors or micro-businesses dealing with a low volume of messages daily. It's free to use and available on both the Instagram mobile app and Instagram Web.
With a minimal interface, the Instagram Message Inbox lacks organizational tools such as the Mark Done button, Tags or Contact assignment. The closest things to an organizational feature are the Primary and General folders for Professional Accounts.
The Primary tab is where all Instagram messages appear by default. To organise the Instagram Message Inbox, you can use the General folder to store resolved messages or messages you'd like to get back to later.
With limited organizational features, it's challenging to manage a large number of Instagram DMs on Instagram Message Inbox. This is where Facebook Business Suite comes in.
Facebook Business Suite Inbox
Facebook Business Suite Inbox is designed for small-medium businesses that receive a higher volume of DMs. Like Instagram Message Inbox, Facebook Business Suite Inbox is free to use but involves a more complex setup process.
The Facebook Business Suite Inbox comes with additional management tools such as manual Contact Assignment, Labels, and Notes. Additionally, you can mark Instagram messages as Done or Follow Up for a more organized inbox.
Facebook Business Suite Inbox also shows basic contact information such as Instagram username and bio. You can choose to add additional information such as phone, email, birthday and address when it becomes available.
While it has more features than Instagram Message Inbox, Facebook Business Suite Inbox lacks advanced features like auto Contact assignment and Agent performance analytics, making it unsuitable for enterprises with a large team of Agents attending to DMs. Looking for a sophisticated Instagram Inbox? We recommend Instagram DM API.
Instagram DM API
Instagram DM API is intended for large businesses that need to manage their Instagram DMs and Teams at scale. It’s offered free and best of all, all Instagram Business Accounts are eligible with no minimum followers required.
Keep in mind, Instagram DM API is just that - an API. It doesn't come with a messaging interface. Instagram DM API is designed to work in conjunction with a third party CRM or Instagram messaging inbox.
Choosing the right inbox ensures you get the most out of the Instagram DM API. Many Instagram CRMs on the market only have basic messaging functionality. To unlock the full power of Instagram DM API, connect it to respond.io.
Respond.io is a full-fledged Instagram DM Inbox complete with advanced features like third-party integrations, automatic Contact assignment and performance monitoring, all of which are designed to take your business to the next level.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Instagram Message Inbox, Facebook Business Suite Inbox or Instagram DM API?
Need help choosing the right Instagram DM inbox? We've created a flow chart as a guide to help you visualize and give you a better idea of which Instagram DM Inbox works best for your business.
In the following sections, we'll take a closer look at each Instagram DM inbox. Plus, we’ll walk you through the setup process.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Sole Proprietors & Micro Businesses
If you are a sole proprietor or micro-small business owner, Instagram Message Inbox would be sufficient to deal with a low volume of Instagram DMs. Here, you’ll learn how to enable multiple users on one Instagram account using Instagram Message Inbox.
Enabling Multiple Users on One Instagram Account: Instagram Message Inbox
There's no special setup required to access the Instagram Message Inbox. All Instagram accounts come with a native Message Inbox.
To access Instagram Message Inbox, click the Messenger icon on Instagram Web, or navigate to Home > Messenger button on the mobile app. Depending on your privacy settings, you may need to accept message requests from non-followers in the Message Requests folder on the app before their DMs appear on the Chats list.
How to have multiple users for Instagram? Simply share the account login credentials with your Agents. Agents can log into the Instagram Message Inbox on multiple devices, including desktop and mobile devices at the same time.
Sharing your Instagram login details seems like the easiest way to use one Instagram Business Account with Multiple Users, but it's also potentially problematic.
The more people you share your login credential with, the more likely your Instagram account will get compromised. Furthermore, if Instagram detects several different IPs logging in, it may block Agents from signing in or ask for additional verification.
Moreover, Instagram App Inbox doesn't come with specialized tools to assign users and organize conversations. If you are a small business or SME looking for an Instagram DM Inbox with extra functionality, consider the Facebook Business Suite Inbox.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Small Businesses & SMEs
Facebook Business Suite Inbox comes with basic organizational tools to help you manage a higher volume of Instagram DMs. Below, we'll discuss how to enable multiple users on one Instagram account using Facebook Business Suite Inbox.
Enabling Multiple Users on One Instagram Account Using Facebook Business Suite Inbox
First things first, let’s go over the requirements for using Facebook Business Suite Inbox:
- You must own an Instagram Business account. Learn about the different types of Instagram Accounts here.
- You must connect your Instagram Business Account to your Facebook Business Page.
If you meet the requirements, you are ready to use Instagram with Multiple Users on Facebook Business Suite Inbox. To start, go to the Facebook Business Settings page.
1. Add a new Agent to Facebook Business Suite Inbox by navigating to Users > People > Add.
2. Enter the work email address of the Agent. You can choose to grant either Employee access or Admin access. Click Next when done.
3. Assign the level of access of the Agent. Be sure to turn on the Send Messages toggle so that your Agents can respond to DMs as the Instagram Business Account. Once done, click Invite to send the invitation to the Agent.
On the next page, press Done to complete the invitation process. After accepting the invitation, your Agents will be able to use Facebook Business Suite Inbox simultaneously.
With its basic organizational tools, Facebook Business Suite Inbox may serve small-medium businesses well. But if your business has more sophisticated needs, Facebook Business Inbox won't cut it. You should consider Instagram DM API instead.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: SMEs and Large Organizations
Designed with SMEs and large businesses in mind, Instagram DM API makes it possible to manage customer communications on Instagram at scale.
Enabling Multiple Users on One Instagram Account Via Instagram DM API
Before we discuss how to use Instagram with Multiple Users via Instagram DM API, here are a few things you need to know about Instagram DM API:
- It has a 24-hour Messaging Window.
- Instagram DM API is free, but many Instagram CRMs and inboxes are not.
- You need to Allow Access to Messages from the Instagram app before you can use Instagram DM API.
Instagram DM API Messaging Window
To encourage prompt responses, Instagram doesn't let businesses reply to Instagram DMs anytime they like. A 24-hour timer starts every time a Contact sends you a DM and you must reply within the Messaging Window. Businesses can’t reply to Instagram DMs once the Messaging Window has closed.
Thankfully, the Human Agent Tag allows you to continue messaging the contact within the next 7 days. When you connect the Instagram DM API to respond.io, a Human Agent Tag will be automatically appended to every Instagram message, giving you more time to answer your customers’ enquires.
Instagram DM API: Pricing
Instagram DM API is offered free. However, many third-party Instagram Inboxes on the market require payments. Remember, Instagram DM API cannot be used alone since it has no messaging interface.
If you are looking for a feature-rich Instagram Inbox that’s free, we recommend giving respond.io a try.
How to Get Instagram DM API
Before you can enable Instagram DM API, there are two requirements you need to fulfil:
- You must own an Instagram Business account. If you are currently using a personal Instagram account for your business, change it to a Business Account.
- You need to connect your Instagram account to your Facebook Page by following this guide.
To get Instagram DM API, click the hamburger button at the top right corner of your Instagram Business profile. Then, navigate to Settings > Privacy > Messages and toggle on Allow Access to Messages under Connected Tools.
And you’ve successfully enabled Instagram DM API. With the toggle on, third-party apps like respond.io are able to view or manage your Instagram DMs.
Alternatively, you may turn on the Allow Access to Messages toggle in Facebook Business Suite by going to Settings > Instagram Connection.
Once you have your Instagram DM API ready, connect to respond.io to start messaging your customers. Then, add new Users to the platform to start using Instagram Business Account with Multiple Users.
And that’s how you enable multiple users on one Instagram account via Instagram DM API. Read on to learn how to use respond.io with Instagram DM API integration for sales, support and marketing.
Supported Use Cases with Respond.io
Here, we’ll teach you how to use respond.io with Instagram DM API integration for different use cases like sales, support, and marketing with Click to Instagram Direct Ads.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Sales and Support
Using Instagram for both Sales and Support at the same time is difficult when you don't have any idea what the Contact needs. Thanks to our customizable workflows, inbound messages will be routed to the right team based on the customers’ profile, the purpose of their conversation and customer life cycle.
With the workflows for inbound Instagram DMs set up, you can prioritize important customers first and assign them to the most relevant or readily available Agent on your team. This ensures no customers are left unattended.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Click to Instagram Direct Ads
Qualifying leads and handling a large volume of DMs leads from Click to Instagram Direct Ads can be time-consuming. Moreover, once the messaging window with leads closes, you can't reopen the conversation until they message you back.
Respond.io helps you qualify leads faster through automated surveys and reply to them promptly, increasing your chance of converting them into sales. Now that you've solved the Instagram Business Account Multiple Users problem, it's time to learn how to improve your Team’s performance.
Instagram Business Account Multiple Users: Improve Team Performance
Respond.io has a range of features designed to improve team productivity and efficiency. This includes Reports, Comments, Contact Merge, and mobile app.
The Reports module gives you valuable insights into Agent's and Team's performance. It allows you to compare Users and Team performance based on Conversations, Contacts, messages, response time and resolution time.
Furthermore, respond.io has special tools designed to facilitate collaboration among Agents. For instance, Comments help Agents communicate better and work together to resolve an issue.
The Contact Merge feature provides a comprehensive view of your customers. With easy access to customers' historical information, Agents can reply to them faster from one centralized dashboard.
Last but not least, the respond.io mobile app helps you stay connected to your customers when on the go - you’ll never miss a Conversation again. Plus, you'll get notified every time you receive a new message or when someone assigns you a new Contact.
Further Reading
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