Instagram

What are comment automations?‍

Comment automations automatically DM an instagram user who comments a keyword on one of your Instagram posts. Comment automations can be enabled for a specific post, any post, or the next post.‍

Why should I use comment automations on my Instagram account?‍

The instagram application favors posts with high engagement, and posts that keep users in the app. For this reason, Instagram does not allow accounts to share clickable links in their posts.

Instead of asking users to navigate out of their feed to click a link in your bio, comment automations make it easy for users to quickly get the information, links, or resources you are promoting in your post captions.‍

How do I get Instagram users to trigger comment automations?‍

Include a call to action in your post’s caption telling users to comment your keyword. For example “Comment ‘Justice’ and we will DM you a link to our petition”

What types of messages can I automate?‍

With the instagram feature, campaigns can automate a variety of messages to interact with users in their DMs:

• Ask users questions, or collect information
• Share surveys or polls
• Share links to petitions, events, donation forms, or webpages
• Share a link to subscribe for SMS

What are comment replies? How many variations of comment replies can I create per automation?‍

Comment replies are automated replies to a user’s comment on your post. When a keyword, or keyword synonym is detected, a comment reply will automatically be added to that user’s comment. Example “Thanks! Check your DM’s for a link to signup!”

Comment replies create more engagement on your posts! Comment automations can include up to 6 versions of comment replies, which will be used at random when a keyword is detected.

How to sync your Instagram account

Note: In order to use this feature you must have an Instagram business account. There are no costs to upgrade your Instagram account to a business account.

1. Click Integrations from the left hand navigation menu
2. Click Sync
3. Login to your Instagram account
4. Grant Ascend All permissions that appear in the modal
5. Once complete your instagram account is synced!

Instagram bot actions

Simple message‍

Simple messages are an easy way to share a PSA or to kick off a conversation.

Simple messages can include a button, which is a link or quick reply which will advance the user to the next bot action.

‍Send and Hold: This setting makes your simple message interactive. The bot action will wait for a user's reply before DMing the next bot action in your flow. Send and hold will wait for any response from a user before moving to the next action.Note: If the first step of your flow is a simple message, the send and hold cannot be enabled. To ensure your account is compliant with Instagram’s automated messaging rules, user must reply to your initial message.

Collect Info‍

Collect info bot actions collect data from users. By defining what type of data you're looking for, the chatbot will parse through users' responses and map that data to their profile.
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Ask A Question

Buttons: Buttons are tapable hyperlinks. Buttons can link to an external webpage OR automatically open up the user’s text message app making it easy to opt in to your SMS program using a keyword.

A single button can be shared in a simple message, or up to 3 in the Ask a Question bot action. Clicks are tracked when using the button feature.

Quick replies: Quick Replies make it easy for people to interact with you by tapping on a list of options. When a quick reply is tapped, the user’s account automatically replies with their selection.
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A single quick reply can be shared in a simple message, or up to 11  in the Ask a Question bot action.

Once a quick reply is tapped, other quick reply options will disappear from the user’s direct message window. Quick replies will also recognize messages that are manually typed out and sent by users, as long as they match one of the quick reply options. Quick reply recognition is not case sensitive.‍

Note: Tapping quick replies does not work if you are accessing Instagram via your web browser. You must use the Instagram app.

How to build an Instagram flow

1. Click Flows from the left hand navigation menu
2. Click Add Flow
3. Select Instagram from the options menu
4. Name your flow.
5. Compose your simple message and/or select a bot action from the bot actions menu
   Tip: Simulate your flow in the bot simulator, on the right hand side of your window.
6. Click Save once you have finished building a bot action.

‍How to build a Comment Automation

1. Click Automations from the left hand navigation menu
2. Click the Instagram tab
3. Click Add Automation
4. Name your automation
5. Select a keyword, when a user comments a keyword or keyword synonym, the comment automation will trigger.
6. Select the post you would like to use for your automation: Any post, specific post, or next post
7. Select if you want to comment and DM or just DM the user when they comment your keyword
8. If you select comment and DM, create comment reply variations (up to 6).
9. Next select the flow you’d like to  DM the user with.
10. Click Save

‍Note: if your automation is for the next post, the automation will not appear in the automations table until you have shared a new post and someone has commented with the keyword or keyword synonym. After a comment is detected, the automations table will display the specific post the automation is configured for.