Connect your Instagram Business account to SuperWaba and manage all Instagram DMs, story replies, and mentions from a single unified inbox — powered by AI automation.
Capabilities
Messaging
| Feature | Description |
|---|
| Receive DMs | All Instagram Direct Messages appear in your unified inbox |
| Send replies | Reply to DMs directly from SuperWaba |
| Media messages | Receive and view images, videos, reels, and voice messages inline |
| Story replies | Receive and respond to story reply messages |
| Story mentions | Get notified when someone mentions you in their story |
| Shared posts | View posts/reels shared via DM with media preview |
| Quick replies | Send saved reply templates for common questions |
AI Automation
| Feature | Description |
|---|
| AI auto-reply | AI agents respond to Instagram DMs automatically 24/7 |
| Product recommendations | AI suggests products from your catalog based on conversation context |
| FAQ handling | AI answers common questions using your knowledge base |
| Lead qualification | AI asks qualifying questions and tags contacts |
| Language detection | AI responds in the customer's language automatically |
| Smart escalation | AI hands off to a human agent when it can't resolve the issue |
| Conversation summary | AI generates summaries for agents taking over |
Automation workflows
| Automation | Description |
|---|
| Welcome message | Auto-send greeting when someone DMs for the first time |
| Away message | Automatic response outside business hours |
| Story mention thank-you | Auto-reply when someone mentions you in their story |
| Follow-up messages | Send follow-ups if customer doesn't respond after X hours |
| Auto-tagging | Automatically tag contacts based on conversation content |
| Auto-assign | Route conversations to specific team members by topic |
| Feature | Description |
|---|
| Profile sync | Instagram username, display name, and profile photo imported |
| Contact enrichment | Merge Instagram contacts with WhatsApp/Messenger contacts |
| Labels & tags | Organize Instagram contacts with custom labels |
| Notes | Add internal notes to Instagram conversations |
| Contact history | View full conversation history across all channels |
| Export contacts | Export Instagram contact list with metadata |
Analytics & insights
| Feature | Description |
|---|
| Response time tracking | Monitor average response times for Instagram DMs |
| AI resolution rate | Percentage of conversations resolved without human |
| Message volume | Track incoming/outgoing DM volume over time |
| Peak hours | Identify when most Instagram DMs come in |
| Agent performance | Track individual agent response metrics |
Prerequisites
- An Instagram Business or Creator account
- A Facebook Page connected to your Instagram account
- Admin access to the Facebook Page
- Messaging enabled in Instagram Settings > Privacy > Messages
Setup steps
- Go to Settings > Integrations > Instagram
- Click Connect Instagram
- Sign in with Facebook and grant the required permissions:
instagram_manage_messages — read and send DMsinstagram_basic — access account infopages_manage_metadata — webhook subscription
- Select the Instagram account to connect
- SuperWaba automatically subscribes to message webhooks
- (Optional) Configure AI agent for Instagram channel
Message types supported
Incoming (receive)
| Type | Supported | Notes |
|---|
| Text | Yes | Regular DM text messages |
| Image | Yes | Photos sent in DMs, with lightbox preview |
| Video | Yes | Videos and reels shared in DMs |
| Voice | Yes | Voice messages (audio clips) |
| Story reply | Yes | Reply to your story, includes story context |
| Story mention | Yes | Someone mentions your account in their story |
| Shared post/reel | Yes | Posts or reels forwarded via DM |
| Sticker | Yes | Instagram stickers |
| GIF | Yes | Animated GIFs |
Outgoing (send)
| Type | Supported | Notes |
|---|
| Text | Yes | Plain text replies |
| Image | Yes | Send images in DMs |
| Generic template | Yes | Card with image, title, subtitle, buttons |
| Quick replies | Yes | Buttons for fast responses |
| Heart/reaction | No | Instagram API limitation |
AI agent on Instagram
Your AI agent works across Instagram just like WhatsApp:
- Same knowledge base — AI uses your uploaded documents, URLs, and FAQs
- Same personality — Consistent tone and brand voice across channels
- Same escalation rules — Triggers human handoff based on your configured rules
- Channel-aware — AI knows it's on Instagram and adapts (no template messages, respects media limitations)
-
Go to AI Agents > Your Agent > Channels
-
Enable Instagram channel
-
Set Instagram-specific behavior (optional):
- Custom welcome message for Instagram DMs
- Different business hours for Instagram
- Instagram-specific escalation triggers
Limitations
| Limitation | Details |
|---|
| No template messages | Instagram API doesn't support pre-approved templates like WhatsApp |
| No interactive lists | Only quick reply buttons are supported |
| 24-hour window | You can only reply within 24 hours of the last customer message (Instagram policy) |
| Rate limit | 200 messages per hour per Instagram account |
| No broadcast | Cannot send proactive messages (customer must message first) |
| Media reply only | Images only; no document or location sharing via Instagram API |
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Solution |
|---|
| DMs not appearing | Verify account is Business/Creator (not personal) |
| Token expired | Re-authenticate — Instagram tokens expire every 60 days |
| Story mentions missing | Check pages_manage_metadata permission is granted |
| AI not responding | Verify Instagram channel is enabled in AI Agent settings |
| Media not loading | Check Instagram CDN URLs haven't expired (they expire after ~1 hour) |
| Wrong account connected | Disconnect and reconnect with the correct Facebook Page |
Re-authenticate
Instagram tokens expire every 60 days. When expired:
- Go to Settings > Integrations > Instagram
- Click Reconnect
- Re-authorize with Facebook
- No configuration is lost — only the token is refreshed