By Victoria Stoklasa, CEO

Instagram, the popular photo-based social media app, is notoriously difficult to link with outside applications. The terms of use lay out a zero tolerance policy on spam--"You must not create or submit unwanted email, comments, likes or other forms of commercial or harassing communications (a/k/a "spam" to any Instagram users." As a result, it is impossible to automate any photo posts to Instagram--the creators of the app want the community to consist of genuine conversation and remain free of advertisements.

Then, Hootsuite showed up and announced that they were changing the rules of the game. Hootsuite, a popular social media scheduling tool, announced that Instagram had been integrated with their platform. They hyped the idea that Hootsuite users could now schedule posts to be sent to Instagram.

We at Bon Visto Media couldn't resist trying it out. So, we tried scheduling some image posts for a client. And...we were not impressed.

Here's how it works: The user downloads the Hootsuite app onto their phone, which allows the app to connect with Instagram. Then, the user uploads the photo the want to share onto Hootsuite, types the caption, and selects the day and time they want the post to be published. Once that time rolls around, the user gets an alert on their phone. At the time of their alert, they access the Hootsuite app, which automatically copies the photo and text for the user to then paste into Instagram and publish.

Aside from the auto-copying aspect of this process, there is nothing that truly automates Instagram posts in the way that Hootsuite automates posting to other platforms. Normally, a user can type up a month's worth of statuses or tweets, schedule when to post them, and then forget about it--Hootsuite does the posting on its own. With Instagram scheduling, the user still has to put in that effort to make sure the post is published on time. 

Frankly, we at Bon Visto Media like how we've been scheduling Instagram posts:

1. We create images for the client and upload them into Dropbox, which we can then access from our phones.
2. We write the captions and the hashtags and save them in a document on Dropbox.
3. The person managing the particular Instagram profile sets an alarm on their phone to remind them to post on Instagram.
4. When that alarm goes off, the profile manager downloads the content from Dropbox and posts it on Instagram.

Just as easy as using Hootsuite, possibly even easier.

What are your thoughts on Hootsuite scheduling for Instagram? Let us know in the comments!

By Juan Saliba, Social Media Management Intern, Summer 2015

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram are several of the most popular social media platforms. From catching up with friends from another state to planning a surprise birthday party, social media has been ingrained into our lives whether we realized it or not. While social media has been helpful in terms of personable aspects, what happens when social media is involved with businesses and their employees? 

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the benefits of using social media  in the workplace can be extremely helpful in terms of widening their social circle and implementing technology that can strengthen work relationships. By utilizing social media, companies can reach out to their customers and shape their platforms to better suit their needs. This is also a great way to get personal with customers and see their products at work. Also, having a great rapport with costumers provides a great way of having others promote your product through word of mouth. 

Despite the benefits, there are some cons to utilizing social media in the workplace. The same social media platform, be it Facebook or Twitter, that helps the business rely on feedback and helps customers when needed can backfire in disastrous ways. Customers who may have had a negative experience may complain on the social media platforms and may drive more customers away or stay and watch the enveloping drama unfold. In a way, costumers can see how the company deals with the situation and base their judgement on what is happening. 

There is also the possibility of employees not being productive because they are too busy updating their social media platforms to do any work. This may cause consternation amongst employees and cause internal rifts amongst one another causing more conflict and less work. 

There are plenty of pros and cons regarding implementing social media in your business. A business who uses social media successfully can look forward to increased productivity amongst employees as well as business when costumers see how well integrated their social media platforms are.