When an Instagram Direct Message is routed to you, you'll see a green notification banner at the top of your screen with the Customer's name and a short preview of their message. Click Accept to take the request.

Instagram imposed limitations
Below are limitations that Instagram is currently imposing for all partners using the Instagram API:
Reactions sent from the Instagram App will not appear in the Conversation Timeline in Gladly.
All reactions are always mapped to ❤️. This is currently a limitation of the Facebook API.

How messages are sent to Gladly from Instagram

Customers can start a Conversation from your company's Instagram profile using the Message option or by @mentioning your company username from their Story.

Message

@mention from Stories*

*A Customer’s Instagram account must be public for Gladly to create a Conversation from an @mention.

Messages and mentions are routed like any other Messaging Channels (e.g., SMS, chat, and Facebook Messenger). When you accept a routed message, you're taken to the Customer's Profile.

Known Customers – We identify Customers through their Instagram ID (not the same as username), permanently associated with an Instagram account. This ID allows Gladly to identify who the Customer is if they contact you again and pull the correct Profile. This ID allows Gladly to identify who the Customer is if they contact you again and pull the correct Profile. We show the Customer’s full name as shown in their Facebook account in the Contact Details.
- Note – The Instagram username in the Contact Details is not editable.
New Customers – Gladly creates a Customer Profile with the user's name as shown in their Instagram profile. If they contact you again, it will automatically open their Customer Profile using their name and Instagram ID (not the same as username) to pull up the correct Customer Profile. Although Instagram doesn't allow Gladly to store usernames automatically for privacy reasons, you could ask for more information to add to their Contact Details, like their phone number or email address so the same Profile is opened if they contact you using a different Channel. If they provide their username, you may store it as a Customer Detail.

Accept, decline, and reply to an Instagram message

Click 'Next' to receive more Messaging Customers
The number of Messaging Customers (e.g., SMS, chat, Instagram Messaging, etc.) you're automatically routed depends on the standard messaging capacity your Administrator has set. You must click Next to receive more Messaging Customers beyond the standard capacity until the maximum number of Messaging Customers is met.

Once an Instagram message (Story or Message) is routed to you, you can treat it like any other Conversation.

When an Instagram message is routed to you, a green notification banner appears at the top of your screen with the Customer's name and a short preview of their message. Click Accept to take the request.
- To decline a message, click Decline from the notification banner. You can also ignore the banner, which will automatically route to another Agent after 30 seconds. You won't receive chats until you click Next (either through the Next button beside the Channel Availability Controls or the Close & Next button).
You'll be taken directly to their Customer Profile, where you'll find the Instagram Composer pulled up, ready for you to start your response.
- Character limit: Instagram allows up to 640 characters per message. If you exceed this limit, the Send button is deactivated.
  - The character counter turns orange at 630, then red at 640, indicating you are at the maximum limit.
- Images – You can reply with images (video is not supported) by dropping the file on the Composer or by clicking . You can use JPEG, PNG, or GIF images.
- Attachments – Up to 10 attachments (e.g., images) with a combined size of no more than 5MB.
- Links/URLs – URLs or links appear on Instagram Messages in this format: URL [URL] — for example, https://connect.gladly.com/docs[https://connect.gladly.com/docs].
When you're happy with your response, add the correct Topic, then click Send. You can stay on the Customer Profile and wait for them to reply, click Next to receive additional work, or navigate away to help other Customers. You'll know if the Customer has seen your last message with the read indicator.
When they reply, you'll see the notification banner reappearing with the option to reply.

Time limit to respond to Instagram Stories and messages
New Instagram messages must be responded to in 7 days.
@mentions from Stories expire in 24 hours. If an expired Story is routed to you, the Conversation Timelines show that the Story expired. Follow your team's policy on how to handle expired Stories.
Stories deleted by Customers before it expires still route but will appear unavailable in Gladly.

Initiate an Instagram message from Gladly

You cannot initiate messages from Gladly to Instagram.

End an Instagram session

An Instagram Messaging session ends when:

The Customer stops responding, and the session automatically ends.
The Conversation is closed by clicking Close & Next or Close.
The last incoming message is marked as No Reply Needed.

@mentions in Stories

Besides using the Message option on Instagram, Customers can also @mention your company username (e.g., @gladlyinc) in Stories. As a result, they appear as "<Customer name> mentioned" in the Conversation Timeline of the Customer Profile. The Customer's Instagram account must be public to create a Conversation through @mentions.

A stylish green couch in a bright living room with a coffee table and lamp.

For video Stories or messages, click play to view the video in the Conversation Timeline. You can reply with a message or photo (video is not supported) by placing the image in the Composer by clicking .

Messages sent from a Story

Messages sent through the Send message... box as a reply to a Story appear in the Conversation Timeline along with the Story the Customer sent the message from, so you have context of which Story the Customer sent the message from.

A sleeping dog rests peacefully on a soft surface, with a message box below.

Expired Stories and deleted messages

Stories that have expired or been deleted will say "Story is no longer available" or "Message was deleted" in the Conversation Timeline. Follow your team's policy on how to handle expired Stories.

Like messages, stories, and replies ❤️

If a Customer likes a message or photo you sent, the ❤️ emoji will appear on the bottom left of the message. Customer reactions using any emoji will appear as a ❤️ in Gladly.

User requests help to exchange a recent purchase for a different color item.

To Like a message or Story mention a Customer sent, clickon the message and click Like Message. The liked message is visible to you and the Customer.

A customer requests help to exchange a recent purchase for a different color.

An error appears if you Like a Story or no longer available messages.

To Unlike a message or to remove a reaction, click the emoji on the message. The emoji will disappear.

User requests help to exchange a recent purchase for a different color item.

Likes do not fulfill SLA
Liking a DM does not fulfill SLA, meaning it does not count as a reply.

Messages appear in Gladly but missing on Instagram

Instagram messages that appear in Glady but not in the Instagram app may have come in as a request and are hidden.

View requests

See hidden requests

The screen displays message requests highlighted in a messaging app interface.

Screenshot showing hidden message requests with no current messages available.

Messages between the Instagram app and Gladly (Echo)

Because Instagram messages sent directly to your company's Instagram account create a Conversation in Gladly, if a non-Gladly user (perhaps someone from your social team) replies to the message from the app, the SLA is cleared for the initial message, and the messages are also reflected (echoed) in the Conversation even if the Conversation has not been routed to an Agent. Once routed, you'll know it's an echoed message because the Conversation Timeline may say, "Routed to you because of an outgoing Instagram message."

A message interface showing a conversation about an Instagram message routing.

This gives you context that a non-Gladly user has engaged with the Customer via the app, and you may not necessarily need to reply to the Conversation. Use your discretion to determine when the Conversation should be closed.

You can deactivate the Echo behavior in the Instagram Conversation Settings page.

Instagram accounts with the same name

Instagram users with the same name are always treated as distinct Customers through their Instagram ID. This means Customer Profiles are not matched unless a merge is manually initiated. Therefore, if you need to merge two Customer Profiles, always confirm they are related.

Follower count details

See the number of followers a Customer has or if they have a verified account. This information is updated whenever the Customer reaches out to you via Instagram.

Contact information for a Gladly customer, including followers and connections.

[A] – The Customer's name as shown in their Instagram account.
[B] – The verified badge appears if the Customer's account is verified.
[C] – The number of followers the Customer has.
[D] – Shows Instagram accounts following the Customer associated with your company. Doesn't include unassociated Instagram accounts.
[E] – Shows Instagram accounts the Customer is following that are associated with your company. Doesn't include unassociated Instagram accounts.
- Hover over [D] and [E] to see additional Instagram accounts the Customer follows or is followed by.

Can I send an Instagram message to a Customer?