Troubleshooting Facebook and Instagram connections

Since Instagram must be connected to a Facebook Page to work with Viraly, this guide covers connecting both Facebook Pages and Instagram Business or Creator accounts.

Setting up these channels can be more complex than other networks, so we’ll walk you through the necessary steps. It’s crucial to follow them in the correct order to identify any connection issues. Please don’t skip any steps, as this may prevent Viraly from connecting your channel.

Here are the steps to follow, in order:

1. Checking Admin Settings (for Facebook and Instagram connections)
2. Checking your Permissions (for Facebook and Instagram connections)
3. Checking the connection between Facebook and Instagram
4. Checking your Instagram account type (Instagram-specific)
5. Converting your Instagram account and linking a Facebook page (Instagram-specific)
6. Reconverting your Instagram account (Instagram-specific)
7. Reauthorizing the connection between Facebook and Viraly (Facebook and Instagram connections)

Checking Admin Settings (for Facebook and Instagram connections)

To connect or refresh a Facebook Page in Viraly, ensure that you have Full Control as an admin of the Page.

Verifying Settings in the Professional Dashboard:

1. Log into Facebook and make sure you are acting as your Page, not as your profile.
2. Click Professional Dashboard in the left-hand menu.
3. Select Page Access from the left-side menu options.
4. Click your name to see if the message says, “This person has full control.”

• If it doesn’t say “This person has full control” next to your Facebook profile name, ask someone on your team with full control to adjust your permissions.
• If you don’t see your Facebook profile name listed, it’s likely that your team might be using Meta Business Suite, so you’ll need to check the settings in Meta Business Suite.

5. Once you have full control via the Professional Dashboard, move on to check the admin settings in Meta Business Suite, where ‘Full Control’ also needs to be set.

Checking settings in Meta Business Suite

1. Go to Meta Business Suite settings (or follow this link).
2. If multiple accounts are shown, select the one for the Facebook Page you’re trying to connect.

⚠️ If you don’t see the right account, you may not have the necessary admin permissions with Full Control within that Business Suite, so ask someone else on your team for help.

3. Under “Accounts,” click Pages, find your name, and ensure that Full control: Everything is enabled. It should look like this.
4. Under “Accounts,” click Instagram Accounts, select the appropriate account, then open Instagram account access tab and find your name on the list. Make sure the setting Full control: Everything is enabled. It should look like this.
5. Check the People section under “Users” to confirm that Full control: Everything is listed next to your name for Business Portfolio Access. It should look like this.

Once this is done, proceed to check your permissions.

Checking your Permissions (for Facebook and Instagram connections)

A common issue when connecting channels is missing permissions between Facebook and Viraly. When you attempt to connect Instagram and Facebook, it’s vital to grant permissions for all Pages, even those not connected to Viraly. Missing permissions can stop Viraly from finding your managed channels.

Follow these steps to do this:

1. Log into your personal Facebook profile that has admin access with full control over the Page.
2. Click the drop-down arrow at the top right, and go to Settings & privacy > Settings.
3. Select Business Integrations in Facebook.

⚠️ Note: These settings are within your personal profile, not your Facebook Page. You should be using Facebook as your profile in order to access them.

4. Find Viraly in the list and select View and Edit.
5. Scroll through the list of Pages and make sure all boxes are selected (you might need to expand the list to see more Pages).

📝 Note: If no individual Pages are listed, it means Viraly already has access to all Pages, which is ideal. In this case, you won’t need to check any Pages here, and instead, you’ll need to reestablish the authorization by following the steps to Reauthorize the connection between Viraly and Facebook/Instagram.

6. After making your selections, click Save.
   • If you are connecting a Facebook Page, go back to Viraly and try reconnecting the Page again. If the Page does not connect, please continue with Reauthorizing the connection between Facebook and Viraly.
   • If you are connecting an Instagram account, try connecting the account to Viraly and it still doesn’t work, proceed with the remaining steps in this article.

Checking the connection between Facebook and Instagram

Once you’ve confirmed that your Instagram account is a Business or Creator account, ensure your Facebook Page is properly connected to Instagram, within your Page settings and Meta Business Suite.

To check the connection between Instagram and Facebook on your Page:

1. Log into the Facebook Page linked to Instagram.
2. Click Professional Dashboard, then go to Linked Accounts.
3. You should see your Instagram account connected, like this:

• If your Instagram is connected properly, you will see the following options: “View Details” and “Disconnect Account” as they are in the image above.

• Otherwise, there are some other screens you might see and the steps you should take. (Click on the images to view them expanded).

4. If your team uses Meta Business Suite, check for any alerts or issues there before trying to reconnect Instagram to Viraly.

Checking the Instagram connection within Meta Business Suite

Visit the Meta Business Suite homepage and check for any alerts regarding unavailable features. If you see a prompt, click Get Started. Here’s what this would look like:

If no alerts appear and your Instagram account is correctly linked, try reauthorizing the Facebook-Viraly connection.

Checking your Instagram account type (Instagram-specific)

If you’re connecting Instagram, first you’ll need to ensure that your Instagram is set up as a professional (Business or Creator) account.

Unsure of which type of Instagram account you have? 

Note: Once your Instagram account is set up as a business or creator account, please move onto checking the connection between Facebook and Instagram.

Ensure that your Instagram is set up as a professional (Business or Creator) account.

1. Open the Instagram app and go to your profile.
2. Tap the three-line menu in the upper-right corner.
   • If you see Business tools and controls or Creator tools and controls, you’re set.
   • If you see Account type and tools, you have a personal profile and need to switch to a professional account.

If your account is a personal account, you’ll need to convert your account to a professional account using the steps below.

Converting your Instagram to a business or creator account and linking a Facebook Page (Instagram-specific)

While it is possible to convert to a business or creator account in the Instagram app, we recommend converting your Instagram via Facebook to ensure the Page is correctly linked with the Instagram account. The following steps will ensure your Instagram is both set up as a business or creator account and linked to a Facebook page.

Converting your Instagram account to a professional account via Facebook (recommended)

1. Open Facebook and then go to your list of Facebook Pages. (or click on this link).
2. Select the Page you’ll associate with Instagram, or create a new Facebook Page if you don’t already have one.
   
   📝 You must have admin access with Full Control on the Page you’re associating to your Instagram professional account. To check if you have the proper permissions, follow the steps above.
   
3. Once you’re in your Page, click Settings > Linked Accounts
4. Click Connect Account.

6. Next, click Connect and then Confirm to proceed through the connection prompts.  
7. Enter your Instagram login credentials and click Log In. (If you’re already signed into Instagram, or your login credentials are saved within your browser, you’ll just need to click Continue).
8. You’ll see a pop up window prompting you to set up your Instagram business or creator account. Follow the on-screen instructions, ensuring you enter your contact info, and then click Done.

⚠️ If you don’t see the pop up window prompting you to set up your Instagram business or creator account, you can try converting via the Instagram app instead, following the steps in the section just below.

9. Once your account has been converted, you can try connecting Instagram to Viraly again. If it works, you’re all set to connect or refresh your channel in Viraly! If you’re still having trouble connecting Instagram, please check the connection between Facebook and Instagram. 

Converting from a personal account to a professional account via the Instagram mobile app

Open the Instagram app on your mobile device and tap the menu button in the upper right corner.

Scroll down to For professionals and tap Account type and tools.

Tap Switch to professional account. Note: If you don’t see “Switch to professional account,” but do see “Business tools and controls,” you’re already set and can try connecting or refreshing your Instagram channel in Viraly again. If you’re still experiencing trouble, let’s check the connection between Facebook and Instagram.

Tap continue until you reach the category page. Select a category.

Select creator or business. Your Instagram account will now be a professional account.

Then, to link a Facebook page:

• Under “For professionals” tap either “Creator tools and controls” (creator accounts) or “Business tools and controls” and then tap Connect a Facebook page. You’ll be prompted to log into Facebook and can choose the page you want to connect to Instagram.

Once your account has been converted to a professional account and connected to a Facebook page, head back to Viraly and try connecting or refreshing your Instagram channel. If you are still unable to, check the connection between Facebook and Instagram.

Reconverting your Instagram account (Instagram-specific)

In certain cases, such as when your Instagram account is set up as a business or creator account but isn’t properly linked to a Facebook Page, or if you’re encountering errors while trying to publish posts, you may need to revert your Instagram account to a personal profile and then convert it back to a professional account.

⚠️ Important: When switching back to a personal profile, all of your Instagram Insights will be lost. It’s recommended to review and save your Insights before making this change.

1. Open the Instagram app on your mobile device and go to Settings.
2. Tap Account.
3. Select Switch to personal account, and then tap Switch back to confirm.

Once your Instagram account has been switched to a personal profile, follow the steps mentioned earlier to convert to a business or creator account and make sure to link a Facebook Page.

Reauthorizing the connection between Facebook and Viraly (Facebook Pages and Instagram)

If you’re still unable to connect your Facebook or Instagram channel after trying the previous steps, reauthorizing the connection between Viraly and Facebook may be necessary. Follow these steps:

1. In Facebook, click the small drop-down arrow at the top right of the screen, then select Settings & privacy > Settings.
2. From the left-hand menu, click Business Integrations (or use this link).

⚠️ Note: These settings are found within your personal Facebook profile, not in the Facebook Page settings. You must be logged in as your personal profile to access them.

2. Find Viraly in the list of integrations and click Remove.
3. A pop-up will appear asking for confirmation to remove Viraly. Click Remove.
   Note: This action removes the Viraly app from Facebook, not your Viraly account.
4. Return to Viraly and try reconnecting your Facebook or Instagram channel. Make sure to accept all permissions and all Pages (including Pages not connected to Viraly) during the authorization process.

📝 Reminder: You’ll see an option to “Choose what you allow” during this step. Facebook requires this, but altering any permissions will prevent Viraly from authenticating with Facebook, making it impossible to connect your Instagram channel.

5. As a last step, once Viraly has been reauthorized, please refresh your channel in Viraly by following these steps.

If you’re still having issues, feel free to reach out to us at contact@viraly.io with the error details, and we’ll be happy to help troubleshoot!