Should I connect with Facebook or with Instagram?

Both are supported, and which you use affects which features can be enabled. After connecting, look at the Feature access list under Settings: any row reading Enable by reconnecting means a permission is missing for that feature — reconnect and grant it.

My posts are not showing in my store

First confirm on Settings that the status is Connected and that Storefront feed is Live in the Feature access list. Then click Refresh feed now — the panel tells you how many posts it pulled. If the feed is still empty the posts have not been cached yet, which the Cached posts number tells you.

What do I lose if I disconnect?

Disconnect stops the storefront feed, the DM inbox, comment management and publishing. Nothing happens to your Instagram account itself — your posts, followers and comments stay exactly as they are. You can reconnect whenever you like.

A photo in a message will not open

Instagram hands out time-limited links to media in messages, and once that expires the panel says the link has expired. Use Open on Instagram to view it in the app. This is not a fault — it is Instagram's own behaviour.

How to connect and run your Instagram account

Connect Instagram, show your posts in the store, tag products, answer DMs and comments from the panel, and read the insights.

5 min readLast updated: 2026-09-01

An Instagram connection is not one thing but several capabilities: the storefront feed, product tagging, direct messages, comment management, publishing and insights. They all run over the same connection, but each depends on a separate permission Instagram grants — which is why some rows in the Feature access list read Live and others say Enable by reconnecting. None of it works until the account is connected.

Before you start

An Instagram business or creator account
Admin rights on the Facebook page that account is linked to
A panel account that can see the Instagram screens

Steps

Screens are illustrative; the data in your own panel will differ.

Step 1: Connect the account
Open Instagram > Settings and click Connect with Facebook. A Facebook window opens where you pick your Instagram account and the linked page. Once it succeeds the status becomes Connected and the panel shows the Account, Cached posts, Access expires and Connected on details.
Not connected
Connect Instagram
Connect with FacebookConnect with Instagram
Account Cached posts Access expires Connected on
@magazam 42 12.11.2026 01.09.2026
Checking your Instagram connection…
Connect Instagram — example view from the panel
Step 2: Check which features are actually on
The Feature access list on the same screen shows, row by row, what this connection covers: Storefront feed, Customer gallery (UGC), Product page posts, Post publishing, Auto-post products and Direct message inbox. Anything marked Live works; a row reading Enable by reconnecting needs you to reconnect and grant the missing permission.
Connected
Feature access
You can enable more features for this connection.
Storefront feed Customer gallery (UGC) Product page posts Post publishing Direct message inbox
Live Live Live Enable by reconnecting Live
Refresh feed nowDisconnect
Feature access — example view from the panel
Step 3: Tag products on your posts
Instagram > Shopping lists your posts and lets you link products from your store to each one. Tagged products become clickable wherever that post is shown in your store, so a visitor who likes an outfit they saw on Instagram lands straight on the product page. When you save, the panel confirms Product tags saved.
Connected
Shopping
New season window
Post
2 products tagged
Shots from the studio
Carousel
No tags
Tag products
Shopping — example view from the panel
Step 4: Answer direct messages from the panel
Instagram > Direct is the Direct Messages inbox. Pick a conversation on the left and write your answer in the box below. Refresh loads the latest Direct conversations from Instagram. Save the answers you write most often as Quick Replies — they appear as chips in the DM inbox and drop in with one click.
Direct Messages
@ayse.y
Photo
When does it ship?
Write a reply…
Hi! Your order ships today.
Send replyRefresh
Canned replies shown as chips in the DM inbox.
Direct Messages — example view from the panel
Step 5: Manage comments and mentions
Instagram > Comments collects the comments and @mentions captured from your posts. Each one can be given a Reply, or you can Hide or Delete it; the ones you answered carry a Replied badge and hidden ones a Hidden badge. Anything still unanswered shows as Needs a reply, so nothing gets lost under a busy post.
Comments & Mentions
CommentsAutomationSaved replies
On this post Comment Mention Needs a reply
New season window 18 3 5
Write a public reply…
Write a public reply…
SendHideDelete
Comments & Mentions — example view from the panel
Step 6: Publish or schedule a post from the panel
On Instagram > Composer, Create a post lets you publish an Image, Carousel, Reels, Story or Video. Add the media, write the caption, optionally Tag products, then choose Publish now or Schedule. Posts are published to your connected Instagram account — what you send from here goes out on your real account.
Instagram Composer
Create a post
ImageCarouselReelsStoryVideo
Public image/video URL
Public image/video URL
Write a caption…
New season is in ✨
Posts are published to your connected Instagram account.
Publish nowSchedule
Create a post — example view from the panel
Step 7: Read the insights
Instagram > Insights gives you Follower growth, Engagement rate, Avg. engagement / post and Best time to post; Content mix shows which post type is working and Top hashtags what you have been tagging. If you have only just connected, the follower series builds up day by day, so the chart may look empty for the first few days.
Instagram Insights
Followers Posts Reach (24h) Engagement rate Total likes Total comments
4,812 126 1,940 3.4% 18,220 1,104
Not enough data yet — the follower series builds up day by day.
Instagram Insights — example view from the panel

Account	Cached posts	Access expires	Connected on
@magazam	42	12.11.2026	01.09.2026

Storefront feed	Customer gallery (UGC)	Product page posts	Post publishing	Direct message inbox
Live	Live	Live	Enable by reconnecting	Live

On this post	Comment	Mention	Needs a reply
New season window	18	3	5

Followers	Posts	Reach (24h)	Engagement rate	Total likes	Total comments
4,812	126	1,940	3.4%	18,220	1,104

Tips

The connection expires one day

The Access expires date on the Settings screen says when Instagram's grant runs out. Once the status reads Reconnect required the feed stops updating and DMs stop arriving. Check it now and then; reconnecting takes a minute, but unnoticed it stays silent for weeks.

Product tags work in your store

The tags you set on the Shopping screen make products clickable wherever that post is shown in your store. Do not confuse them with Instagram's own shopping tags in the app; these connect the feed on your site to your product pages.

Quick replies make the DM inbox bearable

Shipping, returns and stock questions are most of DM traffic. Write them once as Quick Replies; they appear as chips in the inbox and save you retyping the same answer all day.

Frequently asked questions

Should I connect with Facebook or with Instagram?: Both are supported, and which you use affects which features can be enabled. After connecting, look at the Feature access list under Settings: any row reading Enable by reconnecting means a permission is missing for that feature — reconnect and grant it.
My posts are not showing in my store: First confirm on Settings that the status is Connected and that Storefront feed is Live in the Feature access list. Then click Refresh feed now — the panel tells you how many posts it pulled. If the feed is still empty the posts have not been cached yet, which the Cached posts number tells you.
What do I lose if I disconnect?: Disconnect stops the storefront feed, the DM inbox, comment management and publishing. Nothing happens to your Instagram account itself — your posts, followers and comments stay exactly as they are. You can reconnect whenever you like.
A photo in a message will not open: Instagram hands out time-limited links to media in messages, and once that expires the panel says the link has expired. Use Open on Instagram to view it in the app. This is not a fault — it is Instagram's own behaviour.