> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.heyy.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Getting started

> Connect Instagram Direct to your Heyy Inbox.

Connecting Instagram lets you manage Direct messages through the same [Inbox](/help/inbox/inbox-tour) as WhatsApp, Messenger, Live Chat, and SMS.

## Before you start

Instagram has more prerequisites than most other channels — check all four before attempting to connect, since a missing one is the most common cause of a failed or confusing connection flow.

<Warning>
  All four of these must be true, or the connection will fail partway through:

  1. **You're an admin** with access to both the Instagram account and its linked Facebook Page.
  2. **The Instagram account is a professional account** — Creator or Business. A personal account cannot be connected at all; convert it first in the Instagram app under account settings.
  3. **The Instagram account is connected to a Facebook Page.** If it isn't, link one in the Instagram app before continuing.
  4. **Both the Page and the Instagram account are in your Meta Business Portfolio.** The Page needs to be verified in Business settings, and the Instagram account needs to be added or linked there.
</Warning>

## Connect the channel

1. Go to **Settings → Channels**.
2. Click **Add Channel**.
3. Select **Instagram**.
4. Click **Connect** to start Meta's onboarding flow.

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintlify.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/heyy-c8bd5c9e/assets/instagram-connect-dialog.png" alt="Connect Instagram channel dialog" />
</Frame>

The flow may ask you to:

* Sign in to Facebook or confirm your account.
* Select the Instagram account to connect (this requires admin access — see above).
* Authorize Heyy to send and receive messages on the account's behalf.

## Configure the profile

Open the **Profile** tab to review:

| Field                         | Editable in Heyy? | Notes                                                                                |
| ----------------------------- | :---------------: | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Internal name**             |        Yes        | A label for internal use — for example *"Support Instagram"*. Contacts never see it. |
| **Display name**              |         No        | The Instagram username, read-only and sourced from the account itself.               |
| **Edit profile on Instagram** |         —         | Opens Instagram's own profile settings in a new tab for anything not editable here.  |

<Frame>
  <img src="https://mintlify.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/heyy-c8bd5c9e/assets/instagram-profile-tab.png" alt="Instagram Profile tab" />
</Frame>

<Warning>
  **Disconnecting or deleting an Instagram channel is irreversible.** Heyy will no longer send or receive messages for that account. Export or back up anything you need first.
</Warning>

## What Instagram is good for

* Customer support through Instagram Direct.
* Marketing campaigns and follow-up conversations.
* [Automations](/help/automations/index) using [Instagram triggers and actions](/help/automations/instagram-actions), including [new comment triggers](/help/automations/triggers/new-instagram-comment).
* [AI Employee](/help/ai-employees/going-live/channel-and-context) assignment for 24/7 first-line responses.

Instagram's reply window is longer than WhatsApp or Messenger's — see [Conversation window](/help/inbox/chat-fundamentals/conversation-window) for how that affects when you can send a free-form reply.