Answering Instagram and Facebook DMs like a business, not a person
Instagram and Facebook business messaging are the same system wearing two logos: both go through a Facebook Page, both share the 24 hour window, and both break in the same way - when the Page connection lapses rather than when anything is wrong with the account you think you are using.
Everything hangs off the Page
An Instagram account reached in a business inbox is messaged at its linked Page's endpoint, with a Page token. The Instagram account is the identity the customer sees; the Page is the thing that grants access. Two consequences follow, and both surprise people:
- Losing Page admin breaks Instagram messaging, even though nothing about the Instagram account changed.
- The person who connected it matters. When they leave the organisation and their access is removed, the token dies with it. Connect these with a role that outlives individuals.
The error you will see is code 200 or 3, or subcode 1349125 - all of which read as "permission" and mean, in practice, that somebody needs to reconnect. Software that tells you to retry is wasting your afternoon.
How they differ from WhatsApp, operationally
| Facebook and Instagram | ||
|---|---|---|
| Identity | A phone number | A Page, and an Instagram account |
| Reaching someone first | Possible with a template | Not really - the window has to be open |
| The window | Cloud API only | Always, on both |
| Who the customer is | A number you can often match to an order | A profile, frequently with no name you recognise |
| Volume | Steady | Spiky - a post can produce a hundred DMs in an hour |
The identity problem
A WhatsApp message comes with a phone number, which is usually the same number on the order. An Instagram DM comes from @handle, which matches nothing in your systems. Expect to ask for an order number, and expect people to send a screenshot instead - which is fine, and is an argument for an inbox that shows images properly.
Spikes, and the window
Instagram volume follows posting. A reel that does well produces a burst of DMs, all of which start 24 hour clocks at the same moment. If nobody answers within a day, they all close together and there is no way to reopen them from your side.
The practical defence is to know what is unanswered and how long it has left, on the same screen, in one queue with your other channels. Three separate inboxes with three separate clocks is how the Instagram ones get missed - they are the newest channel and the least habitual to check.
Comments are the other half
On Instagram and Facebook, a lot of what would be a DM elsewhere is a public comment. Those need answering too, are visible to everybody, and a private reply to a public comment is a distinct and useful move - it opens a DM thread without conducting the conversation in front of an audience.
Questions people actually ask
Can I answer Instagram DMs from a computer?
Yes, through Meta's own tools or any inbox connected to the linked Page. Instagram business messaging runs through the Facebook Page it is connected to, which is also why the Page connection is the thing that breaks.
Why did my Instagram messages stop appearing?
Usually the Page connection: someone lost admin, the token was revoked, or the Instagram account was disconnected from the Page. It is rarely the Instagram account itself.
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