Connect your shop's Facebook Page so Facebook Messenger messages and Instagram direct messages land in your Inbox, where you can read and answer them alongside texts and email.

Before you start

  • Your shop needs the Communications module, and you must be signed in as an owner or store manager.
  • The person who signs in to Facebook during setup must manage your shop's Facebook Page.
  • For Instagram, your shop's Instagram professional account must be linked to that Facebook Page.

To connect

  1. Go to Settings > Messaging Channels.
  2. On the Facebook Messenger card, click Connect Facebook Page.
  3. Sign in to Facebook and allow the permissions it asks for.
  4. If you manage more than one Facebook Page, pick your shop's Page. With only one Page, it is picked for you. If Facebook says it did not share any Page, choose "Opt in to specific Pages" on the Facebook screen and tick your shop's Page.
  5. Back on Messaging Channels, Facebook Messenger shows Connected with your Page name. If an Instagram account is linked to that Page, Instagram Direct Messages connects at the same time. Until Instagram lets the app read your direct messages, its card shows Pending Approval; see below.

If Instagram messages do not arrive: Instagram has its own setting that lets connected apps read your direct messages. In the Meta Business Suite app on your phone, open Inbox, go to the Instagram tab, and tap Confirm access. The same prompt on the Business Suite website does not always work, so use the phone app.

Replying: replies go back to the customer on the same channel they wrote in on. Meta lets a business reply for 24 hours after the customer's last message. After that, a reply is refused with "24-hour messaging window has expired." As soon as the customer writes again, you can reply again.

Who wrote in: each conversation shows the sender's name from Facebook or Instagram. If the sender is not yet in your customer list, the conversation is an Unknown Contact; see How to Convert an Unknown Contact into a Customer or Lead.

Disconnecting: on the Facebook Messenger card, click Disconnect. This disconnects Messenger and Instagram together, and existing conversations stay in your Inbox. You can also remove 1sixty8 Manifold from your Facebook Business integrations to cut off access on Meta's side.