Instagram | Stormy Docs

The Instagram integration connects Stormy to Meta's API, giving you the ability to track creator posts, pull engagement data, and monitor campaign performance on Instagram. When a creator publishes content for your campaign, Stormy automatically detects it and records impressions, likes, comments, saves, and shares in your list.

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Instagram integration showing tracked creator posts with engagement metrics

What the Instagram integration enables

With Instagram connected, you can:

Track creator posts -- monitor when creators publish campaign content (feed posts, Reels, Stories, carousels)
Pull engagement metrics -- impressions, reach, likes, comments, saves, shares, and video views
Enrich creator profiles -- pull follower counts, engagement rates, bio information, and content categories
Detect post performance trends -- see how a creator's content performs over time, not just on a single post
Feed data into your CRM -- performance metrics automatically update in your Lists as columns

Connecting Instagram

The Instagram integration uses Meta's Business API, which requires a Meta Business account.

Navigate to Settings > Integrations > Instagram
Click Connect Instagram
You will be redirected to Meta's authorization page
Log in with your Meta (Facebook) account
Select the Instagram Business or Creator accounts you want to connect
Grant the requested permissions
Return to Stormy

Note

Instagram requires a Business or Creator account for API access. Personal Instagram accounts cannot be connected. If a creator you work with has a personal account, they will need to switch to a Creator account (free, takes 30 seconds in Instagram settings) before their data can be tracked.

Tracking creator posts

Automatic post detection

When you add a creator to a list and they have an Instagram handle associated with their profile, Stormy periodically checks their account for new posts. If a post matches your campaign criteria (hashtags, mentions, or content themes), it is automatically linked to the campaign and tracked.

Manual post tracking

You can also manually add a post to track:

Open the creator's profile in your list
Go to the Posts tab
Click Add Post and paste the Instagram post URL
Stormy fetches the post data and begins tracking its performance

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Adding an Instagram post to track from the creator detail panel

Metrics available

The Instagram integration provides the following metrics for tracked posts:

Metric	Description	Available for
Impressions	Total number of times the post was displayed	Feed, Reels, Stories
Reach	Unique accounts that saw the post	Feed, Reels, Stories
Likes	Total likes on the post	Feed, Reels, Carousels
Comments	Total comments	Feed, Reels, Carousels
Saves	Times users saved the post	Feed, Reels, Carousels
Shares	Times users shared the post	Feed, Reels, Stories
Video views	Total video plays	Reels, Video posts
Story replies	Direct message replies to Stories	Stories
Story exits	Times users swiped away from the Story	Stories
Profile visits	Users who visited the creator's profile from the post	Feed, Reels

Tip

Saves and shares are often better indicators of content quality than likes. A post with high saves means users found it valuable enough to return to later. High shares mean they thought their network would find it valuable too.

Metric refresh schedule

Post metrics are refreshed every few hours. For the first 48 hours after a post is published, Stormy checks more frequently since this is when most engagement happens.

Note

Instagram Stories expire after 24 hours. Stormy captures story metrics before they disappear, but the final numbers may not reflect the full lifetime performance if the story was tracked late.

Creator profile enrichment

Beyond individual posts, the Instagram integration enriches creator profiles with:

Follower count -- current total followers
Following count -- how many accounts they follow
Post count -- total number of posts on their profile
Bio -- their Instagram bio text
Engagement rate -- calculated average engagement across recent posts
Content categories -- AI-determined content themes based on their recent posts
Audience demographics -- estimated audience age, gender, and location breakdown (when available through Meta's API)

This data appears in your Lists as columns and is used by Stormy's AI for creator recommendations and campaign planning.

Using Instagram data in your workflow

Campaign performance reporting

When multiple creators post for the same campaign, Stormy aggregates their Instagram performance into a campaign-level report. You can see total impressions, total engagement, average engagement rate, and cost-per-engagement across all creators.

CPM and ROI calculations

If you have tracked creator payments in your list, Stormy can calculate:

CPM (cost per thousand impressions) -- what you paid divided by impressions, multiplied by 1,000
CPE (cost per engagement) -- what you paid divided by total engagements
EMV (estimated media value) -- estimated equivalent ad spend for the organic reach achieved

Creator evaluation

Before reaching out to a new creator, check their Instagram metrics in Stormy to evaluate:

Is their engagement rate healthy for their follower count? (2-3% is average for mid-size accounts)
Do they get meaningful comments or mostly generic ones?
Is their content consistent with what your campaign needs?

Warning

Follower count alone is a poor indicator of creator quality. Accounts with purchased followers often show very low engagement rates (under 1%) and generic comments. Always check engagement metrics alongside follower counts.

Troubleshooting

No data appearing for a creator

Verify the creator has a Business or Creator account (not a personal account)
Check that the Instagram handle in Stormy matches their actual username
Ensure the Meta API permissions were fully granted during connection

Metrics seem low or stale

Instagram's API sometimes delays metric updates, especially for Stories. If numbers seem off, wait a few hours and check again. Stormy refreshes data automatically.

Connection expired

Meta OAuth tokens need periodic renewal. If the integration shows a warning, go to Settings > Integrations > Instagram and click Reconnect.