Channels
Messenger and Instagram
Connect Facebook Messenger and Instagram DMs to Sela, and learn the 24-hour reply rule, ad referral context, Social Follow-Up rules and what is not supported.
Last updated: 2026-09-29
Facebook Messenger and Instagram direct messages arrive in the same inbox as your other channels. You connect each with a Meta login, and Sela handles replies from your team and from the AI assistant. This page covers setup, the rules Meta applies, and the current limits.
Before you start#
- You must be a workspace admin with permission to manage settings, and the workspace must not be read-only. See Team, roles and permissions.
- Messenger needs a Facebook Page that you administer.
- Instagram needs an Instagram Business or Creator account. No Facebook Page is required.
- For AI answers you also need the AI add-on, credits and an assistant profile with a brand name. See Plans and billing.
Connect Messenger#
- Open Settings, Workspace setup, Integrations, then choose Add channel.
- Choose Facebook Messenger and Connect. The dialog is titled "Configure Messenger".
- Select Connect Messenger. You are sent to Facebook to log in and approve access.
- Sela stores the Page connection, subscribes the Page to messages, postbacks, referrals and reactions, and returns you to the Integrations page. The card shows Connected.
To remove it, open the card and choose Disconnect.
If your Facebook account has no Page, the connection stops with "No Facebook Pages found for this user. You must create a Page first."
Facebook asks for permission to list your Pages, send and receive messages, and manage Page metadata. Sela asks for the permission to read Page engagement (used to enrich ad conversations) only once Meta has approved it for the app, so you may not see that prompt.
Connect Instagram#
- Open Integrations, Add channel, Instagram, Connect. The dialog is titled "Configure Instagram".
- Select Connect Instagram. You are sent to Instagram to log in and allow access to basic profile and messages.
- Sela exchanges the login for a long-lived token, reads the profile and subscribes to messaging events.
- Sela refreshes the Instagram token automatically once a day.
Use Disconnect on the card to remove the channel.
What customers and operators see#
| Messenger | ||
|---|---|---|
| Text length | Split at 1,950 characters, up to 3 messages | Split at 950 characters, up to 3 messages |
| Images, video, audio | Yes | Yes |
| Documents | Yes | No |
| Audio formats | mp3, mp4, m4a, wav | Per Meta's rules |
| Buttons | Option lists, no link buttons | None |
| Reactions from the inbox | Mirrored to the customer | Mirrored to the customer |
| Reply window | 24 hours | 24 hours |
Operators also see read state, reactions and, on ad conversations, a referral card (below). The AI is told what each channel can carry: on Instagram it does not offer attachments other than image, video or audio and never tells a customer to tap a button.
Uploads follow Sela's shared limits: images 10 MB, video 25 MB and 60 seconds, audio 10 MB and 60 seconds, documents 20 MB.
Native replies on Instagram#
When an operator quotes a specific message, Instagram sometimes cannot accept the quoted reply. The inbox then shows that a native reply is unavailable. Send the reply without quoting.
The 24-hour rule#
Meta lets you send a free-form message only within 24 hours of the customer's last message. Each new customer message restarts the 24 hours.
- The conversation details panel shows a Service window countdown.
- After the window closes, a reply is refused with "The 24-hour Meta reply window has ended." The same applies to scheduled messages.
- Closed conversations and channels that are disconnected or inactive are read-only for sending.
- Sela has no template messages for Messenger or Instagram. If the window closes, wait for the customer to write again.
Ad referrals#
When someone starts a conversation from a Click-to-Messenger or Click-to-Instagram ad, Meta sends the ad's details. Sela saves them on the conversation: ad ID, title, body, media, post and product where available, and the referral reference.
- The AI uses that ad context as grounding for 72 hours. Later messages after that start without it.
- If Page engagement permission has been granted for the app, Sela also looks up the ad's post text and product link in the background. If the ad's text is missing, that permission has not been granted yet.
- Operators see the referral card in the conversation.
Social Follow-Up rules#
Social Follow-Up manages what happens when a customer goes quiet. It applies to WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram DMs (and Telegram). Open it from the sidebar under Social follow-up. It requires a plan with automation access (Operations or Scale).
A rule has these settings:
| Setting | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Rule Name and Channel | What the rule is called and where it applies |
| Enabled | Turns the rule on or off |
| Minutes Before No-Reply Nudge | How long after your last reply to wait before nudging |
| No-Reply Nudge Message | The nudge text |
| Auto-Close After Nudge, Minutes Before Auto-Close | Optionally close the conversation after the nudge |
| Minutes Before Post-Close Message, Post-Close Message | An optional message after closing |
Rules and limits:
- Delays must be greater than zero.
- The post-close message must be scheduled for under 24 hours, because of the Meta window.
- Only one enabled rule per channel is allowed.
- Sela waits for a 5-minute quiet period before arming a rule.
- A job is skipped when the Meta window is already closed.
What is not supported#
- Comments. Comments on posts, Reels and ads, and mentions, are not handled on Instagram or Facebook. Social Follow-Up concerns DMs only.
- Several Pages. Only the first Page is connected for Messenger.
- Templates and marketing broadcasts on Messenger or Instagram.
- Documents on Instagram, and link buttons on Messenger and Instagram.
- Editing or deleting a sent message.
Troubleshooting#
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
Return page shows facebook=error with invalid_state | The sign-in link expired or was already used | Start again from Connect Messenger. |
| Wrong Page connected | Only the first Page is used | See the warning above. |
| Card says Needs attention or messages stop | The access token was invalidated (for example a password change or removed permission) | Reconnect the channel. |
| Reply refused: 24-hour window | Customer last wrote more than 24 hours ago | Wait for the customer to message again. |
| AI is silent | AI gate failed or a human owns the conversation | See How the AI works. |
For failed sends with a reference number see Delivery troubleshooting. For the WhatsApp equivalent, see WhatsApp.
Can't find what you need? Contact support.