Features
Solutions
Channels
Sep 13, 2022
10 min to read
Jimmy Rodela
Content Writer @ Vista Social
Use Instagram drafts to supercharge how your agency handles Instagram campaigns.
Saving Instagram drafts allows you to continue editing your content later and establish a post-approval system between your agency and your clients.
From a content planning perspective, Instagram drafts also let you compare variations of the same post side by side. Experiment with the hashtags, content types, the best questions to ask on Instagram, and more.
Let’s begin.
Instagram can save posts, Reels, and Stories as drafts.
Drafts can be saved at any time, including after the filtering and editing step, so you don’t lose progress. Once saved, an Instagram draft can be posted or deleted as you see fit.
Some of the reasons to use the Instagram drafts feature include:
Use Instagram’s native app to combine multiple drafts, automatically creating an Instagram carousel.
Carousels are Instagram posts that can contain up to 10 photos. Using drafts, you can edit images for your carousel and add more later.
Suppose you’re creating a carousel for an event.
You can upload and edit photos while capturing more as the event progresses.
Instagram’s draft feature lets you edit posts individually and combine them after the event has concluded.
Drafts let you save your work while you research viral hashtags for Instagram.
Hashtags boost the discoverability of your posts on the Instagram app. Think of them as keywords people use when searching for content on the internet.
Researching the perfect hashtag ideas take time. But you can speed up the process with the right IG tools.
For example, use Vista Social to get relevant hashtag ideas on the spot.
On Vista Social’s Publish tool, use the hashtag suggestions feature to reveal popular hashtag ideas in an instant.
The Instagram app packs a pretty capable image and video editing tool.
Save drafts as you try different filters, image settings, and stickers (for Stories and Reels). You can also experiment with hashtags, one-word Instagram captions, and other details that make each draft unique.
Compare your drafts side by side to choose the best version you want to publish.
Some topics, particularly trends and current events, may require last-minute changes to your content.
For example, if you’re covering a live contest, you need to wait until the winners are announced before publishing your Instagram post.
In the meantime, use the Instagram drafts feature to prepare the background of your post beforehand.
Once the results are in, insert text overlays or stickers that get the word out as soon as possible.
If your agency manages your client’s Instagram account directly, use the drafts feature to implement a post approval process.
For example, rather than scheduling or publishing posts on your client’s behalf, you can save content as drafts instead. This gives clients the ability to publish the posts they like themselves.
Drafts are also helpful if clients have the final say on certain elements like Instagram poll questions, captions, tagged accounts, hashtags, and more.
Saving drafts can help your agency plan out your client’s content strategy in advance.
For example, you can create Instagram drafts for multiple posts and schedule them for publishing at specific times.
Saving the posts as drafts gives your agency more wiggle room to make tweaks easily.
Saving drafts can also save your agency time and effort.
Instead of creating each post from scratch, you can use existing drafts as a starting point and make any necessary edits or updates as needed.
Having all the posts in drafts allows you to see all the client content for publishing, helping your team plan your client’s content strategy better.
Save draft posts with photos or videos so your team members see how the content will look on the platform before they go live.
It simplifies making any necessary adjustments before publishing and even delete Instagram drafts when necessary.
Saving Instagram drafts for content strategy planning can help your client maintain a consistent posting schedule and ensure that their content is shared at optimal times.
Editing, polishing, and finalizing your client’s Instagram posts don’t have to be chaotic.
Save drafts to allow your team to work seamlessly on creating content for each client campaign.
Multiple team members assigned to each client’s campaign can contribute to a saved draft.
It makes it easier to collaborate and finalize each post before publishing.
For instance, saving Instagram drafts for client campaign gives your team easy access to the content for revisions to ensure the branding, tone, and messaging align with your client’s requirements and expectations.
Ready to give your content workflow and posts a major upgrade? Try AI Assistant powered by ChatGPT today! 🤖💙
Follow the steps below to start saving Instagram drafts:
Open the Instagram app from your device.
Take note that the browser version of Instagram doesn’t support drafts. To use this feature, use the mobile version of the app.
Tap the new post button in the top-right corner of the Instagram app interface. This is indicated by the plus icon.
Choose the file you want to upload for your Instagram post. This can be an image, video, or a combination of these.
Just don’t forget to specify if you want to create an Instagram feed post, Story, or Reel.
Try Vista Social for Free
A social media management platform that actually helps you grow with easy-to-use content planning, scheduling, engagement and analytics tools.
Get Started NowUse Instagram’s gamut of filters, stickers, effects, and image editing tools to create your post.
Complete all the post details you can, including Instagram Story stickers, Instagram Reels hashtags, and so on. You’ll get the chance to change anything later once the post is saved as a draft.
Tip: Read How to Get Followers on Instagram Without Following for more tips on how to create high-performing Instagram content.
If you’re creating a regular feed post, tap ‘Next’ to initiate the filtering and editing step.
Take note that your Instagram post, Story, or Reel can only be saved as a draft if you make changes to the original image or video.
Finally, go to the main editing tool by tapping the back arrow in the top-left corner of the screen.
This is where you can apply filters, add text, insert stickers, and more.
If you’re already on this screen, tap the back arrow again. This will trigger the pop-up menu that asks if you want to start over, discard your progress, or save the draft.
Select ‘Save Draft’ and you’re done.
With your draft saved and ready, you may be wondering: “where are drafts on Instagram?”
Here are the steps on how to access drafts on Instagram after saving them:
Launch the Instagram app and tap the new post button again.
Instead of choosing a new image or video to upload, switch to the ‘Drafts’ tab below the preview window.
This will show you a grid of all the drafts you saved for the current Instagram account.
If you saved a Story, tap the new post button and switch to the Instagram Story editor.
Just swipe to the ‘Story’ at the bottom of the app screen.
Next, tap the gallery icon in the lower-left corner of the Story editor. This button should show a small preview of the last Instagram Story you saved as a draft.
On the gallery page, tab the ‘Drafts’ group in the upper-left part of the grid.
This will take you to a designated “Drafts” page where you can manage, edit, or delete your Story drafts.
The same steps can be taken to reveal your Instagram Reels drafts.
Simply build your Instagram Reel, make changes as necessary, and tap the ‘Drafts’ group.
The steps in deleting Instagram drafts vary slightly based on what you created.
Open the Instagram app and tap the new post button. Tap the ‘Drafts’ tab to view your saved drafts. To discard posts, tap ‘Manage.’
Tap ‘Edit’ in the upper-right corner of the interface. Then, select the drafts you want to delete and tap ‘Discard.’
On the Instagram app, tap the new post button and switch to ‘Story’ or ‘Reel.’
Tap the gallery icon to reveal all media saved on your current device.
Tap on ‘Drafts’ from your media library.
On the “Drafts” page, tap ‘Select’ in the upper-right corner and highlight the drafts you want to delete. To discard these drafts, tap ‘Delete’ at the bottom of the screen.
In the pop-up menu, tap ‘Delete’ again to finalize the removal of your saved Reel or Story drafts.
One mistake can cause you to lose your Instagram drafts forever.
Below are mistakes you should absolutely avoid, including tips and tricks to keep you from falling for these common pitfalls.
To find Instagram post drafts, tap the new post button (plus symbol) and switch to the ‘Drafts’ tab. For Reels and Stories, tap the gallery icon from the editor and tap the ‘Drafts’ group.
Instagram Reel and post drafts stay accessible via the Instagram app indefinitely. Instagram Story drafts, on the other hand, disappear permanently after seven days.
Make sure you use the right method for the draft type you saved. Instagram post drafts can be found by switching to the ‘Drafts’ tab from the new post tool, whereas Reel and Story drafts can be found from the gallery page on the Reel/Story editor.
Using drafts helps agencies and marketers fine-tune their Instagram content over a longer period of time.
Also, when working with finicky clients, the drafts feature can be used to implement a built-in post-approval system.
However, to run a streamlined Instagram marketing campaign, you need more than just the ability to save drafts.
You need to schedule posts at optimal times, generate in-depth reports, reveal real-time hashtag ideas, and more.
That’s why agencies love Vista Social.
With our app’s all-in-one social media marketing features, such as:
Get a free Vista Social account today!
You have many things to do.
Let us help you with social media.
Use our free plan to build momentum for your social media presence.
Or skip ahead and try our paid plan to scale your social media efforts.
P.S. It will be a piece of cake 🍰 with Vista Social
Subscribe to keep up with fresh news
and exciting updates
We promise not to spam you!