# Quickstart: connect an account and schedule your first post

Connect one social account, write a post with a photo, pick a date and press Schedule All. About five minutes from sign-up to your first scheduled post.

Last checked: Oct 8, 2026 on the live app. Source: https://heropost.ai/docs/getting-started/quickstart/

## How it works

You connect a social account once. Then each post goes through the same three steps: you write it in the post editor, pick a date and time, and press **Schedule All**. Heropost publishes it at that time and shows it on your calendar.

## Before you start

- **A Heropost account.** On heropost.ai, press **Start free** and sign up with your email, Google or Facebook. New accounts start with a free 7-day trial, with no card. See [Create your account](/docs/account/sign-up/).
- **Owner or Admin.** Only the workspace owner and Admins can connect accounts. If you created the account, you're the owner.
- **Your time zone.** Posts go out in the workspace's time zone. Your first workspace, **My Workspace**, takes your browser's time zone. To change it, click your **workspace name** at the top of Heropost, then **Settings**, and set **Time Zone**. See [Workspaces](/docs/social-accounts/workspaces/).

## 1. Connect a social account

1. On **Home**, click **Add a social account**. (Or click your **workspace name** at the top of Heropost, then **Accounts**, then **Add Profile**.)
2. In **Add Social Accounts**, click the logo of the network you want.
3. The network's sign-in opens in a pop-up. Sign in and allow access.
4. Back in Heropost, tick the Pages, profiles or channels you want in **Add Social Account**, then press **Done**.

[Screenshot: The Add Social Accounts window with a logo for each network]

**If nothing happens when you click a logo,** allow pop-ups for app.heropost.io. For Facebook and Instagram, also switch off ad blockers and tracking protection for Heropost. Each network has its own requirements, for example a Business or Creator account for Instagram: see [Connect a social account](/docs/social-accounts/connect-an-account/).
## 2. Start a new post

1. In the left menu, click **Content**, then **Create Post**. The post editor opens.
2. Click the arrow next to **New Post**, then **All Accounts**, then the kind of post. For a photo post, choose **Image**.
3. Heropost starts a new draft for every connected account whose network takes that kind of post, with all of them selected.

[Screenshot: The New Post menu open on All Accounts, with Text, Image, Video, Carousel, Story and Link]

The other kinds are **Text**, **Video**, **Carousel**, **Story** and **Link**. To post to one network only, choose **Social Network** and the network instead, then select its accounts.

**Other ways in:** **Create a post** on Home and the **New Post** button both start a post with the same networks and accounts as your last one.

## 3. Write it and add a photo

1. On the **All** tab, write your text in **Caption**. Everything on this tab goes to every network in the post.
2. Drag your photo into the upload area, or click it to choose a file from your computer. To reuse a photo you uploaded before, click the library icon (**Access Media Library**).
3. Check the accounts in the row on the right. Highlighted avatars get the post. Click an avatar to switch it off or on, or open the arrow for the full list with **Select All**.
4. Look at the preview on the right. Click a network's tab to see how the post looks there.

[Screenshot: The post editor with the All tab, a caption and photo, the account row and the Instagram preview]

- **Different text for one network?** Open its tab and switch off **Take … from the All tab**. That network's fields start empty, so write its version there.
- **Add or remove networks** with the gear ⚙ at the end of the tabs (**Posting Settings**).
- **Heropost saves as you go.** The bottom left reads "Saving changes", then "Changes saved". There's no Save button.
- **Posting to X?** Each post to an X account uses one X credit. New accounts get 5. See [X credits](/docs/billing/x-credits/).

## 4. Pick a date and time

1. At the top of the post, click **Schedule**.
2. Pick a day, set the time, and press **Done**. **Today** jumps to today.

[Screenshot: The date picker open, with Today, the month, the day grid, the time and Done]

The time must be at least 2 minutes from now, and it's in the workspace's time zone.

## 5. Press Schedule All

Press **Schedule All** at the bottom right. The post is scheduled: the editor locks it, and the button changes to **Edit**. No message pops up.

[Screenshot: The bottom of the editor with Changes saved and the Schedule All button]

**A date on its own doesn't schedule a post.** Until you press **Schedule All**, the post is a draft, and a draft is never published, even when its date passes.
- **Post right away instead?** Clear the date with **×**. The button becomes **Publish All**. Press it and a 5-second countdown starts (**5s Cancel Posting**); press it again to stop.
- **One network only?** With a network tab open, the small square button next to **Schedule All** schedules or publishes to that network only.
- **On someone else's team as an Editor?** You'll see **Submit for Approval** instead. An owner or Admin approves it. See [Approvals](/docs/team/approvals/).

## 6. Check the calendar

Click **Calendar** in the left menu. Your post sits on its day with a blue stripe. Once it's published, the stripe turns green.

[Screenshot: The month calendar with the new post on its day]

When the post goes out, the workspace owner sees the result in the notifications bell at the top: **New posts published**, **Some of your posts failed** or **Post publishing failed**. Failed posts, with the network's reason, are listed under **Content → Posting Errors**. See [Calendar: day, week and month](/docs/calendar/calendar-views/).

## Change or delete a scheduled post

- **Change it:** open the post and press **Edit**. It goes back to Draft. Make your changes, then press **Schedule All** again, or it won't be published. See [Edit, reschedule or delete a post](/docs/posting/edit-or-delete/).
- **Move it to another day:** drag it on the month calendar. See [Drag to reschedule](/docs/calendar/reschedule-and-filter/).
- **Delete it:** open the **⋮** menu next to the date, then **Delete**.

## If it doesn't work

| What you see | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| **Schedule All** is grayed out and its tooltip says "Please select accounts for {Network}" | That network is on for this post, but none of its accounts is selected. | Select one of its accounts in the account row, or click the gear ⚙ (**Posting Settings**), switch that network off and press **Save**. |
| The tooltip says "{Network} post incomplete." followed by a reason, such as "Instagram post incomplete. Media is required" | Something is missing for that network. Its tab shows a red dot. | Open the tab with the red dot and fix the field shown in red. Instagram needs a photo or video; TikTok and YouTube need a video. |
| The account row shows **Add accounts** and "Please, add accounts to create a post." | No account for this network is connected to the workspace. | Connect one (step 1), or switch the network off in **Posting Settings**. |
| "Scheduled date cannot be before {date}." | The time is in the past or less than 2 minutes away. | Pick a later time. |
| "Unable to post because Instagram requires media." | You scheduled an Instagram post without a photo or video. | Add one, then press **Schedule All** again. |
| "Post {id} cannot be published because one or more of the selected social networks do not have active accounts." | An account on the post can't publish right now, often because it needs reconnecting. | See [What the account markers mean](/docs/social-accounts/account-status/), or untick that account. |
| "Authentication cancelled" while connecting | The sign-in pop-up was closed or blocked, or access wasn't allowed. | Allow pop-ups for app.heropost.io and try again. |
| "Connecting an X account requires X posting credits. Purchase an X credit pack first." | X needs X credits. | Click your name at the bottom of the left menu, then **Billing**, and buy a pack under **Add-ons**. See [X credits](/docs/billing/x-credits/). |
| "Viewers cannot create or modify content in this workspace." | Your role in this workspace is Viewer. | Ask the workspace owner for the Editor or Admin role. |

The post was scheduled but never went out? See [A post didn't publish: a checklist](/docs/troubleshooting/post-didnt-publish/).

## Questions

**Do I have to write a separate caption for every network?**

No. Write once on the **All** tab and every network uses it. Open a network's tab only if you want something different there.


**Content → Create Post opened an old draft. How do I start a new post?**

**Create Post** opens the draft you edited most recently. Press **New Post** (or the arrow next to it) to start a new one. **Create a post** on Home always starts a new post.


**Where do I find my post after I schedule it?**

On the calendar, on its day. In the post editor, the list on the left also shows posts scheduled for the next 7 days. Drafts are under **Content → Drafts**.


**Can Hero_Agent do this for me?**

Yes. On Home, ask Hero_Agent to write a post, or a whole week of posts. It saves them as drafts and asks for your approval before scheduling. See [Let Hero_Agent plan your first week](/docs/getting-started/first-week-with-hero-agent/).


**Can I post the same thing every week?**

Yes. Open the post, click **⋮** next to its date, choose **Repost Settings** and pick how often it repeats. See [Repeat a post](/docs/posting/repeat-posts/).