Quickstart
Get Askenly running in a few minutes: create your account, connect Instagram and switch on your first automation. This page covers the whole first session, in the order you’ll meet it.
Before you start
- An Instagram Business or Creator account. No Facebook Page is needed.
- Allow access to messages turned on in the Instagram app: Settings, Messages and story replies, Message controls, Connected tools.
- A link, guide or offer you want to send to the people who comment.
- A second Instagram account to test from, because comments from your own account never start an automation.
Set up in five steps
Create your account
Sign up with your email and a password. The Free plan needs no card. Askenly checks the address can receive mail, so use a real inbox rather than a temporary one.
Answer three onboarding questions
How you heard about us, your type of business and your goals. Each answer is saved as you go, so a reload picks up where you left off.
Connect Instagram
The last onboarding step opens Instagram’s own sign-in screen. Use your Business or Creator account and approve every permission it asks for.
Create your first automation
Open Automations, press Create automation, choose Deliver something, pick the post and keyword, write the opening DM and add your link.
Test it
Comment the keyword from your second account and check that the DM arrives. Test a comment in Help → System health checks the keyword without posting anything.
Get started: three steps to your first results
- Create your first automationSend a link, guide or offer to everyone who commentsDone
- Add an appointment serviceLet people book from your DMsTo do
- Schedule a postPlan your next post and link an automation to itTo do
What you’ll see after onboarding
Home opens with Get started cards for your first automation, your first appointment service and your first scheduled post, next to Business Momentum. Once all three are done, or activity starts coming in, the cards make way for your recent activity.
Inbox, Automations, Schedule, Contacts and Analytics need a connected Instagram account. If you skipped the connection, those pages show a Connect Instagram prompt instead of empty screens.
For security, the browser signs you out after 4 hours without activity. Your automations keep running on Askenly’s servers while you’re signed out.
Invite your team
Open Settings → Team
Owners and admins can invite.
Enter their email and choose a role
Admins manage settings; members work automations and the Inbox.
They accept the invite
The invite link works for 7 days. It opens Askenly, and they skip onboarding.
Roles in a workspace
Owners and admins can change settings, connect Instagram, manage billing and invite people. Members work with automations, the Inbox, contacts and appointments. Invited teammates don’t go through onboarding; they land straight in the workspace.
How many people can join depends on your plan: 1 seat on Free and Starter, 2 seats on Growth and 10 seats on Scale.
What to do next
Once your first automation works, add the next goal. Book an appointment offers real times in the DM. Get more sales collects emails and sends a short follow-up sequence (Growth and Scale). Answer questions replies to common questions for you. Grow your audience turns Story replies and comments into followers. Automations and Templates explain each one.
Fill in Settings → Business profile next. Your hours, services and description feed booking, AI drafts in the Inbox and, on paid plans, the business assistant.
The Free plan includes 3 automations, 1,000 DMs a month and 1 Instagram account. Paid plans are $19, $39 or $77 a month when you need more.
Pick a first automation that pays off quickly
Choose a post that already gets comments, or the next Reel you’re about to publish, and promise one specific thing in the caption: “Comment GUIDE and I’ll DM you the checklist.” A clear promise and a short keyword get far more comments than a general “DM me for info”.
A creator might send a free guide or a discount code. A coach might send a booking link for a discovery call, or use Book an appointment so people pick a time in the DM. A shop might send the product link to everyone who comments LINK. A salon might answer “price?” and “where are you?” with Answer questions. Start with one, check that it works, then add the next.
Getting started questions
Can I skip connecting Instagram during onboarding?
You can come back to it, but Inbox, Automations, Schedule, Contacts and Analytics show a Connect Instagram prompt until an account is connected.
How long does setup take?
Most people finish onboarding, connect Instagram and publish their first automation in about ten minutes.
Will my followers know it’s automated?
The messages come from your own Instagram account in your own words. Write them the way you’d reply yourself, and hand-offs bring you in when a real conversation starts.
Do I need a card for the Free plan?
No. You only add a card when you choose a paid plan.