Instagram Feed Pro Review And Setup [Video Tutorial]

In this post, you'll learn about the amazing Instagram Feed Pro plugin for WordPress and how you can use it to help boost social engagement for your content and your business. It's time to put your Instagram account to work!

Some time ago, I found a really cool WordPress plugin called Instagram Feed by Smash Balloon. This was a free plugin, by the way.

If you haven't heard of this plugin before, then I think you're going to love it.

I loved it so much that I decided to invest in the pro version of Instagram Feed Pro, which, of course, serves as today's review.

If you don't know, I prefer to use premium (paid) plugins on my blog. One of the reasons for this is because premium plugins always come with timely updates and support.

I always advise and recommend, whenever possible, to invest in premium tools for your business. Whether it's themes, plugins, apps, etc.

Anyway, I've had a few messages from you guys asking how I could display my Instagram feed on the homepage of my website.

Well, hopefully, now you know. I used the Instagram Feed plugin. I started with the free version, then moved on to the pro version.

What is Instagram Feed Pro by Smash Balloon?

Let's start at the very beginning, shall we?

Instagram Feed Pro is a WordPress plugin that allows you to add a customizable and responsive Instagram feed to any blog post or page in. your WordPress blog.

There is a free and paid version of the plugin, and they both come with a host of options and features. I'll dive more into the features shortly.

What's the benefit of using this plugin?

If your goal as a blogger or personal brand business developer, Instagram Feed Pro can help increase engagement and grow your followers.

Let's start with some good old stats!

According to Brandwatch, almost 50% of brands today are on Instagram, and it is predicted that this number will rise to 70%.

Here's another one -

50% of Instagram users follow brands.

OK, great, so how can Instagram Feed Pro help you increase engagement and grow your Instagram followers?

Well, if you deploy the feed on the homepage of your blog, for example, that's going to mean increased visibility for your profile, right? Thus helping you to boost followers.

Not to mention more likes for your content and overall increased engagement. That's what it's all about these days; increasing brand awareness is everything when it comes to Instagram.

Note: I have disabled Instagram Feed Pro on my WordPress blog for the time being because it has some incompatibility issues with Oxygen Builder. The theme I'm using.

Is it simple to set up use?

For the most part, yes.

The plugin itself is simple enough to install and activate; however, to configure it, you'll need to log into your Instagram account to obtain a token and your account user ID. If you've never done this before, it can be a little daunting.

However, to save you a ton of time on the configuration page, you can hit the blue login button and this will automatically fetch your Access token and User ID for you. See image below.

If you are in the Pro version of the plugin, you'll get a license key to activate the Pro options for updates and support.

What are the main features of this plugin?

OK, so let me break this into two parts.

The free version, first of all, allows you to do the following -

1. Create a custom feed to show photos from one Instagram account.
2. Customize your feed with basic options. (Watch the video)
3. Display your feed with simple shortcodes anywhere on your site.
4. Display images as thumbnails.
5. Add a 'load more images' feature.
6. Include a 'follow me' call-to-action button.
7. Add your own CSS and JavaScript for further customization and much more.

Not too shabby, even for a free plugin, right?

Now, if you want to have greater control over your images and their behavior on your website, then the Pro version allows you to do a lot more.

Here are just a few of those additional options -

1. Create a custom feed to show photos from multiple Instagram accounts.
2. Fully customize how your images are displayed, including customizing width, height, the number of photos, columns, image size, and background hover color.
3. Display your feed with a ton of shortcode options. (Watch the video)
4. Display photos from hashtags, Liked, and location.
5. Display videos in your custom feed.
6. Have your photos and comments viewable in a pop-up lightbox, ideal if you want to keep visitors on your site and engaged for longer.
7. Post-cache to keep API requests to a minimum.
8. HTML video support.
9. Create custom links for photos.
10. Have the IDs and location displayed in your photos.
11. Block posts.
12. Add captions to photos.
13. Create customized carousels and more.
14. Premium support!

Click here to read the full list of features in Instagram Feed Pro.

The video tutorial is a few years old, however, the process of configuring the plugin hasn't changed much.

Things I love about Instagram Feed Pro plugin

So, I've talked a little bit about some of the features, and most importantly, the benefits of using this plugin on your WordPress website. Now let me tell you what I actually love, personally, about using Instagram Feed Pro.

Customizability - There's so much you can do to create custom Instagram feeds for any purpose on your website. For example, if you run an e-commerce website, you can create a feed to display the products or services you share on Instagram.

You can even create "shoppable feeds" where your posts automatically link to custom URLs. Awesome, right?

The shortcode options are plentiful too.

Fresh content updates - I also love the fact that each time I add new content to my Instagram profile, my blog is automatically updated with new content too. Rather than log into my site, upload new images manually every so often just to keep things fresh, this is done for me through my custom Instagram feeds. Just one less thing I have to do.

Easy to set up and customize - Personally, I hate wasting time learning how to configure complicated plugins and themes. Yes, the first few steps are a little challenging, but once you've done it, you will be able to do it again in the future.

In any case, Instagram Feed Pro is so simple to set up and forget about, plus there's assistance provided in the settings and configuration page.

Priority support - Finally, the priority support is great. I had a few questions regarding using this plugin on my site, and all of my questions were answered promptly via ticket submission.

In addition, there is a dedicated page with support links to access set up videos, FAQs, and documentation via the plugin dashboard. (See image below)

What do I dislike about Instagram Feed Pro?

Just a few things niggle me with the plugin.

On rare occasions when I update my Instagram profile, it does take a few hours or more for the updates to appear on my custom feeds. I think that's because of the cache setup I have on my WordPress blog. Just call me impatient, I guess.

Also, if I share an image with a description that contains emojis on Instagram, the emojis themselves can appear enlarged when viewing them via the website's Instagram Feed Pro feed. At least, this is the case when using the pop-up lightbox. See the image below.

So this plugin is free, how much is the pro version then?

Yes, again, you can use the free version of this plugin and still get access to a ton of awesome features if you're looking for something simple and cost-free.

If you're looking to have more control over your feeds in terms of customization, purpose, functionality, then the Personal Pro version will cost you just $49 for a personal license.

There are other plans available which includes -

Business - Costs $99 per year and gives you licenses to use Instagram Feed Pro on up to 5 websites.

Developer - Costs $149 per year and gives you licenses to use Instagram Feed Pro on up to 25 websites.

All Access Bundle - Costs $299 per year and gives all Smash Balloon pro plugins for unlimited websites.

Wrapping up

OK, so that wraps it up. Enough waffling from me about how great this plugin is, go try it for yourself.

My final verdict is that if you're a blogger, freelancer, personal brand ambassador, and love using Instagram to grow your social engagement and promote your business, products, or services, then this plugin is a must-have, in my opinion, anyway.

And, if you go for the paid-for Pro option, you can enjoy a ton of additional features, free updates, and reliable premium support.

Do I recommend Instagram Feed Pro? Of course, I do, Yes, absolutely. Start with the free version and see if you like it.

Let me know your thoughts below.

• Are you using Instagram to help you promote your brand and reach new customers?
• Would this be a plugin you'd be interested in trying out?

Privacy and Affiliate Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links to products or services that I use in my business and therefore recommend. This means if you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase of a product or service, I may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you. Please also note that clicking on these links means that your activity can be tracked, as affiliate links use cookies.