Key takeaways
- Meta allows a message reply during the 24 hours after the person’s last message; after that, only a person can reply, for a limited time.
- A private reply to a comment is one message, within 7 days of the comment.
- LinkedIn’s User Agreement prohibits automated activity, so SkedCast never automates LinkedIn.
- SkedCast’s defaults: at most 20 automatic replies per account per hour, never the same person twice in 24 hours, and no reply where a teammate already answered.
What Meta allows
On Instagram and Facebook, a business can reply to a direct message during the 24 hours after the person’s last message. After that window, automated replies stop; a teammate can still reply by hand for a limited time under Meta’s human-agent rule. A private reply to a public comment is a single message, sent within 7 days of the comment.
Meta also expects people to be told when they are talking to automation. SkedCast adds a short note to an automated direct-message or private reply on Facebook and Instagram.
What LinkedIn allows
LinkedIn’s User Agreement prohibits using software to automate activity such as comments and messages. SkedCast does not automate LinkedIn at all: rules never act there.
The limits SkedCast adds
Every rule carries safety limits, on by default and adjustable per rule:
- At most 20 automatic replies per account per hour
- Never reply to the same person twice in 24 hours
- Skip a conversation a teammate already answered
- Say when a direct-message reply is automated (Meta)
Automate the triage, not only the reply
Most of the value is not in replying at all. Rules (from the Studio plan) that label sales questions, assign negative comments to a senior teammate, hide comments with links or alert someone about a one-star review save time without speaking for the brand.
Three ways to answer: saved reply, AI draft, AI auto-send
Where a reply is right, a rule can answer three ways. A saved reply the client approved is the most predictable. An AI draft follows instructions you write for the rule and the client’s brand voice, and waits for any teammate to edit and send it. An automatic AI reply is posted straight away.
SkedCast only lets AI send by itself where a mistake is cheap. By default it posts for 4- and 5-star reviews and routine messages; anything negative, a question, a complaint, or a mention of refunds, safety or legal matters becomes a draft for a person instead, with the reason shown. If the platform refuses the reply, the written text is kept as a draft rather than lost, and one switch pauses every automatic AI reply in the workspace.
Google reviews need consent
Acting on a Google Business Profile for a business is the business’s decision. SkedCast automates a location — replying to or hiding anything — only after the business’s consent is recorded for that location, with who gave it and when.
FAQ
- Can I auto-reply to Instagram DMs?
- Yes, inside Meta’s 24-hour messaging window, with a note that the reply is automated.
- Can SkedCast automate LinkedIn comments?
- No. LinkedIn’s User Agreement prohibits automated activity, so SkedCast never automates LinkedIn.
- How does SkedCast stop an automation from spamming?
- By default, at most 20 automatic replies per account per hour, never the same person twice in 24 hours, and no reply where a teammate already answered.