Post messages to Facebook automatically

You can post on your Facebook wall using Ozeki SMS Gateway! On this page you can learn step by step how to create a Facebook connection. Watch our tutorial video below!

Step 1 - Log in / Sign up

First navigate to https://developers.facebook.com/apps/ website. (Figure 1)

navigate to developers facebook
Figure 1 - Navigate to developers.facebook.com/apps/

Then provide your account information and click on the 'Log In' button. (Figure 2)

provide account information
Figure 2 - Provide account information

Step 2 - Add new app

If you have not used 'Facebook for Developers' before, then you have to register your account by clicking on the 'Register Now' button. (Figure 3)

register now
Figure 3 - Register now

Now you have to accept the Facebook Platform an Privacy Policy in order to use this functionality. Click on the box that shows 'No'. (Figure 4)

privacy policy
Figure 4 - Privacy policy

Now you can see 'Yes' in the box. Click 'Next' to continue the configuration. (Figure 5)

accept privacy policy
Figure 5 - Accept privacy policy

As a next step provide your phone number where the confirmation code will be sent to. You can decide if you would like to receive it as an SMS message or via phone call. After receiving the code enter it into the 'Confirmation Code' field. If finished, click on 'Register'. (Figure 6)

register your account
Figure 6 - Register your account

And now you have become a Facebook Developer! The next thing to do is to create an app. Click on 'Create App ID' button. (Figure 7)

create app id
Figure 7 - Create App ID

It is time to provide details about the app. Your e-mail address which you have used for creating your Facebook account is already provided. Add a name for the app and then click on 'Create App ID' button. (Figure 8)

provide app details
Figure 8 - Provide app details

Now comes the security check. Enter the text into the required field and click on 'Submit'. (Figure 9)

security check
Figure 9 - Security check

Step 3 - Set up your app

On the next page choose 'Facebook Login' product. In order to start setting up this app click on 'Get started'.
(Figure 10)

start facebook login
Figure 10 - Start Facebook Login app

Provide the URL: http://localhost:9505 in the 'Valid OAuth redirect URIs' field and if finished, click on the 'Save Changes' button which is in the bottom right corner. (Figure 11)

provide url
Figure 11 - Provide URL

Go to 'Dashboard' tab and click 'Show' therefore the 'App Secret' code will be displayed. (Figure 12)

show app secret
Figure 12 - Show App Secret

But first you have to re-enter your password because of security reasons. Then click on 'Submit'. (Figure 13)

re-enter password
Figure 13 - Re-enter password

Go to 'Settings' menu where you can see the basic details of your app. Find 'Category' field, click on it and choose 'Communication' type. (Figure 14 and 15)

set category
Figure 14 - Set category

choose communication
Figure 15 - Choose Communication

After that add a platform to the app. Click on 'Add Platform'. (Figure 16)

add platform
Figure 16 - Add platform

Now you can see many possibilities to choose from. In this case let's select 'Website'. (Figure 17)

select website platform
Figure 17 - Select website platform

Now we can see that a new tab called 'Website' has appeared. In the 'Site URL' field provide http://localhost:9505 then click on 'Save changes'. (Figure 18)

provide site url
Figure 18 - Provide site URL

Navigate to 'App Review' menu where you can setup the availability of the app. Click on the box which shows 'No' at the moment. (Figure 19)

app review menu
Figure 19 - App Review menu

Make your app available by clicking on the 'Confirm' button. (Figure 20)

make your app available
Figure 20 - Make your app available

If you see a 'Yes' in the box then your app is live and available to the public. (Figure 21)

available app
Figure 21 - Available app

On the same page you can see 'Submit Items for Approval' tab. This setting is important because there are some Facebook apps which require approval before using them. This way you will be able to post messages using different apps. Click on 'Start a Submission'. (Figure 22)

start submission
Figure 22 - Start submission

Now tick 'publish_actions' login permission and then click on 'Add 1 Item' button. (Figure 23)

choose publish actions
Figure 23 - Choose publish actions

Step 4 - Create Facebook connection

Now let's start the software of Ozeki NG SMS Gateway! (Navigate to http://localhost:9505). Then on the left-hand side choose the 'Connect' function. (Figure 24)

click on connect
Figure 24 - Click on Connect

On the next page click on 'Create new connection'. (Figure 25)

create new connection
Figure 25 - Create new connection

Here you can see different connection methods. Let's choose 'Social'. (Figure 26)

choose cocial type of connection
Figure 26 - Choose Social type of connection

And there it is! The Facebook connection which we would like to create. Click on it and start setting up this connection. (Figure 27)

facebook connection
Figure 27 - Facebook connection

In the 'Authentication' groupbox you have to provide authentication parameters. You will need the 'App ID' and 'App Secret' of your configured app. (Figure 28)

authentication menu
Figure 28 - Authentication menu

Let's go back to facebook for developers. Go to 'Dashboard' menu and copy the required 'App ID' and 'App Secret'. (Figure 29)

copy app id and app secret
Figure 29 - Copy App ID and App Secret

After pasting the codes into the required fields click on 'Login'. (Figure 30)

logging in
Figure 30 - Logging in

In the corner of the website on the right you can see that a pop-up window has been blocked. Click on the icon and choose the 'Always allow...' option. Then click 'Done'. (Figure 31)

allow pop up windows
Figure 31 - Allow pop up windows

Now you can click on the link and the pop-up window will appear. (Figure 32)

click on the link
Figure 32 - Click on the link

You have to log in with your Facebook account. Click on the blue button if you would like to continue using this app with your profile. (Figure 33)

logging in with your facebook account
Figure 33 - Logging in with your Facebook account

In this section you can decide who can see your posts on Facebook. If finished, click 'Ok'. (Figure 34)

posting settings
Figure 34 - Posting settings

As you can see you have successfully logged in with your account! (Figure 35)

successful login
Figure 35 - Successful login

Step 5 - Compose message

Select your created Facebook connection from the 'Connection' list. (Figure 36)

select your facebook connection
Figure 36 - Select your Facebook connection

Next step is to create a test project. In order to do it, click on the 'Test' button. (Figure 37)

click on Test
Figure 37 - Click on Test

Finally, it is time to compose your message. There is a possibility to attach files like pictures or videos to your post. If you are finished with creating the message then you can click the 'Post' button. (Figure 38)

post your message
Figure 38 - Post your message

If everything went fine, then you should see a green tick on the bottom of the page which means that the connection is working and the message has been successfully posted on your Facebook wall. (Figure 39)

successful posting sms messages
Figure 39 - Successful posting SMS messages

Now it is time to check your post on Facebook! You can see that it has appeared on your timeline! (Figure 40)

facebook post
Figure 40 - SMS Facebook post

More information