Connecting Accounts & Systems: Google, Social Platforms and the API
Connections come in two kinds: social platform connections for auto-posting, handled from the studio's automation area with a guided per-platform flow, and API keys for external automated systems, created in the dashboard and shown once. Both are self-service, both store credentials encrypted, and every failure mode has a one-minute self-fix.
How to connect a social platform
Open the automation area
From the studio, open the social accounts / automation section — all supported platforms are listed with their connection state.
Pick the platform and follow the built-in steps
Each platform shows a numbered walkthrough: where to create the credential, which permissions or scopes to request, and where to paste it. You never need to guess the permission names — they are spelled out in the dialog.
Paste the credential and confirm
Paste the access token or client credentials into the connect dialog. Credentials are stored encrypted — the UI only ever shows a masked preview, and disconnecting deletes them.
Send a test post
Queue one low-stakes item through the scheduler. The engine formats it per platform, runs the compliance screen, and publishes — confirming the connection end to end.
| Platform | Credential you provide | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) | Bearer token from a developer app with Read and Write enabled | Free developer tiers post rarely — schedule accordingly |
| OAuth access token with w_member_social scope | Tokens expire (~60 days) — reconnect when posts fail | |
| Graph API token linked to a professional account | Personal accounts cannot post via API — switch to Professional first | |
| Page access token | Personal profiles are not supported; Page tokens are the right credential | |
| TikTok | Client key + secret from a developer app | Content posting needs an audited app for full frequency |
| OAuth token from a developer app | Bulk pinning is rate-limited — the scheduler spaces pins automatically | |
| YouTube | Google OAuth with upload scope | Unverified apps are capped at private/unlisted uploads |
| Client ID + secret from a Reddit app | Per-subreddit rules apply — the compliance engine checks them | |
| Medium | Integration token from account settings | Canonical URLs keep your blog the SEO origin on republishes |
| Threads | OAuth token via the Threads API | Newest API of the set — quota is still conservative |
What about Google connections (Business Profile, Blogger, YouTube)?
Google-powered features — posting to a Google Business Profile, publishing to Blogger, uploading to YouTube — all flow through one Google account connection with the relevant scopes. Connect it once from the automation area and every Google tool shares it. The most common issue is an expired refresh token after a password change or a security review on the Google account; the fix is always the same: disconnect and reconnect the Google account, which takes under a minute and preserves your schedules.
How do I connect an external automated system instead?
If your own software — a bot, an n8n/Zapier flow, a backend service — should run GigTry tools autonomously, you do not connect platforms at all: you create an API key. In the dashboard, create a key (it starts with gt_live_ and is displayed exactly once), grant it the scopes it needs — tools:read for the catalog, tools:execute for running tools, usage:read for metering — and have your system send it as a Bearer token to POST /api/v1/execute. The API guide documents every endpoint with copy-paste examples, and the same credit balance funds both manual and API runs.
Token expired? This is the one-minute fix
Expired tokens are the single most common posting failure. The symptom is always the same: one platform fails with an authentication error while the others publish normally. Open the automation area, disconnect the affected platform, reconnect it with a fresh token, and requeue the failed item. Nothing else — schedules, content, other platforms — is affected.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to create developer accounts for every social platform?
For most platforms yes — the credentials come from each platform's developer portal, and the connect dialog walks you through exactly where to click and which scopes to request. The walkthrough removes the guesswork; expect 5–10 minutes per platform, once.
Where are my credentials stored?
Encrypted on the server, never in plain text and never in your browser. The UI only shows a masked preview, disconnecting deletes them, and they are used exclusively to publish the posts you schedule.
Can I connect the same social account to multiple GigTry workspaces?
One connection per platform per account keeps scheduling state consistent and avoids double-posting. If you manage several brands, connect each brand's own platform accounts — that is also what the platforms' own terms expect.
What is the difference between platform connections and an API key?
Platform connections let the automation engine publish to your social accounts. An API key lets an external system you own run GigTry tools programmatically. They solve different halves of automation, and both are created and managed entirely by you.
A platform was connected yesterday and fails today — why?
The platform almost certainly expired or revoked the token (password changes and security reviews do this too). Reconnect that platform in the automation area — under a minute — and requeue the failed post. Per-platform isolation means nothing else was affected.
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