SocialAutoUpload User Guide · Volume 3 — Channels & Platform Setup · Lesson 5

Connect your Telegram bot

Level: Beginner Time: ~15 min Prerequisites: Lesson 1 Audience: new & Telegram-first users

Purpose

Telegram is a little different from the OAuth platforms — instead of signing in, you bring your own free bot. It's worth it: once connected, you can publish to all your platforms just by sending a photo, video, or message to the bot from your phone. This lesson gets the bot connected; Lesson 12 covers posting through it.

Connect Telegram dialog asking for the bot token with a Verify button — Connect Telegram — paste the bot token from @BotFather, then Verify. (Example token shown.)

What you'll create

A Telegram bot is a free automated account you make in one minute via Telegram's official @BotFather. You'll then add it to one chat — a channel, a group, or even your own private chat with the bot — and that chat becomes the one the app listens to.

💡 One bot, one chat — plan for it now

Each bot can drive exactly one chat, and each bot can be connected to exactly one account. If you want to publish from two different chats, you'll create two bots. This is a hard Telegram limitation, not a plan restriction.

Step 1 — Create the bot & get its token

In Telegram, open @BotFather (the app's dialog links straight to it) and send /newbot.
Follow the prompts to name your bot. BotFather replies with a token — a long string like 7973278005:AAF…. Keep it private; it's the bot's password.
Back in SocialAutoUpload, open Channels → Connect on Telegram, and paste the token into Step 1. It's verified automatically (or press Verify); on success you'll see your bot's @username.

Step 2 — Add the bot to your chat & scan

Add your bot as an Admin in the channel or group you want to publish to. (To publish from your own private chat instead, just start a chat with the bot — no admin step needed.)
Post any message in that chat so the bot can see it.
Press Scan. The app lists the chats your bot can see; tap the one you want.

Seeing two similar chats? Pick the Supergroup

If a group has ever been upgraded to a supergroup, Telegram may show both the old group and the new supergroup. Always choose the Supergroup — real messages only arrive there; the old one will never publish. Your own private chat appears as "📩 <name> (Direct messages)".

If Scan finds nothing, the bot either hasn't been added to the chat yet, or no message has been posted since you added it — do both, then scan again. You can also type the chat's @username or numeric ID manually.

Step 3 — Link a Publishing Profile

The last step is required: choose the Publishing Profile whose channels this bot should publish to. (A profile is just a saved group of channels — Lesson 6 covers them; a default one already exists.) If you skip it you'll see:

Please select a Publishing Profile for this bot.

Press Connect. On success the app confirms — ✅ Bot connected! Publish from the website, or by sending content directly to the bot (DM or group) — both work now. — and the bot starts listening immediately. No admin approval, no waiting.

Who can publish through the bot — read this for groups

🔒 In a group, any member's post can publish

Everything published through the bot goes out under your account (the person who connected it), to your linked profile's channels. That's convenient for solo use — but in a group, it means any member who posts media in that chat can trigger a publish under your account. Only connect the bot to a chat whose members you trust, or use a channel/your own DM instead.

Disconnecting

Disconnecting from the channel's menu removes the bot's webhook from Telegram (it stops listening), deletes the channel, and removes it from any Publishing Profiles that used it — the same clean-up as any other channel.

Expected result

Your Telegram channel appears on the Channels page, linked to a profile (a small badge shows which one). Send it a photo with a caption and it publishes — that's Lesson 12.

Common mistakes

Entering the bot's own @username as the chat — the app blocks this: "…" is your Bot's username. Add the bot as Admin to a channel/group and enter that channel's @username instead.
Scanning before posting a message in the chat — the bot needs to have "seen" the chat first.
Trying to reuse one bot for two chats — create a second bot instead (see below).
Forgetting to link a profile — Step 3 is required.

Troubleshooting (quick table)

You see…	Why	Do this
This bot (@x) is already used by "…". Each profile needs its own bot.	You already connected this bot elsewhere	Create a new bot in @BotFather for the second chat
This bot (@x) is already connected to another account.	The bot belongs to a different account	Create your own bot in @BotFather
Scan shows no chats	Bot not added, or no message since adding	Add the bot as Admin, post a message, scan again
Two similar chats in the scan	Group was upgraded to a supergroup	Pick the Supergroup
Chat not found on connect	Wrong @username / ID, or bot not a member	Confirm the bot is Admin and the handle/ID is right

Posting problems (once connected) are covered in Lesson 12; deeper issues in Lesson 18.1.

📱 Mobile note: this whole flow is designed for mobile — you'll switch between the Telegram app (BotFather, adding the bot) and SocialAutoUpload a couple of times.

Next: Lesson 6 — Publishing Profiles: group your channels.
You've connected channels; now learn to save them into reusable sets so you're not re-picking them for every post.