Let ChatGPT Schedule Your Social Content (Step-by-Step)

What if you could tell ChatGPT: "Write a LinkedIn post about our Series A announcement and schedule it for Monday at 9am" — and it actually does it?

Not "here's a draft you can copy-paste." Actually schedules it. To your real LinkedIn account. For Monday at 9am.

With Custom GPTs and the ViralGhost Agent API, this is a 10-minute setup. You'll have a personal AI social media manager that drafts content in your style, lets you review it, and publishes to Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn when you say "go."

This tutorial covers two approaches:

• Option A: Custom GPT with Actions (for ChatGPT Plus users)

Why This Works Better Than Copy-Paste

You've probably already used ChatGPT to write social media posts. The workflow is:

1. Ask ChatGPT to write a post
2. Copy the text
3. Open Buffer/Hootsuite/the native app
4. Paste it in
5. Set the schedule
6. Click publish

That's 6 steps across multiple apps. With a Custom GPT connected to ViralGhost, it's:

1. Tell ChatGPT what to post
2. Confirm
3. Done

The LLM handles the drafting AND the publishing in one conversation.

Option A: Custom GPT with Actions

Step 1: Get Your ViralGhost API Key

1. Sign up at [viralghost.xyz](https://viralghost.xyz) (free, no credit card)
2. Link your social accounts (Instagram, Facebook, X, LinkedIn — whichever you use)
3. Go to Settings → API → Create API Key
4. Note your account IDs from the Accounts page

Step 2: Create the Custom GPT

1. Go to [chat.openai.com](https://chat.openai.com) → Explore GPTs → Create
2. Click the Configure tab

Step 3: Set the Instructions

Paste this into the Instructions field:

You are a social media manager assistant. You help the user draft and schedule social media posts across Instagram, Facebook, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn.
Your workflow:
1. When the user asks you to post or schedule something, draft the caption first
2. Adapt the tone and length for the target platform:
   - Instagram: casual, emoji-friendly, hashtag-ready, 150-300 words
   - X/Twitter: concise, punchy, under 280 characters
   - LinkedIn: professional, insight-driven, 100-200 words
   - Facebook: conversational, can be longer
3. Show the user what you plan to post and ask for confirmation
4. Once confirmed, use the schedulePost action to publish
The user's linked accounts:
Instagram: acc_instagram_123

Facebook: acc_facebook_456

X: acc_x_789

LinkedIn: acc_linkedin_012
RULES:
Always confirm before posting — never auto-publish

If no schedule time is specified, ask whether to post now or schedule

If no platform is specified, ask which platforms to target

You can use generateContent to get AI-drafted captions as a starting point

After posting, share the confirmation and post ID

Step 4: Add the Actions

In the Actions section, click Create new action and paste this OpenAPI schema:

yaml
openapi: 3.0.0
info:
  title: ViralGhost Agent API
  description: Schedule and publish social media posts across Instagram, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn
  version: 1.0.0
servers:
  - url: https://api.viralghost.xyz/v1
paths:
  /posts:
    post:
      operationId: schedulePost
      summary: Schedule or publish a social media post
      description: Creates a post and either publishes it immediately or schedules it for a future time
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              type: object
              required:
                - accounts
                - content
              properties:
                accounts:
                  type: array
                  items:
                    type: string
                  description: Account IDs to post to (e.g., acc_instagram_123)
                content:
                  type: object
                  required:
                    - text
                  properties:
                    text:
                      type: string
                      description: The post caption/text
                    image_url:
                      type: string
                      description: URL of an image to include with the post
                schedule_at:
                  type: string
                  format: date-time
                  description: ISO 8601 datetime to schedule. Omit to publish immediately
                dry_run:
                  type: boolean
                  description: If true, validates the post without publishing
      responses:
        "200":
          description: Post created successfully
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  post_id:
                    type: string
                  status:
                    type: string
                    enum: [published, scheduled]
                  scheduled_at:
                    type: string
  /ai/generate:
    post:
      operationId: generateContent
      summary: Generate a social media caption using AI
      description: Uses ViralGhost AI to generate platform-optimized captions from a topic or brief
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              type: object
              required:
                - type
                - prompt
              properties:
                type:
                  type: string
                  enum: [caption, image]
                  description: What to generate
                prompt:
                  type: string
                  description: Topic or brief for the content
                tone:
                  type: string
                  description: "Tone of voice: casual, professional, excited, witty, etc."
                platform:
                  type: string
                  enum: [instagram, facebook, x, linkedin]
                  description: Target platform (affects style and length)
      responses:
        "200":
          description: Generated content
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  content:
                    type: string

Step 5: Set Authentication

(Replace with your actual API key)

Step 6: Test Your Custom GPT

Save the GPT and try these prompts:

Simple post:

"Post 'Just shipped our new feature! 🚀' to Instagram"

Scheduled post:

"Write a LinkedIn post about our team reaching 1,000 users and schedule it for Monday at 10am EST"

Multi-platform:

"Create a post about our product launch. Post to Instagram, X, and LinkedIn. Make it exciting but professional."

AI-generated content:

"Generate a week of content ideas about developer productivity and schedule one post per day starting Monday"

With review:

"Draft 3 different versions of a tweet about our new API launch. I'll pick my favorite and you'll post it."

What the Conversation Looks Like

Here's a typical interaction:

You: Schedule a post about our v2 launch for tomorrow morning across all platforms

GPT: I'll draft platform-specific versions for you:

Instagram:

🚀 v2 is HERE! After months of building, we're thrilled to launch the biggest update yet. New features include [X, Y, Z]. Link in bio for the full breakdown. #launch #v2 #startup

X/Twitter:

v2 just dropped. 🚀 Biggest update yet — [key feature]. Try it now: yoursite.com

LinkedIn:

Excited to announce the launch of v2 today. This release represents months of work and includes significant improvements to [area]. Here's what's new and why it matters for your workflow...

Facebook:

Big day! We just launched v2 🎉 Here's what's new and why we're so excited about this release...

Shall I schedule all of these for tomorrow at 9:00 AM EST?

You: Yes, go ahead

GPT: ✅ All posts scheduled!

Option B: Claude with Tool Use

If you're building with the Anthropic API, you can give Claude the same capabilities using tool use.

Define the Tools

python
import anthropic
import requests
import json
client = anthropic.Anthropic()
VIRALGHOST_API_KEY = "vg_live_your_api_key"
tools = [
    {
        "name": "schedule_social_post",
        "description": "Schedule or publish a social media post to Instagram, Facebook, X, or LinkedIn via ViralGhost.",
        "input_schema": {
            "type": "object",
            "properties": {
                "accounts": {
                    "type": "array",
                    "items": {"type": "string"},
                    "description": "Account IDs to post to. Available: acc_instagram_123, acc_facebook_456, acc_x_789, acc_linkedin_012"
                },
                "text": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "The post caption/text"
                },
                "image_url": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "Optional image URL"
                },
                "schedule_at": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "Optional ISO 8601 datetime. Omit to post immediately."
                }
            },
            "required": ["accounts", "text"]
        }
    },
    {
        "name": "generate_social_content",
        "description": "Generate a social media caption using ViralGhost AI.",
        "input_schema": {
            "type": "object",
            "properties": {
                "prompt": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "Topic or brief"
                },
                "tone": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "description": "Tone: casual, professional, excited, witty"
                },
                "platform": {
                    "type": "string",
                    "enum": ["instagram", "facebook", "x", "linkedin"]
                }
            },
            "required": ["prompt"]
        }
    }
]

Handle Tool Calls

python
def handle_tool(name, input_data):
    headers = {
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {VIRALGHOST_API_KEY}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    }
    if name == "schedule_social_post":
        payload = {
            "accounts": input_data["accounts"],
            "content": {"text": input_data["text"]}
        }
        if "image_url" in input_
            payload["content"]["image_url"] = input_data["image_url"]
        if "schedule_at" in input_
            payload["schedule_at"] = input_data["schedule_at"]
        resp = requests.post(
            "https://api.viralghost.xyz/v1/posts",
            headers=headers,
            json=payload
        )
        return resp.json()
    elif name == "generate_social_content":
        resp = requests.post(
            "https://api.viralghost.xyz/v1/ai/generate",
            headers=headers,
            json={
                "type": "caption",
                "prompt": input_data["prompt"],
                "tone": input_data.get("tone", "professional"),
                "platform": input_data.get("platform", "instagram")
            }
        )
        return resp.json()
def chat(user_message):
    resp client.messages.create(
        model="claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
        max_tokens=1024,
        system="You are a social media manager. Draft and schedule posts. Always confirm before publishing.",
        tools=tools,
        messages=[{"role": "user", "content": user_message}]
    )
    if response.stop_reason == "tool_use":
        for block in response.content:
            if block.type == "tool_use":
                result = handle_tool(block.name, block.input)
                print(f"Tool result: {json.dumps(result, indent=2)}")
    return response
Example

chat("Schedule a LinkedIn post about our product launch for next Tuesday at 9am")

Pro Tips for Better Results

1. Be Specific About Tone

Instead of "write a post about our launch," try:

"Write an excited but professional LinkedIn post about our Series A. Mention the amount ($5M), lead investor (Sequoia), and what we'll use the funds for (hiring engineers). Keep it under 200 words."

2. Ask for Multiple Drafts

"Give me 3 different versions of a tweet about our new API. One serious, one funny, one with an analogy."

3. Use the AI Generation as a Starting Point

"Generate a caption about developer productivity, then modify it to mention our specific tool and add a CTA."

4. Batch Schedule a Week

"Create 5 posts for this week: Monday motivation, Tuesday tip, Wednesday showcase, Thursday question, Friday wins. Schedule them at 9am EST each day, starting next Monday. Post to Instagram and LinkedIn."

Free Tier: Everything You Need to Start

The [ViralGhost free tier](/docs/agent-api) includes:

No credit card required. That's enough to test the Custom GPT workflow, schedule a month of posts, and decide if it fits your needs.

What You've Built

You now have an AI assistant that doesn't just write social media content — it actually publishes it. The workflow is:

1. You describe what you want to post (natural language)
2. The AI drafts platform-optimized content
3. You review and confirm (the AI never auto-publishes)
4. The AI schedules via ViralGhost Agent API
5. Posts go live at the scheduled time

No dashboards. No copy-pasting. No switching between apps. Just a conversation.

[Create your free account at viralghost.xyz](https://viralghost.xyz) and build your Custom GPT today. Full API docs at [/docs/agent-api](/docs/agent-api).

Start free at [viralghost.xyz](https://viralghost.xyz) — 2 accounts, 30 posts/month, 15 AI generations. No credit card. Upgrade when you need more room.