How to add post labels to CSV bulk scheduled posts – Vista Social

Plan

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You can add post labels to your posts directly in your bulk scheduling CSV file. Add a publication_tags column, enter your labels, and every imported post arrives already labeled. No need to label each post by hand after scheduling.

What this does

Applies one or more post labels to each post in your CSV during import
Matches label names to your existing post labels, and creates a new label if the name doesn't exist yet
Keeps labels editable on each post before you schedule
Saves labels on scheduled posts, drafts, and ideas

Example uses:

Label a month of content by campaign, like Fall launch or Black Friday
Group posts by content pillar, like Fitness and Wellness
Mark evergreen content so you can report on it later with reports by post label

How to set up the publication_tags column

Open your bulk scheduling CSV. If you're starting from scratch, click Download sample in the Import a CSV file window. The sample already includes a publication_tags column.
Add a column with the header publication_tags. Like other optional columns, it can go in any position after the four required columns (message, type, link, time).
In each row, type the label you want applied to that post.
To apply more than one label, separate them with three pipe characters: |||
Save the file as a CSV.

Example:

How to import your labeled CSV

Go to Create → Bulk publishing.
Under Import a CSV file, click Import from CSV.
In the left panel, select the profiles you want to publish to.
Click Upload CSV file and choose where to upload from: Upload from computer, Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive. You can also drag and drop the file into the upload area.
Your posts appear in a list with their Message, Media, and Scheduled time. Labels aren't shown in this list view.
To check or change labels on a post, click the post to open Edit bulk post. Your labels appear in the labels field below the attached media. Remove a label by clicking the x next to it, or add more from the dropdown, then click Save changes.
Select the posts you want to schedule, or click Select all, then click Next.
In the Bulk schedule window, click Schedule. To send the posts for approval instead, click Assign.

Note

Labels are applied per post. Each post can have its own set of labels, and you can edit them individually before scheduling.

publication_tags vs. tags

The CSV has two columns with similar names that do different things:

publication_tags: adds Vista Social post labels, the same labels you use to organize your calendar and filter reports
tags: adds tags to YouTube and Tumblr posts only

Important

If you want to label posts in Vista Social, use publication_tags. Putting your labels in the tags column won't label your posts.

Important notes

Use exactly three pipe characters (|||) between labels.
If a label name in your CSV doesn't match an existing post label, a new label with that name is created.
If a label can't be applied, the post is still imported, just without labels.

Best practices

Match label names to your existing labels exactly to avoid creating near-duplicates like Wellness and Wellness tips.
For carousels and multi-media posts, add the same publication_tags value to every row of the post, just like the caption and time.
Open one or two posts in Edit bulk post before scheduling to confirm your labels came through.
Plan labels around how you want to report. Campaign and content pillar labels make it easy to compare performance later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I add more than one label to a post in my CSV?

A: Yes. Separate each label with |||, for example Campaign|||Evergreen.

Q: Do I need to create my labels in Vista Social before uploading?

A: No. If a label doesn't exist yet, it's created automatically during import.

Q: Why don't I see my labels in the list of imported posts?

A: The import list only shows the message, media, and scheduled time. Click any post to open Edit bulk post and see its labels.

Q: Can I change labels after importing?

A: Yes. Edit them on each post before scheduling, or update them later from your calendar. To relabel many posts at once, see How to bulk label posts.

Q: What's the difference between the publication_tags and tags columns?

A: publication_tags adds Vista Social post labels to any post. tags only applies to YouTube and Tumblr posts.

Need help?

Reach out to our support team, and we are happy to help.

How to create and manage post labels

Bulk Publishing