The person who collects photos and the person who posts are different people
The person who takes photos at the shop or on site is rarely the one who runs social media. Staff at the storefront or craftspeople on site send photos to the social media person in a messaging app, who saves them and uploads them again to a tool. That hand-off is such a chore that good photos often never make it into a post.
Many companies already share photos and files in Google Drive. The SNS TOWN Google Drive sync turns that shared folder into an entry point to your Library. The person taking photos just puts them in the usual folder, and never needs to open SNS TOWN.
Just pick one folder
Press "Connect a folder" in the Library and Google's folder picker opens. When you choose the folder you want to connect, a read-only Google account owned by the SNS TOWN team is added as a viewer of that folder. Google does not send a notification email when this happens.
You don't need to look up an SNS TOWN email address and type it into sharing settings. SNS TOWN can only see inside the folder you chose and cannot touch any other file in your Drive. This sync is available on every plan.
Every hour, copy what was added and what was removed
A connected folder is checked every hour and copied to the Library. The scope and rules are as follows.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Scope | Files directly inside the chosen folder only (subfolders are not read) |
| File types | Images, videos and PDFs |
| Size per file | Up to 5 MB for images, 50 MB for videos, 20 MB for PDFs |
| Files per run | Up to 20 (the rest wait for the next run) |
| Detecting changes | A file is copied again only when its contents have changed |
Put a new photo in the folder and it appears in the Library on the next run. Delete it from the folder and it is removed from the Library too. However, files attached to posts that haven't gone out yet stay in the Library even if you delete them from the folder, so images don't disappear from a post that is about to be published.
A file you delete on the Library side is not imported again, even if it is still in the folder. You don't have to delete a photo you don't want to use from the folder. Deleting it from the Library is enough. When you want files copied right away, press "Sync now" and the folder is checked on the spot.
The number of files copied stays within the file count and storage allowed by your plan. If a file couldn't be copied because you hit the limit, the screen tells you. You can compare the file count and storage for each plan on the pricing page.
Copied files are not read by AI
Files copied from Drive have not been read by AI. The name in the Library is just the file name, and the description of what is in it is empty. A person can still attach them to posts as they are, but if you want them chosen by AI drafts or the AI image feature, press "Have AI read again" on the asset's detail page, or write the description yourself.
If you ask whoever takes the photos to name files something like "Nov_chestnut-danish_storefront.jpg," they are easy to find in the Library even when the description is empty. How to take photos that work well on social media is covered in How to Make Images for Social Media.
If your company can't share outside the organization
Some companies have Google Workspace set up so that folders can't be shared outside the organization. In that case, after you pick a folder you see "This folder can't be shared outside your organization" and can't connect it.
Use "Import selected files" instead. Choose photos or files from Drive and they are imported into the Library once, on the spot. There is no automatic sync, but you skip downloading each file from Drive and uploading it again.
Removing a folder, and when sharing is lost
You can disconnect a connected folder with "Remove." SNS TOWN is then removed as a viewer of the folder, but the files already copied to the Library stay.
If you stop sharing on the Drive side or delete the folder, the Library shows "No longer shared" and syncing stops. To connect again, choose the folder again. The steps are in the guide Connecting Google Drive.
Combining it with other features
If several people take photos, you can collect them just by sharing a Drive folder, without making them SNS TOWN members. Only the people who write and approve posts need to be members, and the people who take photos just drop them in the folder.
Frequently asked questions
Can SNS TOWN see other files in the connected folder's Drive?
No. SNS TOWN is added as a viewer of the chosen folder only. It cannot touch any other folder or file in the same Drive.
Are folders inside the folder copied too?
No. Only files directly inside the chosen folder. Put the photos you want copied directly in the connected folder.
If I replace a photo, does the Library change?
Yes. We detect that the contents of the same file changed and copy it again on the next run.
A photo I deleted from the Library keeps coming back
A file deleted from the Library is not imported again, even if it is still in the folder. If it keeps coming back, check whether it was added to the folder again as a different file.
How many folders can I connect?
Add as many as you want with "Connect a folder." If you keep separate folders per shop or per photographer, connect each one and the photos from every folder gather in the same Library.
Will the photos disappear from my Google Drive?
No. SNS TOWN only reads the folder as a viewer and never edits or deletes files in your Drive. Even if you delete something from the Library, the file in Drive stays as it is.
Does Google Drive sync cost credits?
Connecting and copying are free. When you have AI read the copied files, it uses the same credits as reading them in the Library.
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