Connecting Telegram

Telegram publishes through a bot you create. The bot can post to both channels and groups, but posts carry the bot’s name rather than yours.

Before you start

Posts carry the bot's name

Telegram does not let a third-party app post as a user. Everything is sent by the bot, so viewers see the bot's name and avatar. If you want posts to look like they come from you, give the bot your brand name and logo when you create it.

The bot is yours, created by you, and you can delete it at any time.
The bot only sees the channels or groups you deliberately add it to. It cannot find anything else in your Telegram account.
One bot serves many channels and groups — you do not need a new one each time.

Creating a bot in BotFather

1
Open BotFather
In Telegram, find @BotFather — Telegram's own account for managing bots. The connect screen also has an Open BotFather button.
2
Send the create command
Send /newbot, set a display name, then a username ending in bot. Set an avatar with /setuserpic too if you want posts to carry your branding.
3
Copy the token
BotFather returns a string like 123456789:AA…. That is the key to your bot — keep it as private as a password.
4
Paste the token here
Channels → Add account → Telegram → paste the token → Next.

Choosing a channel or group

Once the token is accepted, a connect session opens and hands you over to Telegram to name the destination.

1
Open the chat with your bot
Click Open @your_bot in Telegram. Press Start if Telegram asks.
2
Pick Connect channel or Connect group
Telegram asks where to add the bot and which permissions to grant. Make sure post messages is enabled — without it the bot joins but cannot send anything.
3
Come back and confirm
Return here and press I have finished selecting. The channel or group appears in your account list.

The connect session lasts 15 minutes

If you leave it half-finished for more than 15 minutes, the session expires and Telegram can no longer attach the channel to your account. No harm done — return to the Channels page and start again; the bot is untouched.

Channels versus groups

	Channel	Group
Who can post	Administrators only	Any member, unless restricted
Permission the bot needs	Administrator with post-messages rights	Member with send-messages rights, or administrator
Best for	One-way broadcasting to subscribers	Communities with two-way conversation
Comments	Only if a discussion group is attached	Built in — every message can be replied to

Both accept video identically. You can connect several channels and groups through the same bot; each one takes its own channel slot.

Limits

Video up to 1 hour, caption up to 1,024 characters — anything longer is truncated.
Telegram sets no daily cap, only a rate limit (roughly 20 messages a minute into one group). We apply our own 50-posts-a-day guidance per channel so your feed does not look automated.
Bot authorisation does not expire. A Telegram channel only breaks if you revoke the token in BotFather or remove the bot from the channel.

Common problems

Symptom	Cause	Fix
The bot is in the channel but nothing publishes	The bot lacks post-messages rights.	Open the channel's administrator settings and enable posting for the bot.
Pressing "I have finished selecting" shows no channel	The session passed 15 minutes, or the bot was never actually added.	Start again from pasting the token. No new bot is needed.
Publishing works for a while, then stops	You hit Telegram's rate limit.	Spread the schedule out. Avoid several posts in the same minute into one group.
Posts show the bot name and you want to change it	This is how Telegram works; it cannot be changed.	Rename the bot and set its avatar in BotFather to match your brand.