AutoDM
Reply automatically to DMs and story replies
Set up an AutoDM campaign that answers when someone sends you a keyword by direct message or replies to your story with it.
Some offers work better in private. Ask people to "DM me GUIDE" or reply to your story with a word, and AutoDM answers in their inbox with your link.
When to use this
- You share an offer in a story, where there are no comments.
- You'd rather people ask privately, for example for a free consultation.
- You put "DM me the word CALM" in your bio or a Reel.
Create the campaign
On Audience → AutoDM, click New Campaign, name it and add your keywords. Click Create campaign.
Listen to DMs
In the Trigger, under Trigger source, choose Direct messages and story replies ("Direct message only."). Click Save changes. The sequence drops Reply to comments and shows two steps.
Write the DM
Click the pencil on Send DM, write your message, add variations and Attach Offering if you're sending a link. Click Save changes. See Write replies and attach offerings.
Tell people the word
Put it in your story, bio or caption, for example "Reply CALM to this story for the free meditation."
How it differs from a comment campaign
| Comments on a post | Direct messages and story replies | |
|---|---|---|
| Public reply | Optional | None. There's no comment to reply under. |
| Direct message | Yes | Yes |
| Applies to specific posts | Optional | No. DMs aren't tied to a post. |
| Keyword clashes | Only with campaigns on the same posts | With any other active campaign that listens to DMs |
A DM keyword is account-wide. If another active campaign that listens to DMs already uses the word, saving fails with "Campaign "…" already uses …". Pick another word or pause that campaign.
Switching an existing comment campaign to DMs clears its post targeting and removes its public reply. Soul warns you before you save: "Post targeting will be cleared, and the public reply removed."
Tips
- Keywords match anywhere in the message. In a DM, people write freely, so pick an unusual word or a code like
CALM24. - A campaign created in the dashboard listens to both comments and DMs until you choose in the Trigger. If you want both, it's simplest to run two campaigns with different keywords.
- Someone who sends the word again within 12 hours won't get a second reply.
What people see
Your DM in their Instagram inbox, in the same conversation they started. Buttons show on the Instagram app; on desktop the message may look like plain text.