DM templates · Instagram

Deliver a free guide by Instagram DM

To deliver a free guide on Instagram, ask people to comment one word, such as GUIDE, and answer each comment with a short DM that asks them to reply. Instagram allows only that one plain-text message until they write back, so the PDF link goes in the message after it. These 12 templates cover each step, down to the “it never arrived” reply.

Updated 6 October 2026 · 12 templates

12 messages to copy

Tap a card to copy the message. Swap anything in braces, like {name}, for your own words before you send it.

  • Public reply under the comment

    Sent 📩 If you don't follow us yet, look in your message requests.

    A private reply to someone who doesn't follow you lands in their requests folder, not the main inbox. Saying so in public heads off a wave of “didn't get it” comments.

  • First DM, asking for a yes

    Hi! You commented GUIDE, so this is an automatic message from us. Your free guide is ready. Shall I send it over? Reply YES.

    It's a private reply, so it has to be plain text and the link waits for their answer. Asking for one word keeps the effort on their side tiny.

  • First DM that asks where they're starting

    Thanks for asking for the guide! This reply is automatic. One quick question first: are you just starting out, or have you been at this for a while?

    Any answer opens the chat, just like YES. If you reply by hand, it also tells you which next step suits them; an automation sends the same guide to both.

  • The guide, once they reply

    Here's your free guide: {link} The link stays in this chat, so you can come back to it whenever you like. Once you've read it, tell me which part helped most.

    Asking which part helped invites another reply, and each reply from them gives you a fresh 24 hours to answer.

  • Asking for an email first

    Happy to send it! Which email should I use? You'll get the guide here as soon as you reply, plus our tips email once a week. Unsubscribe whenever you like.

    Tell people what the address is for before they type it. If they're joining a newsletter, this is the moment to say so, not after.

  • Reply to someone who DMs the word

    Here's the guide you asked for: {link} Enjoy it, and if anything in it isn't clear, message me here.

    A DM from them opens the 24-hour window at once, so there's no YES step. Set GUIDE up as a DM keyword too and the link goes out in the very first reply.

  • Public reply to a comment over 7 days old

    It's still free! Send us the word GUIDE in a DM and it'll come straight back to you.

    After 7 days a comment can't get a private reply. A DM keyword reply has no such cut-off, because their message starts a new conversation.

  • “I didn't get it” reply

    Sorry about that! If you don't follow us, Instagram puts our message under requests, so check there first. Not there either? Reply here and I'll resend it.

    Often the guide is sitting in the requests folder. Otherwise the comment may not have contained the word, such as a lone emoji, so nothing was triggered.

  • If the link won't open

    Sorry it's not opening for you. What do you see when you tap it: a blank page, an error, or a request for access? Tell me and I'll sort it out.

    A Google Drive file still set to Restricted shows a request-access screen. Set general access to “Anyone with the link” before the post goes up.

  • Check-in later the same day

    Hope the guide's been useful! Did you get a chance to try the first step yet? I'd love to hear how it went.

    Through Meta's API, which automation tools use, a follow-up like this can only go out within 24 hours of their last message. Later than that, send it by hand.

  • Pointing to the paid version

    So glad the guide helped! If you'd like the full version with worked examples, it's here: {link}. No pressure at all: the free guide works fine on its own.

    Promotional messages are allowed inside the 24 hours. Mention it once; if they don't take it up, let it go.

  • When the guide has been replaced

    Thanks for asking! That guide has been updated since the post went up, so here's the newer version: {link}

    Better than sending an old file. Change the link in your auto-reply as well, so nobody else gets the outdated one.

Set it up in DMFast

Comment GUIDE, get the PDF in DMs

Someone comments on your post

GUIDE

Public reply under their comment

Just sent it to your DMs 📩

First DM (plain text)

Hey, thanks for the comment! This is an automatic DM, and your free guide is ready and waiting. Would you like it sent here in the chat? Reply YES and it's yours.Yes pleaseYour free guide (PDF)Open the guide

The link can't ride along with this first DM, so it asks for the one-word answer that opens the next message. Turn on “Ask for their email first” and the address question slots in after the YES; throwaway inboxes are turned away before the card goes out.

  1. Pick a post

    Connect your Instagram account, then choose the post or Reel it runs on, or every post.

  2. Set the word: GUIDE

    Anyone who comments GUIDE gets a reply under their comment and a DM. Capitals don't matter.

  3. Paste the message

    Add the public reply and the first DM shown here. Once they answer, your link follows as a card.

Set it up free

Free plan, no card. Instagram professional accounts and Facebook Pages.

Rules to know

  1. Each comment can get one private reply, within 7 days of being posted. Nothing else can be sent until the commenter answers, so that message can't carry the PDF.
  2. When the commenter doesn't follow you, the private reply goes to their message requests instead of the main inbox.
  3. Their answer opens 24 hours for the link, the email question and any promotion, and the clock resets each time they write again.
  4. An automated DM must make clear, at the start of the conversation, that the person is dealing with an automated service.
  5. Comments made during a Live can only get a private reply while the broadcast is on. For a guide people can ask for all week, offer it on a post or Reel.

Sources

From comment to PDF, step by step

Every comment-for-a-guide post runs in the same order. Knowing it helps you write each message for the moment it lands.

  1. Your caption names the word in capitals, near the top: “Comment GUIDE for the free checklist.”
  2. Someone comments GUIDE. A short public reply appears under it, which also shows others the offer works.
  3. A plain-text DM asks if they want the guide. This is the private reply, the one message allowed before they answer.
  4. They reply YES, or anything else. That reply opens 24 hours for everything that follows.
  5. If you're collecting emails, you ask for one now, and the guide waits until a real address arrives.
  6. The guide arrives as a card with a button that opens your link.

Tip: Pin a comment of your own that repeats the offer, such as “Comment GUIDE below for the checklist”. Latecomers who skip the caption still see it, and DMFast ignores comments from your own account, so it won't DM you.

Choosing the word and the caption line

Pick a word nobody would type for another reason. GUIDE, CHECKLIST or something tied to the topic, like BUDGET or RECIPES, all work. Words that turn up in ordinary comments, such as YES, LOVE or WOW, would send DMs to people who were only being nice.

DMFast matches the whole word and ignores capitals, so “guide please 🙏” counts but “guidebook” doesn't. Put the word in the first line of the caption, and on the cover or in the Reel itself, since a long caption is cut off after a line or two in the feed. Three lines that work:

  • “Comment GUIDE and I'll send you the free checklist.”
  • “Want the full list? Comment GUIDE and it's yours by DM.”
  • “The template I use every week is free: comment GUIDE.”

Where to keep the file

The card opens a link, so the guide has to live somewhere that loads on a phone without a login. The usual choices:

  • A page on your own website. You can update the file later without changing the link in your auto-reply.
  • Google Drive, with general access set to “Anyone with the link”. A file left on Restricted asks people to request access, which means a wait for them and a pile of requests for you.
  • A public Notion or similar page, when the guide is more of a checklist than a document.
  • In India, a free product in a DMFast store. It works as a lead magnet: people leave an email, and a phone number if you ask for one, before the file opens.

Tip: Before the post goes live, open the link on a phone that isn't signed in to your accounts. That's what a stranger will see.

Mistakes that lose people halfway

  • Trying to put the link in the first DM. Instagram allows no links or buttons in that message, so save it for the card.
  • Asking for an email before saying what the guide is. People will trade an address for “the 7-day meal plan”, not for “my freebie”.
  • Stacking steps. A follow, an email and a question before one PDF is three places to drop off. Pick one at most.
  • Leaving the auto-reply running after the offer ends. Turn it off, or change the DM to point to the newer guide.
  • Skipping the test. Comment from a second account that doesn't follow you, to see the public reply, the DM in requests and the card exactly as strangers will.

What to measure

Three numbers tell you where people drop off. The share of commenters who answer the first DM shows whether its question is easy enough. Taps on the card, which a tracked link counts, show whether the guide still sounds worth it once they're in the chat. And if you ask for emails, the gap between replies and addresses is what that step costs you.

If plenty of people answer but few hand over an email, say what they'll receive and how often, or drop the email step for this guide and compare a week of each.

Questions people ask

Do people have to follow me to get the guide?

No. Anyone who comments the word gets the first DM, and if they don't follow you it arrives in their message requests. On Instagram, DMFast's “Only send to followers” option can hold the link back until they follow, but it adds a step, so use it when followers matter more to you than downloads.

What happens if someone comments GUIDE three times?

They get one DM, not three. Instagram allows one private reply per comment, and DMFast answers each person once a day per auto-reply, so repeat comments from the same account that day are left alone.

Can I send the guide to people who commented before I set this up?

Yes, if the comments are less than 7 days old. DMFast's “Reply to older comments”, on the Pro plan and up, goes back over recent comments and sends the first DM to anyone who used the word. For older comments, reply publicly and ask them to DM you the word instead.

Is it fine to ask for an email in exchange?

Yes, if you're upfront about it. Say what they'll get by email, and how often, before they type the address, and only add them to a newsletter if you said so. In DMFast every address lands in your leads, ready to export as a CSV for your email tool.

Can each post give away a different guide?

Yes. Set up one auto-reply per post, each with its own word and link, say GUIDE on one Reel and RECIPES on another. An auto-reply tied to a specific post is checked before one that runs on every post, so the right file goes out.

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