DM templates · Instagram
Answer quote requests in your Instagram DMs
Reply to a quote request by thanking them, asking for the few details that set your price, and saying when the quote will arrive. Photos, the location and a date cover most jobs. The 12 templates below take a request from the first DM to an accepted quote, and the set-up turns QUOTE comments on your before-and-after posts into requests you can price.
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.
Automatic first reply to a quote DM
Thanks for asking us to quote! This first reply is automatic. To price it properly we need three things: what needs doing, your area or postcode, and when you'd like it done. A couple of photos help too. Someone from the team will reply by {time}.
Three questions is the most one message should carry. Access, parking and the rest can wait until you've seen the photos.
Which photos to send
Could you send three photos? One of the whole {room or area} from the doorway, one close-up of {the problem}, and one of the way in, such as the stairs or the side gate. That's usually enough to quote without a visit.
Telling people exactly which photos to take gets you usable ones. “Send some pics” tends to get three close-ups of the same corner.
Price guide from past jobs
To give you an idea, recent {type of job} jobs have ranged from {price} for {smaller version} to {price} for {bigger version}. Once I've seen yours, I'll give you a fixed figure.
Real past jobs make a range believable, and it tells people early whether you're in their budget, before either of you spends time on details.
Offering a site visit
This is one I'd like to see before quoting, so the price doesn't change halfway through. I can come and look on {date}; it takes about 20 minutes and there's no charge. Does that suit, or is another day better?
Say how long the visit takes and whether it's free. People hesitate to let someone in when they don't know what they're agreeing to.
Rough measurements
Rough measurements are fine: the length and width of the space in metres, and the ceiling height if you have a tape measure to hand. No need to be exact, I'll check everything on the day.
Say how precise they need to be. People who think you need millimetres tend to put it off and never reply.
Sending the written quote
Here's your quote for {job}: {link} It covers {what's included} but not {what's excluded}, and the price holds until {date}. If you'd like anything added or taken out, tell me here and I'll revise it.
Spell out what's excluded as clearly as what's included. Most disputes start with something each side thought the other was covering.
Their budget is lower than the quote
Thanks for telling me your budget, that really helps. For {price} I could do {smaller scope} now and leave {the rest} for later, or use {cheaper material} instead. Which would you prefer?
Shrink the job rather than the price. Knocking money off the same work suggests the first figure was padded.
Outside the area you cover
Thanks for asking! We usually work within {distance} of {town}, and {their area} is just beyond that. I can still come, but travel would add {price} to the quote. Shall I go ahead on that basis?
Give the number and let them choose. Some people are happy to pay for travel, and the rest will appreciate knowing now.
Turning a job down
Thanks so much for thinking of us. This one is outside what we do, so I'd rather say so now than quote for work we wouldn't do well. A {type of specialist} is who you need.
A quick no lets them ask someone else today instead of waiting on you for a week.
Quote accepted: deposit and date
Brilliant, thank you! To hold {date} for you, there's a deposit of {price}: {link} The balance is due when the job's finished, and you'll get a confirmation by email once the deposit is in.
Say when the rest is due in the same message. A surprise at the end of a job is the part people remember.
It's an emergency
If water's coming through the ceiling right now, please don't wait on a DM: call us on {phone}. We read messages through the working day, but we can't promise a quick reply after {time}.
Put the phone number in your automatic reply as well. An inbox is the wrong place for an emergency, and saying so protects you both.
When they're comparing quotes
Getting a few quotes is sensible. When you compare them, check what each one includes: ours covers {inclusions} and comes with {guarantee}. If one is much cheaper, it's worth asking what it leaves out.
Don't run down other firms. Explaining what's in your price helps them compare like with like.
Set it up in DMFast
Comment QUOTE on a before-and-after post
Someone comments on your post
QUOTEPublic reply under their comment
Thanks! We've sent you a DM about your quote 📋First DM (plain text)
Hi, thanks for commenting QUOTE! This is an automatic message. Quotes are free, and the quickest way to get one is a short form with a few photos of your space. Shall I send it here? Reply YES.Yes pleaseFree quote: tell us about the jobStart my quoteBefore-and-after posts show the result people want, so that's where quote requests start. The private reply can't hold the form, so it explains the next step and asks for a YES. If pricing takes you more than a day, ask for an email before the card: the quote can then reach them after the 24 hours run out.
Pick a post
Connect your Instagram account, then choose the post or Reel it runs on, or every post.
Set the word: QUOTE
Anyone who comments QUOTE gets a reply under their comment and a DM. Capitals don't matter.
Paste the message
Add the public reply and the first DM shown here. Once they answer, your link follows as a card.
Free plan, no card. Instagram professional accounts and Facebook Pages.
Rules to know
- A comment asking for a quote can get one private reply, sent within 7 days of the comment and in plain text. The form or link waits until they answer.
- Automated messages must go out within 24 hours of the customer's latest message, so a quote you finish two days later can't be sent by an auto-reply.
- Meta's human agent tag lets a person reply through a connected tool for up to 7 days after the customer's last message, where the tool supports it. It's for answering requests, not for promotions.
- Messages you type yourself in the Instagram app aren't bound by the API's 24-hour limit, which makes the app the simplest place to send a late quote.
- Automated replies must say they're automated. People sending photos of their home should know whether a person has looked at them yet.
Sources
What to ask before you quote, trade by trade
Every trade has two or three details that decide the price. Ask for those in the first reply and nothing else, and people can answer in one message instead of five.
| Trade | Ask for | Usually needs a visit? |
|---|---|---|
| Cleaning | Number of rooms and bathrooms, one-off or regular, any pets | Rarely |
| Painting and decorating | Which rooms, ceiling height, photos of walls and woodwork | For big or damaged jobs |
| Gardens and landscaping | Photos from two corners, rough size, access for a wheelbarrow or skip | For design work |
| Photography | Date, hours of coverage, location, how many edited photos | No |
| Catering | Date, number of guests, dietary needs, the kitchen at the venue | No, though a tasting helps |
| Tattoos | Placement, size in centimetres, reference images, colour or black and grey | A consultation for large pieces |
| Removals | Both addresses, floors and lifts, big items, moving date | For whole-house moves |
Tip: Keep each list of questions as a saved reply in the Instagram app, so you can send it in a couple of taps when you answer by hand.
Range, fixed price or visit?
Decide which answer the job needs before you reply, and tell the person which one they're getting.
- A fixed price when the job is standard and the photos show everything: an end-of-tenancy clean of a two-bedroom flat, a set of family portraits.
- A range from past jobs when one or two unknowns could move it, such as how much preparation the walls need.
- A visit when the risk is hidden: damp, old wiring, a garden you can't judge from photos. Say the visit is free if it is.
Whichever it is, give a time for the next step, “by Thursday evening” rather than “soon”, and keep to it. A late quote reads as a preview of a late job.
When the quote takes longer than a day
This is where Instagram's rules bite. An auto-reply can only write to someone within 24 hours of their latest message, so a quote that takes two days to price can't be sent by your automation. Plan for it before the requests come in:
- Ask for an email in the chat. In DMFast, the email question can sit between their YES and the form, and anything that isn't a working address gets a polite request to try again.
- Send the quote yourself from the Instagram app, where the 24-hour limit doesn't apply.
- If they message to ask how it's going, a fresh 24 hours starts, and the quote can go back through whichever tool you use.
Tip: Tell people where the quote will arrive. “Your quote will come by email by Friday” stops them checking their DMs every hour.
Following up without chasing
One follow-up is normal: quotes get buried under other messages. Send it two or three working days after the quote, by hand, and make it easy to say no. If there's still no answer, stop there, and keep their details in case they come back next season.
Track two numbers: how many requests become quotes, and how many quotes are accepted. If few requests become quotes, your first reply asks for too much. If few quotes are accepted, look at the price, the speed or what the quote leaves out.
Mistakes that lose jobs
- Replying “DM us for a quote” to someone who already has.
- Asking for one detail at a time, spread over a whole day.
- Sending a figure with no list of what it includes.
- Refusing to give any idea of price until after a visit.
- Leaving a weekend request without even an automatic reply.
- Haggling in the comments, where every other customer can read it.
Questions people ask
How fast should I reply to a quote request on Instagram?
Acknowledge it straight away, which an automatic reply can do, and say when the quote itself will arrive. The quote can take a day or two if the job needs it. What loses people is hearing nothing at all.
Where should the quote itself go?
On a page they can open on a phone without logging in: your quoting software's link, a PDF in cloud storage or a page on your site. Send that link in the DM. It keeps every figure in one place, and you can correct it without sending a new message.
Should I give a price before I've seen the job?
Give a range from similar jobs, and say what would move it. Refusing any figure until a visit puts off people who only want to know whether you're in their budget. Keep exact prices for when you've seen photos or the job itself.
Someone asked for a quote in my comments. Can I reply by DM?
Yes, with one private reply sent within 7 days of the comment, in plain text. If you set up the QUOTE auto-reply after the comments came in, DMFast can go back over a post's earlier comments and send the first DM to any that are still inside those 7 days.
What if they never reply to the quote?
Follow up once, a few days later, then let it go. Some people come back months later, so note the job and the price in case they do. Chasing again and again rarely changes the answer, and it can put off a future customer.
Related templates
Set-ups by business
More DM templates
Send these messages automatically
DMFast replies under the comment, sends the first DM in seconds and your link once they answer, day and night. Free plan, no card.
Start free