DM templates · Instagram
Write an Instagram welcome message people answer
An Instagram welcome message is the first thing someone gets back when they DM you or comment a keyword on your post. The best ones fit in three short lines: hello, who's answering and when, and one easy question. No official tool can message people just because they followed you, so a welcome always answers something they did first.
Updated 6 October 2026 · 11 templates
11 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 hello for a business
Welcome, and thanks for getting in touch! This first reply is automatic, but the next one will come from a person, usually by {time}. What brings you here today?
A question about them is easier to answer than a list of your services, and it tells the person who replies where to start.
Automatic hello for a creator
Hey, thanks for the message! This is an auto-reply because the inbox gets busy, but I do read everything myself. For brand work, email is quickest: {link}
Sending collaboration requests to email keeps your DMs for your audience. Put your contact page or email link where {link} is.
Automatic hello with numbered options
Hi, welcome! This is an automatic reply. To get you to the right answer faster, reply with a number: 1 for prices, 2 to book, 3 about an order, 4 for anything else.
Only list options you can answer quickly, by hand or with an automatic reply for each number. Four is plenty.
First DM after someone says hi under a post
Hey, thanks for saying hello on my post! This DM is automatic, but I read the answers myself. What brought you to the account?
As the private reply to a comment, this is the one message you can send until they answer, so it ends with a real question.
Shop hello
Hi, thanks for stopping by our DMs! Looking for something in particular? Send a screenshot of the item and we'll check your size and whether it's in stock.
A screenshot answers “which one?” before you have to ask it, which saves a whole round of messages.
Hello for a service business
Lovely to hear from you! Are you looking to book, or do you have a question first? Tell me a little about your plans and I'll take it from there.
Offering two paths, booking or a question, lets people answer in a word and tells you which reply to send next.
Welcome back, sent by hand
Hi {name}, good to hear from you again! Is this about something new, or the order we talked about last time?
Send this yourself when you recognise the person. An automatic welcome can't tell a regular from a stranger.
Reply to a Story reply
Thanks for replying to my Story! Glad it was useful. Is there anything you'd like me to cover next?
A Story reply arrives in your DMs as a message, so you can answer straight away, with a link if it helps.
Pointing support requests elsewhere
Hi there, thanks for the DM! For anything about an existing order, our support form gets you the fastest answer: {link}. For everything else, we're right here.
Useful when a separate team handles orders. Make sure the form really is faster, or people will come back to the DMs annoyed.
Hello to a new follower, sent by hand
Hi {name}, thanks for the follow! Quick question so I can post more of what you like: what made you hit follow?
Send it yourself from the app, to a few people at a time. Official tools can't message new followers automatically, and a bulk version would read like spam anyway.
Bilingual hello in English and Hindi
Namaste, and thanks for messaging us! Aap Hindi mein bhi likh sakte hain. This is an automatic reply, and someone will answer you here by {time}.
The second line means “you can also write in Hindi”. Swap in whichever language your customers use, checked by a native speaker.
Set it up in DMFast
Comment START on a pinned welcome post
Someone comments on your post
STARTPublic reply under their comment
Welcome aboard! Check your DMs 👋First DM (plain text)
Hi, and welcome! This message is automatic, sent because you commented START. I've picked the posts that help new people most. Shall I send them here? Reply YES.Yes pleaseStart here: our most useful postsStart hereA pinned post gives new followers one obvious thing to do. Instagram allows only this one message until they answer, so it says it's automatic, asks a yes-or-no question and saves the link for the card that follows their YES.
Pick a post
Connect your Instagram account, then choose the post or Reel it runs on, or every post.
Set the word: START
Anyone who comments START 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
- No official tool can DM people because they followed you. Meta's API only lets an account answer someone who messaged it, commented, or replied to or mentioned it in a Story.
- A welcome that runs on its own has to say it's automated, under Meta's policy for automated chats.
- After someone messages you, automated replies can follow for 24 hours from their latest message, and each new message from them restarts the clock.
- A welcome sent after a comment is a single private reply, no later than 7 days after the comment was made, and nothing more can follow until they answer.
- Messages through Meta's API can only come from professional accounts, meaning Business and Creator accounts.
Sources
Two ways to send a welcome automatically
To anyone who messages you
Set up a reply to every new DM. In DMFast that's a DM auto-reply with no keyword: it answers any message, but each person at most once a day, so someone chatting with you all afternoon gets one welcome, not ten. Keyword replies come first, so a message that says PRICE still gets your price answer instead of the hello.
If your account is connected to Meta Business Suite, its instant reply can greet new Instagram DMs too, and Instagram's FAQs show people a few questions they can tap when they start a chat.
To anyone who comments a word
Pin a short “new here?” post to the top of your profile and ask people to comment START. Each comment gets one private reply that says hello and asks whether they'd like your best posts; their YES brings a card linking to a page that collects them, such as your link-in-bio page. It's the nearest thing to a welcome DM for new followers, because they ask for it.
Tip: Every template on this page works by hand. To run one automatically, keep or add a line saying it's automatic.
What people ask right after the welcome
The welcome gets the chat going, and the next message is usually one of a handful of questions. Have the answers ready, typed out or set up as keyword replies.
- “How much is it?” Give the actual price or link the full list, never “DM for price”: they already did.
- “Is it available?” Yes or no first, details after.
- “Are you a bot?” Be straight about it, and say when a person will reply.
- “Can I book?” Send the booking link, or ask which day suits them.
- “Where are you?” One line with the city or area, plus a map link.
Mistakes that make a welcome feel cold
- Opening with a sales pitch. Nobody messaged you to hear about this week's discount.
- Asking for an email address before they've said what they want.
- Pretending to be a person. If the hello is automatic, say so: Meta requires it, and people take it better than finding out later.
- Choosing a comment keyword people type anyway, like HI or LOVE. Ordinary comments would set it off.
- Writing more than three short lines. On a phone, the question at the end slips out of view.
- Leaving the welcome unchanged for months. When your hours, prices or links change, the hello has to change with them.
How to tell if your welcome works
Count replies, not sends. If most people never answer the welcome, the question at the end is too vague: “What brings you here today?” gives them something to say, while “Let me know if you need anything” lets them say nothing.
Then check how long people wait between the automatic hello and the first human reply. The welcome promised a time. If the team often misses it, change the promise rather than leave people waiting.
Questions people ask
Can I send an automatic welcome DM to new followers on Instagram?
No. Every official tool works through Meta's API, and it has no way to message someone because they followed you: an account can only answer people who started a conversation or left a comment. A pinned post with a comment keyword is the usual workaround.
Will people get the welcome every time they message me?
Not with DMFast. A DM auto-reply with no keyword answers each person at most once a day, however many messages they send. Still, write it so it reads well to someone who has messaged you before.
Does a welcome message need to say it's automated?
If it runs automatically, yes. Meta's policy for the Messenger Platform and IG Messaging API requires automated chats to disclose that they're automated. One plain line, like “This first reply is automatic”, is enough.
What keyword should a welcome post use?
One short word people wouldn't type by accident, such as START. Keep it the same on every welcome post and write it in capitals in the caption so nobody has to guess the spelling.
Can a welcome message include a link?
If they messaged you first, yes; one link is plenty. If the welcome is your reply to a comment, keep it to a question. That private reply is the only message you can send until they answer, and the link can follow once they do.
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Send these messages automatically
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