By business · Online shops and brands

Instagram auto-replies for thrift stores

Thrift selling runs on one-of-one pieces: someone comments MINE, someone else asks the measurements, and by the time you reply the jacket may be gone. Comment-to-DM handles claims, measurements and sell-to-us enquiries fast. Here are the words, four set-ups and what to watch with second-hand stock.

Updated 6 October 2026

Start free See the set-ups

Comment words for thrift and resale shops

Ask people to comment one word in your caption or video. Each word sends something different.

MINE: A claim on a single piece from a drop post, followed by the hold time and how to pay before it goes back on the rail.
MEASURE: Flat measurements for the piece in the post: pit to pit, length and sleeve, plus how to compare them with a favourite item at home.
DROP: The day and time of your next weekly upload, with a reminder that the best pieces go in the first hour.
SELL: How to sell you clothes: what you buy, what you decline, how payment works and where to send photos.
BUNDLE: Your bundle deal, such as three pieces for a set price, with how to pick them and one postage charge.
CONDITION: A plain note on how you grade pieces, from like new to flawed, and where the flaws are in the item they asked about.
WANT: A request form for something specific, such as a vintage denim jacket in a medium, so you can message them when one arrives.
SHOP: Your store address, opening hours and where to park, for people who want to browse in person.

4 set-ups to try

Each one shows the conversation it creates. After a comment, the first DM is plain text, as Meta requires, and the link follows once they answer.

Claim a piece from a drop post
Someone comments on your post
MINE
Public reply under their comment
Yours for now! Check your DMs to pay 🛍️
First DM (plain text)
Nice find, it's being held for you. Can you pay in the next 30 minutes, and which country is it going to? Reply and I'll send the payment steps and the postage.Yes pleasePay for your piecePay now
Every item is unique, so the first claim matters. Telling people the hold time in the first message means unpaid claims go back on sale quickly, and asking for the country gives them a real postage total.
Measurements on a try-on Reel
Someone comments on your post
MEASURE
Public reply under their comment
Measurements on their way 📏
First DM (plain text)
Good idea to check. Which piece is it, and what are the measurements of a similar item you already own and like? Reply and I'll compare them with this one.Yes pleaseHow to compare measurementsSee the guide
Vintage and second-hand sizes mean little, because labels vary by decade and brand. Flat measurements settle fit, and asking for a favourite item turns a chart into a useful answer.
Sell-to-us enquiries from DMs
SELLThanks for thinking of us. What are you hoping to sell, roughly how many pieces, and are they from a brand or era in particular? Reply and I'll explain what we buy and how we pay.Selling to us: what we buySee how it works
Stock is your supply chain, and sellers message all week. A set reply tells them what you take before they send fifty photos, and what they answer tells you whether it is worth your time.
Weekly drop reminder from a Story
Replied to your story
DROPYou're on the list for Thursday's drop. Is there a size or type of piece you look for? Reply and I'll make a note, and send the schedule for the next few weeks.Drop scheduleSee the schedule
A shop with a regular upload day trains people to turn up. Their answer on size and type shows what to hunt for when you source, and the Story reply means the schedule can arrive straight away.

Freebies worth commenting for

A guide to measuring your own clothes flat and finding your numbers, with a space to note them down
A decade-by-decade sizing note: why a 1980s medium and a 2020s medium are different
A checklist for inspecting second-hand clothing: seams, zips, underarms, smells and linings
A care sheet for washing wool, denim, silk and leather found second-hand
A guide to what we buy: brands, eras, condition and how payout works
A packing tip sheet for selling to a resale shop: how to photograph, fold and describe pieces
A bundle builder: how our three-piece offer works and how to pick pieces that go together
A thrifting guide to spotting well-made pieces in fabric and stitching, with no brand knowledge needed

What people ask a resale shop in DMs

Thrift DMs are quick, competitive and about one item. The speed at which you answer decides who gets the piece, so the repeating questions are best answered automatically.

They ask	Send automatically	Answer yourself when
Is this still available?	A pointer to the live shop page, if you keep one	It is a one-off piece and you must check the rail first
What are the measurements?	The MEASURE guide, after asking for a comparison item	They ask about a flaw or need a specific measurement you have not taken
Can you hold it till Friday?	Your hold policy and its time limit	They are a regular and you want to make an exception
Is it real?	Your note on how you authenticate, if you do	It is a high-end piece and they want proof you have not published
Do you buy clothes?	The SELL reply with what you take	They have a large collection or something rare
Can I bundle these three?	The BUNDLE terms	The pieces are in different sizes and postage needs checking

Tip: After a piece sells, edit the post caption to say SOLD. Auto-replies cannot tell the stock has gone, so the page and caption have to tell the truth.

Posts that earn claims and measurement requests

A carousel of the week's drop on a hanger and flat, with MINE in the first line and the hold time in the caption.
A try-on Reel with the item's measurements written on the screen, plus MEASURE for the comparison guide.
A thrift haul from a house clearance or a market, with WANT so people can ask for pieces like them.
A before-and-after of a repair, a wash or a re-dye, with CONDITION for how you grade.
A Story showing the weekly upload countdown, with DROP as the reply word.
A post about what you will and will not buy, with SELL for the details.

Resale peaks at the change of season, in festival and wedding months, and when students return to town. Many shops upload on the same weekday and time every week, so pick one and put it on every post.

Running a drop from comments to parcel

Post the drop with MINE as the claim word and the hold time written in the caption. Test the word from a second account the day before.
Each claimer gets the first message, and replies with their country. The card then shows how to pay.
Mark the piece as held in your own stock record, since DMFast sends the messages but does not track stock. Edit the caption once it is paid for.
Release unpaid pieces after the hold time and repost them in the next drop or as a lone item.

From India, the DMFast store can sell digital items, such as a styling guide, and take free or paid 1-on-1 bookings, with payments through Razorpay. Clothes are physical, so the card should lead to your own checkout or payment page.

Second-hand selling rules to keep in mind

Do not call a designer piece “authentic” unless you have a way to verify it. Selling fakes can bring takedowns, account bans and legal trouble.
Describe flaws honestly in the photos and the text. Consumer rules in many countries cover items that are not as described, even when sold second-hand.
Return and cancellation rights for second-hand goods vary by country and by seller type. Check what applies before you write your returns line.
If you buy from the public, you may have record-keeping or secondhand-dealer duties in some places. This page cannot say whether yours apply.
Meta allows one private reply per comment, within 7 days of it, and Live comments can only be answered during the broadcast.
Skip words that people use in sentences. MINE is common in drops but can fire in unrelated chat, so say clearly in the caption that it is the claim word.

Messages to copy

Questions people ask

Can the auto-reply know that a piece is already sold?

No. DMFast sends the text and link you set and has no connection to your stock, so it cannot tell that a jacket has gone. Mark the caption as sold and update the message, or point the card to a shop page you keep current.

What happens when two people comment MINE on the same piece?

Both get the first message, because it fires on the word. You decide who paid first or commented first. Say in the caption how you pick, for example first comment with payment in the hold time, so nobody is surprised.

Does it work for claims during an Instagram Live?

Yes, while the Live is on. Meta only lets you reply privately to a Live comment during the broadcast, so set the word up before you start. Comments left after it ends cannot be answered with a DM.

I run a physical shop as well. Can it help with visits?

Yes. A SHOP word can send your address, hours and parking, and a DM keyword such as HOURS can do the same. DMFast answers messages and comments, so it does not check what is currently on the rails.

Will it message someone repeatedly if they comment a lot?

No. Each person is answered once a day per auto-reply, and comments that are only links or promotional spam are skipped. In a busy drop, that stops one eager buyer from filling their own inbox.

Related businesses

Words to know

More businesses

Answer every MINE comment in seconds

Pick a post and the word. DMFast replies under each comment, sends the DM and follows with your link once they answer, day and night. It can collect emails on the way. Free plan, no card.

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