By business · Creative work

Instagram auto-replies for videographers

Videographers can use Instagram DM automation to send a rate card, a free LUT or a brief template to anyone who comments or messages a word such as RATES, LUT or BRIEF. It also sorts the two crowds a video account attracts, fellow filmmakers and paying clients, so each gets the right reply while you're filming or deep in an edit.

Updated 6 October 2026

Start free See the set-ups

Comment words for videographers

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

RATES: Your rate card: half-day and full-day rates, how editing time is charged, how many rounds of changes are included and what costs extra.
REELS: A monthly short-video package for businesses: shoot days, the number of edits, captions, turnaround and the minimum term.
BRIEF: A one-page brief template: the goal, the audience, where the video will run, must-have shots and the deadline.
LUT: A free .cube LUT from the grade in your Reel, with a note on which log profiles it was built for.
GEAR: Your kit list: bodies, lenses, audio, lights and gimbal, plus what you'd buy first on a small budget.
DRONE: Aerial add-on details: where you can legally fly, the permissions you arrange and what happens if wind grounds the drone on the day.
HIGHLIGHT: How your wedding films are priced: highlight film length, full ceremony and speeches edits, music and delivery time.

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.

Free LUT from a colour-grading Reel
Someone comments on your post
LUT
Public reply under their comment
LUT's in your inbox 🎞️
First DM (plain text)
Thanks for watching the grade. The LUT is a free .cube file that works in Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve and Final Cut Pro. Which camera and log profile do you shoot on? Reply and I'll send the version built for it.Yes pleaseFree film-look LUTDownload the LUT
Grading Reels draw other filmmakers, who rarely hire you but do buy LUT packs, courses and mentoring calls. The camera question matters, because a LUT built for one log profile looks wrong on footage shot in another, and it opens a conversation about their kit.
Rate card for “how much for a video?” messages
RATESThanks for the message. What's the video for: a brand, an event, a wedding or something else? The rate card below explains day rates, how editing is charged and how many rounds of changes are included.Rates and what's includedSee the rate card
“How much for a video?” has no one-line answer, because the cost depends on shoot days and edit time. The card sets a realistic range before anyone books a call, and the kind of project in their reply tells you which examples to send next. PRICE, QUOTE and COST can share this auto-reply.
Monthly Reels package from an availability Story
Replied to your story
REELSGood timing, there are two spots left for next month. What does your business sell, and how many videos a month are you hoping for? The page below explains the package: one shoot day, the number of edits, captions and how fast they arrive.Monthly Reels for businessesSee the package
Local businesses want a steady supply of short videos but rarely know what goes into one. A Story offering two open spots next month gets replies from owners who already watch your work, and their answers show whether they need four videos a month or twelve.
Brief template from a pre-production Reel
Someone comments on your post
BRIEF
Public reply under their comment
The template is waiting in your DMs
First DM (plain text)
Thanks for the comment. The template covers the goal, the audience, where the video will run, the must-have shots and the deadline. Is it for your own business or for a client you work with? Reply and I'll send it over.Yes pleaseVideo brief templateGet the template
Marketing managers and agency producers comment on posts like this, and they tend to commission more than one video. A brand that fills in your template arrives with a goal and a deadline, which shortens the first call. Turn on email capture, since launch videos are often planned months ahead.

Freebies worth commenting for

A free .cube LUT with notes on the log profiles it suits
A one-page video brief for brands: goal, audience, platforms, must-have shots and deadline
A shot list template for a 30-second product video
An aspect-ratio cheat sheet for Reels, feed posts, Stories and YouTube, with text-safe areas
A guide for staff who film clips between shoots: light, sound and keeping the phone upright
A kit list for a one-person crew, with what to buy first on a small budget
A questionnaire for couples planning a wedding film: vows, speeches and moments they can't miss
An event-filming checklist for organisers: power, audio feeds, room access and stage lighting
A plain-English guide for clients on licensed music: what can go under a brand video and what can't

What people ask a videographer, and what to send

Video enquiries are vaguer than most. People know they want “a video” but not how long it should be, where it will run or what it costs, so the first reply has to explain a little as well as answer.

They ask	Send automatically	Answer yourself when
How much for a video?	RATES: day rates, edit time and rounds of changes	They give you a budget and ask what it covers
How soon can we have it?	Your usual turnaround for each kind of project	There's a launch or an event date that can't move
Can we use this song?	A short note on licensed music	Always: the answer depends on where the video will run
Do we get the raw footage?	Your policy on raw files, from the rate card	They plan to hand the footage to another editor
Can you fly a drone at our venue?	DRONE: where you can fly and what you arrange	It's near an airport, over a crowd or in a city centre
Can you make Reels for us every month?	The REELS package	They also want you to post for them and manage the account

Tip: State the number of revision rounds on the RATES card. Open-ended changes are a common way for a fixed-price video to lose money, and the conversation is easier before the shoot than after the first draft.

Grading posts bring filmmakers; results posts bring clients

Gear and grading posts tend to collect the most comments, mainly from people who make videos themselves. Behind-the-scenes and results posts collect fewer, from people with budgets. Both are worth automating, with different words.

Post	Who usually comments	Word
Split screen of flat log footage and the final grade	Other filmmakers	LUT
Kit flat-lay before a shoot	Other filmmakers and beginners	GEAR
Kitchen-table set-up next to the finished product ad	Small brands and marketers	BRIEF
What a day rate covers: travel, set-up, filming, editing, changes	Businesses collecting quotes	RATES
A 30-second wedding highlight, shared with the couple's permission	Engaged couples	HIGHLIGHT
Aerial footage of a venue you were cleared to fly at	Venues, couples and event organisers	DRONE

Tip: Some words misfire under filmmaking posts. VIDEO and EDIT turn up in everyday comments like “this edit is unreal”, REELS in “your reels are so good”, and RATES in “what frame rates do you use?”. Keep REELS for Stories and RATES for DMs and client-facing posts.

From enquiry to delivered film

RATES, REELS or BRIEF sends the card, which links to your enquiry form or booking page.
A short call fixes the deliverables: lengths, formats, deadlines and rounds of changes.
The quote, contract and deposit request go by email, where the client's team can see them.
Drafts go through your review tool or a private link by email. Automated Instagram messages stop 24 hours after the client's last message, so a DM thread is a poor home for a two-week review.
A tracked link on the RATES card shows which posts lead to enquiries rather than just views.

Filming from India? The DMFast store can sell LUT packs as digital products, hand out a free LUT in exchange for an email and phone number, and take bookings for paid 1-on-1 calls such as an edit review, with payments through Razorpay and no DMFast fee on sales.

Music, drones and who owns the footage

Music: Instagram's main music library is licensed for personal, non-commercial use, and business accounts are usually limited to Meta's Sound Collection. A client's ad or website needs a track licensed for that use, so put library music in the quote.
Drones: paid flights need the right paperwork. In the US that means a Part 107 certificate from the FAA, other countries have their own registration rules, and many venues ban drones outright. US national parks don't allow launching one without written permission.
Ownership: India's Copyright Act gives the copyright in a commissioned film to the client who paid for it unless an agreement says otherwise. Defaults differ elsewhere, so put ownership and usage in every contract.
Releases and embargoes: get written consent from anyone featured in brand work, and hold a client's video until they've launched it. Switch the keyword on only after they've posted.
Meta's limits: one private reply per comment, available for 7 days. A grading Reel that takes off can reach Instagram's cap of 750 private replies an hour; DMFast pauses at 700 and sends the rest afterwards.

Messages to copy

Questions people ask

Most of my comments come from other filmmakers. Is automation still worth it?

Yes, if you sell to them. LUT packs, courses and mentoring calls sell to filmmakers, and LUT or GEAR start those conversations. For client work, put RATES and BRIEF on behind-the-scenes and results posts, where commenters are more likely to have a budget.

Does it reply on YouTube or TikTok?

No. DMFast works with Instagram professional accounts and Facebook Pages only. If your long films live on YouTube, post a cut-down as a Reel with the word in the caption, and send people to the full film from the card.

I make Reels for clients. Can I run their auto-replies too?

If you can connect their Instagram professional account, yes. The Pro plan covers 3 accounts and the Business plan covers 10 with 5 seats, so a small studio can manage keywords for its monthly clients in one place.

Can AI replies quote a price for a custom project?

Only from what you've written. AI replies, on the Growth and Business plans, use nothing but your business information, so they can share your day rate and usual turnaround but won't invent a quote. When the answer isn't there, they say you'll reply yourself.

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