DelightChat: Powerful WhatsApp Marketing & Customer Support Software
✓  Omnichannel Inbox: WhatsApp, IG, FB, Email & Live Chat
✓  Official WhatsApp Business API,  Green Tick
✓  Send Promotional WhatsApp Broadcasts

Instagram DM Automation in 2024: How-to Guide

Instagram as a sales & customer service channel for brands has grown leaps and bounds in the past few years. But it also comes with its fair share of problems. 

Instagram is predominantly a place for instant gratification. Whether you’re just giggling off watching funny dog reels or excited to check out the latest skincare trends, the feeling is instant. The same is applicable for customer support on Instagram.

Why do brands need to implement Instagram auto DM?

If a customer has left a DM asking for more information on your natural hair oil, they expect you to reply to it within minutes (if not seconds). This is not always possible for obvious reasons – the agent isn’t active, it’s outside work hours, or they’re simply responding to other messages. 

It might seem scary but there’s a way out. You guessed it – automated Instagram DM. Let’s explore this a bit further. 

The advantages of Instagram DM automation

Businesses that reply fast fare better on Instagram than the ones that don’t. This is an unequivocal truth. So, to be a consumer favorite, you ought to be more active on the platform. 

You can do that in two ways:

1) You can hire an army of support agents whose only job would be to instantly reply to every DM or comment through your IG handle. Needless to say, this is extremely expensive and a tad inefficient.

2) You can sign-up with DelightChat to create rules that function as an Instagram auto responder for direct messages. If you want to be productive, efficient, and always delight your customers, this is the path forward.

By setting up an auto-reply for Instagram messages, your customers always receive a response instantly. They don’t need to wait for hours before your agent can cater to their queries. The best part? This works even when you & your team are not actively replying to DMs, especially if it’s after your work hours.

That’s not all. With DelightChat, you can set up rules to detect keywords within your customer’s messages and reply with a customized & relevant message.

Goes without saying, this makes the customer happy & builds trust in your brand because even when you’re using automations, your messages are still “human”.

How to set up an automated Instagram DM on DelightChat

It’s super simple to set up Instagram Comment auto-replies with the help of DelightChat. 

1. Go to [Automation Rules] from the Settings menu and click [+New Rule].

2. Next, enter the name of the rule and switch the rule on.

3. Under “When”, select your brand’s Instagram account, and then on the second drop-down, select “New ticket created”.

4. Select the conditions when the automation should run. In our case, we’ll use the “Message Body” > “Contains” > Enter: [relevant keywords]

5. Next, scroll further and select “Auto Reply” from the dropdown under THEN. 

6. Here you can create a response for the customer that will be automatically be sent out every time somebody DM’s you.

It’s as simple as that.

DelightChat also let's you manually reply to a message on Instagram and much more!

Sample templates for Instagram DM auto-replies

You now know the importance of Instagram DM automation and how to set it up using DelightChat for free. Let’s look at some templates that our customers use daily:

1. Asking for Product Price

Reply: “Hey there, thanks for reaching out. You can check the pricing for the product on our website. Here’s the link: [yourbrand.com/product]”

2. Asking for a Discount

Reply 1: “Hey there, thanks for reaching out. Unfortunately, we’re not running discounts right now. If you have any questions regarding the product and why it’s priced as it is, I’d be happy to answer your questions.” 

Reply 2: “Hey there, thanks for reaching out. Here’s a [X%] discount code: [Add Discount Code]. This is a one-time special discount code created for you. :) Please add it during checkout.” 

3. Product Complaints

Reply: “Hey there, thanks for contacting us. We’re extremely sorry about the inconvenience. We’re on it and we’ll get back to you with a resolution within [X] hours. Thank you for your patience!” 

4. Order Tracking (“Where’s my order?”)

Reply: “Hey there, thanks for contacting us. Rest assured, your order will be delivered within the ETA. You can also track your order at this link: [order tracking link].”

Instagram DMs is quickly becoming one of the top channels for Shopify brands to grow their sales, build rapport with the customer and eventually turn them into repeat customers & brand promoters.

If your brand is still on the edge with Instagram DMs, trust me, it is well worth your time and effort.

Learn more about DelightChat's powerful features including our comprehensive guide on Instagram Comment to DM Automation. Sign-up today!

Streamline Customer Support & Boost Revenues with DelightChat
Easily manage all your customer interactions - WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, Emails, & Live Chat - from one efficient omnichannel inbox.

Increase your sales with powerful WhatsApp Marketing: Promotional Broadcasts, Abandoned Cart Recovery, advanced Customer Segments and more, all through the Official API.

Continue reading