Setting up a comment-to-DM rule takes three minutes. Deciding what to offer is the part that takes people weeks, and it is the part that determines whether anything happens.
Below are fifteen campaign structures, each with the hook, the keyword, the message and the follow-up question. Adapt them; do not copy them word for word, because the specifics are what make them work.
Every one assumes the mechanic covered in how comment-to-DM works.
Creators and digital products
1. The process breakdown
Hook: "This reel took 40 minutes to edit. Here's the exact timeline."
Keyword: TIMELINE
DM: The project file or a screenshot of the editing timeline.
Follow-up: "What are you editing in at the moment?"
Works because the artefact is specific and visibly real.
2. The tool stack
Hook: "Everything I use to run this account, nothing sponsored."
Keyword: STACK
DM: A linked list of tools.
Follow-up: "Anything you're trying to replace right now?"
3. The preset or template drop
Hook: "This is the preset on every photo in my last 12 posts."
Keyword: PRESET
DM: The download, gated on a follow if the preset is genuinely good.
4. The mistake post
Hook: "Three things I got wrong in my first year that cost me money."
Keyword: LESSONS
DM: A longer written breakdown.
Follow-up: "Which of the three is closest to where you are?"
That question segments your audience in one tap.
5. The waitlist
Hook: "Doors open on the 14th. 30 places."
Keyword: WAITLIST
DM: Confirmation plus the exact date and time.
Follow-up: "Anything you want covered that you haven't seen elsewhere?"
Coaches and consultants
6. The self-audit
Hook: "Nine questions I ask before taking on a client. Score yourself."
Keyword: AUDIT
DM: The question list as a document.
Follow-up: "Which one did you score worst on?"
The strongest structure on this list for coaching. It delivers value, produces a diagnosis, and the follow-up question starts a conversation about a problem they just identified themselves.
7. The price transparency post
Hook: "What my programme costs and who it isn't for."
Keyword: PRICE
DM: The actual numbers and what is included.
Follow-up: "Does that fit what you had in mind?"
Fewer comments, far better ones. Do not gate this one behind a follow — see follow to unlock.
8. The client teardown
Hook: "A client went from X to Y in eleven weeks. Here's what we changed."
Keyword: BREAKDOWN
DM: The case study.
Follow-up: "What's the bottleneck on your side?"
9. The booking post
Hook: "Four discovery calls open this week."
Keyword: BOOK
DM: The calendar link, immediately, with no preamble.
Scarcity only works if it is true. Say four if it is four.
Ecommerce and product
10. The restock alert
Hook: "Back in stock Friday. Comment RESTOCK and I'll message you when it's live."
Keyword: RESTOCK
DM: Confirmation now, link on Friday.
Among the highest-converting structures here, because the person is pre-sold and only waiting on timing.
11. The size or fit guide
Hook: "Between sizes? Here's the actual fit chart."
Keyword: SIZES
DM: The chart plus a link to the product.
Follow-up: "What's your usual size in other brands?"
12. The bundle
Hook: "These three together are 30% less than separately."
Keyword: BUNDLE
DM: The bundle link and what is in it.
Local and service businesses
13. The price list
Hook: "Everything we do and what it costs. No 'DM for pricing'."
Keyword: PRICE
DM: The full list as a document.
Follow-up: "Whereabouts are you based?"
The follow-up qualifies for service area before anyone wastes a call. More on this in Instagram automation for small businesses.
14. The availability post
Hook: "Three slots left this month."
Keyword: SLOTS
DM: The actual dates and a booking link or number.
Include a phone number. A meaningful share of this audience would rather call.
15. The before and after
Hook: A transformation image or clip, with the job described.
Keyword: QUOTE
DM: Your pricing structure and what affects it.
Follow-up: "Roughly what size is the space?"
What the good ones have in common
A specific artefact. "Tips" is not an offer. "The nine-question audit I use with clients" is. If you cannot name the thing, people will not ask for it.
A keyword that describes the thing. AUDIT, RESTOCK, SIZES. Not YES or INFO — those collect volume and nothing else. There is a fuller list in 51 trigger words.
Delivery before any ask. Send the thing, then ask the question. Reversing that order reads as a bait-and-switch.
One follow-up question, answerable in a line. This is the single highest-leverage element and the one most people omit. It converts a delivery into a conversation and tells you who is worth your time.
An offer matched to the surface. Reels reach strangers, so lead with something introductory. Stories reach your warmest audience, so use them for time-limited things — see Reels + comment-to-DM and story reply automation.
Before you run one
Comment your own keyword from a second account and check the DM arrives, reads correctly, and the link works. The most common campaign failure is not the tool — it is an expired link or a keyword nobody can spell.
Then watch what people actually type. They will use words you did not predict, and adding those to the same rule usually recovers more leads than any other single change.