The short version
Comment-to-DM automation does two things when someone comments a keyword on your post: it replies under the comment in public, then sends that person a DM with the link or the content. It is the mechanism behind every "comment LINK and I'll send it to you" Reel. In BixoChat it is called Comment Automation; it runs on the posts you choose (or all of them, live videos included), replies with fixed text (one of several variants, picked at random) or with its own AI, and sends one DM per comment. This page covers the setup, four ready-made setups and the four rules that keep the account out of spam.
How it works
- A comment arrives on a post you selected.
- The automation checks the trigger: Contains (the word appears in the comment), Exactly (the comment is that phrase), a pattern, or Any message.
- The public reply goes out under the comment. If you wrote several variants (up to 10), one is picked at random each time.
- The DM follow-up goes to the commenter, once per comment, with the real content: a link or a code. That one DM is text, an image or a video, not all three; a button in it leads to a Direct Automation that can send more.
- Optionally the comment is liked (Auto-like), and optionally the commenter is asked to follow you first (Require a follow before replying, in the settings step): they tap a button to confirm, and the real DM follows.
The public reply is short ("Sent, check your inbox 📩"); the DM carries the value. Keeping the link out of the public thread is what makes the setup work: people have to comment to get it, and only they receive it.
Instagram sometimes pauses the replies to one post's comments for a few hours or a day or two, without saying why, while DMs keep working. Pin a comment such as "DM us 1 for the price" under the post in the meantime.
Setup in five steps
Comment Automation → new automation
Open Instagram → Comment Automation and create a new automation. Name it after the campaign.
Pick the posts
Choose the post or Reel the campaign runs on. With no post selected, the automation runs on every post, which is right for an evergreen "link" word and wrong for a product-specific price. The same word cannot serve one post and all posts at once; the panel tells you it already exists. A new post appears in the list once it is published.
Enter the trigger words
With Contains, enter the words: link, guide, send it. Each fires when it appears in the comment. For a giveaway: "i'm in", "count me in". Or choose Any message to answer everything on a launch post.
Write the public reply and the DM
For the public reply, write three to five short variants; one is picked at random each time, so the thread does not repeat one sentence a hundred times. Or let the automation's own AI write it from a goal. Then write the DM follow-up: the link, the code, the answer. One DM per comment, and it is text, an image or a video. To send more, put a button in it, such as "See products": the button's title becomes the trigger of a Direct Automation, and that one can send several images, long text or links.
Settings, switch on, test
Switch on Require a follow before replying if the campaign is for followers: before the DM, the commenter is asked to follow you and tap a button, and the DM goes out after the tap. The request goes to everyone, existing followers included, because Instagram does not let a tool check who follows you before messaging them. Switch on Auto-like if you want each comment liked. Save, switch it on, and comment the trigger word from another account to see both the reply and the DM.
Four rules that keep you out of spam
Four ready-made setups
Link from a Reel. Say in the video "comment link for the link". Trigger: link. Public reply: "Sent 📩". DM: "Hi! Here's the link you asked for: … Any questions, just reply here."
Giveaway. Say in the caption "comment I'm in to enter". Trigger: i'm in, count me in. Public reply: "You're in 🎉". DM: the rules and the announcement date. For a followers-only giveaway, switch on Require a follow before replying in the settings, and write in the rules that people must follow first and then tap the button.
Price in the comments. On the product's post only, trigger: price, how much, cost. Public reply: "Sent you the price by DM 💌". DM: the price and the next step. Keep the price in the caption too; this setup is for answering the hundreds who ask anyway, not for hiding the price.
Guide or PDF. Trigger: guide, pdf, checklist. DM: the download link and "Reply START if you'd like a few tips for your situation." Make START the trigger of a Form Builder form, and the answers land in Lead Management.
Comment automation versus DM automation
A Comment Automation reacts to comments on posts and can follow up with one DM. A Direct Automation reacts to DMs and story replies. They work together: the comment brings the person into the DM, and the Direct Automations answer what they ask next. Trigger words and example messages for the DM side are in Instagram auto reply: three ways, with examples; the DM side itself is explained in Instagram DM automation.