Instagram and Facebook Auto Replies & DMs
Set comment keywords, public replies and DMs, then choose whether to handle existing comments or only new ones.
Learn how to review post comments and configure automated replies and direct messages.
You can set up a post so that people who comment “outline” receive your course details. New matching comments are handled without individual approval. Before enabling it, make sure the public reply, DM and links are ready to send.
This guide covers Instagram and Facebook posts in standard ViralArc. Connect the account first and check that your plan supports the features you need. Link analytics and lead imports may require additional feature access.
Choose the post and trigger
- Switch to the Instagram or Facebook account you want to use.
- Open Post Management and select your course introduction post.
- Select “Auto Reply & DM” in the comments section.
- Choose “a specific word or words” and add “outline”. Choose “any comment” only if you intend to handle every comment.
Keywords use a text-contains match. Any one of several keywords can trigger a reply, and letter case does not matter. With “outline”, “Please send the outline” matches; “Can I see the syllabus?” does not match just because it means something similar. Make sure the keyword has been added to the list. Without valid keywords, comment text is not restricted.
Write the public reply and DM
For a course outline, you could use:
| Setting | Example |
|---|---|
| Public reply | We’ll send the outline by DM. Please check your messages. |
| DM text | Here’s the course outline, including the units and who the course is for. Use the link below to read it. |
| Link | Enter the actual URL for your course outline. |
| Button label | View course outline |
Enter the public reply text. If you add multiple templates, the system chooses one at random. Each template should work on its own; they are not sent as a sequence.
Enable the DM, write its text, then add links and button labels. You can add up to three links; do not add the same URL twice. Turn the DM off if you only need a public reply.
Use the comments and DM previews to check the content. A preview sends nothing and does not guarantee delivery. Public replies and DMs can have different delivery outcomes, so avoid promising in the public reply that the DM has already arrived.
Decide whether to reply to existing comments
To handle only comments made after setup:
- Enable “auto-reply to future comments”.
- Turn off “Also reply to matching existing comments”.
- Review the public reply and DM, save, and confirm the automatic sending warning.
To handle existing comments too, enable that option and check the displayed count before confirming. This executes replies; it does not just save drafts. The count reflects loaded, pending comments that match the conditions, not necessarily all comments on the post.
For a one-time reply, turn future auto replies off and use the action for current comments only. Some entry points offer ongoing automation only. If the existing-comments option is absent, return to Post Management.
Collect leads and check link analytics
To collect future matching commenters, enable “Add to a lead list” and choose a list or create “Course Enquiries”. This collects leads as the automation handles comments. Saving does not import everyone who has commented on the post. To collect existing commenters, use the separate “List” import in the comments section.
To track outline-link opens, enable the DM and add a link, then turn on “Enable link analytics”. If the option is unavailable, check your plan’s feature access.
After setting up tracked links, open “Link analytics” on the post to see human clicks, total accesses and bot accesses. Total accesses are not a count of people, and estimated unique visitors are not an exact headcount. Opening a link does not mean someone enrolled. These figures measure link access, not DM read receipts.
Edit, pause or reuse settings
Open “Auto Reply & DM” on the same post to edit and update it. Check the existing-comments option again before saving so that a wording change does not also trigger a batch of replies.
Use “Pause Auto Reply” to stop subsequent automatic replies, or manage its status in the automation overview. Pausing does not retract comments or DMs already sent.
On a post with active automation, “Copy automation settings” applies the settings to other eligible posts on the current account. Confirming the copy activates automation on those posts. Check that the outline link, wording and lead list suit every target first.
To review and change the settings before applying them, use “Import automation settings” on the target post and select a source post with active automation. This opens the settings in the editor for you to review and save.
Check the result
After setup, ask another account to leave a new matching comment. Check the public reply, DM, link and target lead list. Do not test only by commenting from the connected account itself; its own comments are skipped.
If the public reply succeeds but the DM fails, check the individual result before rerunning the batch. If nothing happens, check the account connection, active status, target post, keyword match, credits and feature access. A successful save means the settings were saved, not that every reply and DM was sent.
For support, include the account name, post link, test comment, time and any error message.