Most people who receive your DM won’t act on it the first time. They’re mid-scroll, the link gets read later, later never arrives.
A follow-up message is the second attempt — and because you can attach a condition to it, it goes only to the people who need it.
Adding one
On a paid plan, click Follow up message in the add-on row. Write a text message of up to 640 characters, choose Send when, then set Minimum wait before sending to 15 or 30 minutes, or 1, 3 or 12 hours. The quick follow-up does not have separate attachment or button layouts.
The conditions
Always sends to everyone who reached this point, no condition applied.
Message
- Seen message — they opened the DM
- Not seen message — they didn’t
- Reacted with emoji — they tapped a reaction on it
Link
- Clicked the link — they tapped through
- Didn’t click the link — they didn’t
Follow
- Followed you — they followed after the DM
- Unfollowed you — they left
Choosing the right one
The condition is what separates a useful nudge from a message people mute you over. Match it to what you actually want to happen next.
Not seen message is the safest and usually the most valuable. These people never saw the first DM at all — very often it’s sitting in message requests. A follow-up here isn’t a repeat, it’s a first delivery.
Didn’t click the link is the conversion nudge. They read it and didn’t act, so the second message should give a different reason rather than repeat the first — a deadline, an objection answered, a shorter ask.
Clicked the link is the one people forget, and it’s the warmest audience you have. They’re interested. Follow up with the next step: a question, a discount, a booking link.
Reacted with emoji is a reply without words. A 🔥 on a product DM is permission to keep talking.
Followed you pairs naturally with ask to follow — thank them, or deliver the thing the follow unlocked.
Unfollowed you should almost always be left alone. Someone who just left is telling you they want fewer messages, and a follow-up argues with that.
Writing one
- Don’t resend the first message. They either didn’t see it or weren’t convinced, and a copy fixes neither.
- Keep it shorter than the first. One line and the link.
- Give an out. “If it’s not for you, no worries at all” costs you nothing and stops the nudge reading as pressure.
- One follow-up. Two is persistence, three is the block button.
A follow-up on Not seen message:
Hey — think this landed in your requests 👀 Here’s that link again in case it got buried.
Delivery and receipts
Conditions are checked after the wait. Seen and reaction conditions depend on Instagram receipts. Followed and Unfollowed require confirmed before-and-after follow status. A newer inbound reply can cancel an outdated reminder, and a paused automation or closed messaging window can stop delivery.
Test with a short supported wait and the Always condition first. Then test the condition your campaign actually needs. Scheduler availability and Instagram delivery rules still apply.