Instagram cold DM scripts that get replies (10,677 DMs analyzed)

Most advice on cold DMs is opinion. We looked at what actually happened instead: 10,677 first messages sent through Nousify.ai campaigns, from 23 accounts, and which of them got a reply. This article covers what the numbers show, and gives you scripts built on them.

What the data shows

Across all 10,677 messages, 9.5% got a reply. That is the baseline. Some kinds of message did clearly better than that, and some did clearly worse.

• Giving beats asking. Messages that offered something free, such as a list, an audit or a resource, got 11.9%. Messages that asked for a call straight away got 5.4%, less than half.
• Emojis did not help. Messages with an emoji got 5.0%, about half the average. In a first message from a stranger they seem to read as a template.
• Almost nobody sends a link, and that is right. Only 5 of the 10,677 first messages contained one. Earn the reply first.
• Length matters less than people think. Messages of 46 to 70 words got 11.4%, and 16 to 30 words got 7.8%. A longer message that says something specific did better than a short generic one.

The structure that works

The messages that get replies tend to have three parts, in this order.

1. Show you know who they are. One line about something specific: their business, a post, a comment they left.
2. Give or offer something. A free resource, a useful observation, or a relevant result. This is the part that earns the reply.
3. Ask one small question. Easy to answer in a word. Not "can we get on a call".

Script 1: the free offer

The best performing pattern in our data. You offer something useful before asking for anything.

"Hey Sarah, saw your comment on Alex's post about finding clients, and it looks like you run a social media agency for dentists. I put together a list of 100 dental practices on Instagram that are actively posting but have no ads running. Want me to send it over?"

Why it works: the first half proves you looked at her, the offer is specific to her business, and the question takes one word to answer.

Script 2: the observation

For when you have nothing to give away. You point out something true about their business that they will care about.

"Hi Marcus, your reels on kitchen remodels are getting solid reach, but the link in your bio goes to a homepage with no way to book. Is that on purpose, or just something you have not got round to?"

Why it works: it is about them, it is specific enough that it could not have been sent to anyone else, and it invites a reply without selling.

Script 3: the direct pitch

Shorter, and honest about why you are writing. It gets fewer replies, but the ones you get are from people who are interested.

"Hey Priya, I help online coaches fill their calendar using Instagram outreach, without ads. I work with a few coaches in the fitness space. Is getting more booked calls something you are working on right now?"

Script 4: the follow-up

Most replies do not come from the first message. A single follow-up a few days later, with something new in it, is worth sending.

"Hey Sarah, I know DMs get buried. I still have that list of dental practices if it is useful. No worries if not."

Keep it short, give them an easy way out, and stop there if there is no answer. Three unanswered messages in a row gets you reported.

What to avoid in a first message

• Asking for a call. It got about half the average reply rate in our data.
• Links. They look like spam, and Instagram treats them that way from new contacts.
• A greeting with nothing after it. "Hey" on its own makes the other person do the work.
• Emojis in bulk. One is a risk, several is a template.
• Your whole pitch. The first message has one job, which is to get a reply.
• The same text for everyone. Identical messages are easy for both people and Instagram to spot.

How to write a personal message for every lead

The scripts above only work when the first line is true for the person reading it. Writing that by hand takes a few minutes per lead, which is why most outreach falls back on templates.

Nousify.ai writes it for you. It reads each lead's profile, and the comment and post they came from, and writes an opener for that one person in the style you choose. You give it the structure, for example "greet them by first name, one line about what they do, then offer the free list", and it fills in the specifics for every lead. Generate a few examples before you launch, and edit the prompt until they sound like you.