DM Inbox

8.1When to use it

8.2Before you start

• Your Instagram account must be connected. (Either Instagram login or Facebook login)
• Only DMs received after you connected your account to Conma are shown. Right after connecting, the conversation list may be empty. That's normal.
• Under Instagram's policy, you can reply only to conversations the other person started.
• 'Allow access to messages' must be turned on in the Instagram app for replies to be sent. If your replies aren't being sent, check how to turn it on.

8.3Understanding the screen

DM inbox screen

DM inbox conversation list

Tabs and status buttons above the list

Use the tabs above the list to choose which conversations to view.

Use the filter button next to the tabs to show only labeled conversations, and the magnifier to find a conversation. The AI chatbot · live translation status is shown at the top right.

DM inbox header

• Times are shown as time elapsed: Just now, 12 min ago, 3 days ago, and for older ones a date like Aug 2.
• Each row shows the name and a preview of the last message. You can see the username at the top when you open the conversation.
• Messages you sent start with 'You:' in the preview, and automatically sent messages are labeled with the feature name, like 'Auto DM:' · 'Winner notice:'.

List preview prefixes

• Unread conversations get a dot badge, which disappears as soon as you open the conversation. This read status only applies inside Conma. Nothing changes on Instagram.

8.4Step-by-step guide

1

Reading conversations

Click a conversation to see its messages on the right, in time order.

Divider where the date changes

• Each bubble shows the time it was sent, and a date divider appears where the date changes.

Bubbles sent by people vs. sent automatically

• Replies written by people appear in blue bubbles, and automatically sent messages appear in white bubbles with a border. Above each white bubble, you'll see which feature sent it, like Auto DM · Winner notice. DMs sent by Auto DM and Winner notice all appear in the same conversation.

No.	Bubble	How to tell them apart
1	Reply sent by a person	Blue bubble. For translated replies, the sentence you wrote is shown on top, with the translated sentence that was sent in the other person's language below it
2	Automatically sent message	White bubble with a border. The name of the feature that sent it, like 'Auto DM', is shown at the top

Conversation screen

When photos or stories don't show

They're shown as 'Photo unavailable' or 'Story unavailable'. There are three possible reasons.

Reason	Can I see it again?
The image link from Instagram has expired over time	You can still see photos in Instagram DMs
The original story disappears after 24 hours	It can't be viewed anywhere
The other person deleted the message	It can't be viewed

The screen can't tell these three apart, because Instagram doesn't provide that information. If it's a photo, check Instagram DMs first.

2

Sending replies

Sent label next to a sent message

Just type in the input box below and send. Sent messages are marked 'Sent', which changes to 'Read' once the other person reads it.

Remaining reply window bar

There's a time limit for replying. Under Instagram's policy, you can only reply within 7 days of the other person's last message. The bar above the input box shows the time left, and its color changes when time is running out.

Conversation past the reply window

Once the window ends, only the send button is disabled. Anything you were typing stays. When the other person sends a new message, the window starts again. If your reply won't send, check this bar first.

• You can send up to 1,000 characters at a time.
• If sending fails, a failure mark appears in place along with 'Retry' · Delete. It stays even after you refresh.
• Pasting photos isn't supported.

You can't edit or delete sent messages in Conma, because Instagram doesn't offer that feature. If you sent something by mistake, unsend it in the Instagram app.

3

Finding conversations

Type two or more characters in the search bar at the top to start searching. It searches names · usernames · message content together.

• If one message matches, you'll see a snippet around it. Click it to jump straight to that message.
• If several match, they're grouped as 'N matching messages'. On PC, expand them in the list. On mobile, step through them one by one using the bar above the chat.

DM search results

8.5Viewing contact info (Profile tab)

When you open a conversation, the Profile tab on the right shows the other person's info. Their name · username · follower count and whether you follow each other appear at the top, and below that you can add info shared with your team.

DM conversation screen and Profile tab on the right

You can also add or remove labels with the label button at the top of the conversation, and edit or delete labels in 'Manage labels'. The AI chatbot doesn't reply to people labeled Blacklist. The star button adds the conversation to your favorites.

Label list at the top of the conversation

8.6Saved replies

Save replies you use again and again, like "Shipping takes 2–3 days", and reuse them. Open the list from the Saved replies tab on the right or the bookmark button to the left of the input box.

Bookmark button to the left of the input box

• Tap a reply in the list and it's entered into the input box as is. You can edit it before sending.
• It's the same list as the saved replies on the Comments screen. Your workspace teammates share it.
• To learn how to create and edit replies and group them by type, see 'Saved replies' in the Comments chapter. You can create up to 100 replies and 100 types.

8.7Real-time translation

Read DMs written in other languages in your own language, and send your replies translated into the other person's language. To learn how to turn it on, read incoming messages, send translated replies, and how credits work, see the Real-time translation chapter.

8.8When the AI chatbot is replying

Turn on the AI chatbot with the AI chatbot button above the inbox, and it replies to inquiry DMs first. Conversations the chatbot handles also land in this inbox, so you can see here how far the chatbot got and where a person needs to take over.

• 'AI chatbot replying' appears before the preview in the conversation list. It's the same spot used for messages sent as auto DMs or winner notices.

How chatbot conversations appear in the list

• When the chatbot can't find an answer and ends with a handoff message, the conversation gets a 'Needs review' badge in the list. Because the last message is the chatbot's handoff message, the conversation doesn't show up in the 'Needs reply' tab, so look for this badge instead. Unlike the unread dot, it doesn't go away when you open the conversation. It only goes away once a person replies. Use it to pick which conversations to handle first.
• When you reply yourself, the chatbot pauses in that conversation. 'You replied, so the chatbot is paused until (time)' appears above the conversation, and the chatbot won't step in while a person is handling it.
• To turn chatbot replies back on, tap 'Resume chatbot' next to that notice. It changes to 'The chatbot will reply in this conversation from now on'.

8.9Good to know

Which DMs will I see? You'll see DMs received after you connected your Instagram account to Conma. Past conversations from before you connected aren't imported. Your conversation list may be empty right after connecting. That's normal.

Conma keeps messages for 6 months. Older messages are automatically deleted from Conma. The longer data is kept, the greater the damage if it leaks, so we only keep it as long as needed.

You can't delete or hide conversations in Conma. Instagram conversations themselves can't be deleted, so Conma doesn't offer this feature either.

8.10Wrapping up

You can receive and reply to DMs from your connected accounts in Conma without opening the Instagram app. Save replies you use often as saved replies, and next time just pick them from the list.

To handle inquiries automatically, even at night and on weekends, turn on the AI chatbot.