Reply to Keywords Meta Ads Feature

Some advertisers are seeing a new Conversations box for “Reply to Keywords” when creating an ad.

Let’s take a closer look at what this is and how you might use it…

What Is It?

Meta says that you can use this feature to “save time by automatically sending a private message when people comment with a keyword.” Click the button to “Turn On” and you’ll see this…

First, you can define up to five keywords or phrases that, if used in a comment on your ad, will result in an automated DM.

Then define the private message these people will receive. Meta says it can include a link, phone number, or email.

On the right, Meta provides previews of the Instagram comment and private message. Since these are specific to Instagram, I assume this feature doesn’t currently work with Facebook placements.

When Would You Use This?

There are two specific situations when the Reply to Keywords feature might make sense.

1. High volume of comments.

If your ads get a high volume of comments on your Instagram placements, it can be hard to keep up with demand. If that’s the case, some smart automation based on keywords could be helpful.

2. Comment-to-DM marketing strategy.

In the first example, you’re predicting common words and phrases prospects will use so that you can serve them a relevant message. But an easier approach could be tied to the Comment-to-DM marketing strategy where the ad will say something like, “Comment ‘GUIDE’ and I’ll send you the free PDF.”

While this approach can be seen as spammy and unnatural, it’s also a proven tactic that can get results.

Maybe another scenario?

It’s not clear which scenario Meta was thinking of when creating this feature. You could make the argument that the feature doesn’t exactly fit either one.

If you’re trying to predict questions, it would be more useful if you could craft multiple automated DMs depending on the keyword or phrase used (for example, one for “shipping” and one for “discount”). On the flip side, it makes less sense that you’d need up to five keywords or phrases when using it with the Comment-to-DM strategy.

Since this appears to be a test feature, it may also be half-baked. If it ever rolls out more broadly, we may see it expand to platforms beyond Instagram, and the version we see now will surely be cleaned up and improved.

Your Turn

Do you have this feature? How might you use it?

Let me know in the comments below!