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Instagram is more than just a photo-sharing app these days. They added features like stories, live videos, and much more. Instagram DM is just one of those features.
According to research, 47% percent of millennials use Instagram as a messaging platform. Maybe you will not believe it, but here is a fact, it was not possible to send messages on Instagram until 2013.
If you find that information shocking, you will be more surprised when you find out there are people still asking the question of how to DM someone on Instagram?‘
We can not blame them though, back in the good old days we did not know it either. In this article, we will try to help them to grasp the basic mechanics of Instagram Direct.
Let’s dive into our guide and decipher the mystical realm of Instagram messages.
How to Send a DM on Instagram
- Open the official Instagram app log in to your account.
- On your home feed, swipe the page to the left or tap on the icon with the paper plane on the top-right corner to open your message box.
- Tap on paper and pencil icon at the top-right corner, it’s near the video call icon.
- On this page, you can search for a user or you can pick your receiver among suggested accounts.
- If you want to start a group chat, you can select multiple accounts.
- When you select a user or multiple users, tap on ‘Chat’ at the top-right corner.
- A message window will appear.
- Afterward, you can send your message to the recipient.
Do not forget, if you are not following a private account you can still send a DM to them.
However, your message will land in their message requests.
They can either allow your message or they can ignore or worse, refuse it.
If you wish to do further reading about Instagram Direct Messages, you can check the official Instagram Help guide below.
7 Tips and Tricks for Instagram DMs
- You can like particular messages by double-tapping on a single message. The recipient will not get a notification for this action but they will be able to see it if they check the conversation. If you want to unlike a message, you can long-press on it and tap ‘Unlike’.
- If you want to unsend a message that you’ve already sent, tap still on a message and tap ‘Unsend Message?’ option. The message will be deleted from both the sender and the receiver. We also like to add that this is the only possible to delete individual messages.
- If you’d like to know when an individual message was sent, your solution is simple. Just swipe left from the right side of the screen on a conversation page and each message will reveal when was it sent.
- Sometimes we just do not want to be seen by… anyone at all. Instagram has a feature almost identical to WhatsApp’s last seen. Thankfully, your status does not show up on your profile. It only gets shown on a conversation thread.
- Sadly, there is no way to download Instagram posts without third-party apps or external tools. Yet, you can download a photo that you received on a Direct Message. Simply tap still on a photo you received and tap on the ‘Save’ option on the pop-up menu.
- Let’s assume that you do not want to receive notifications from a chat and blocking the person is not possible for a reason. All you have to is long tapping on a conversation in your message box. Select the ‘Mute Notifications’ option from the menu and voila, enjoy your peace.
- You can completely get off Instagram direct message notifications too. Enter your settings tab and find the ‘Push Notifications’ section, from there check either ‘Off’ or ‘From Everyone’ options to alter the status of your DM notifications.