Why "DM me" almost never works
"Like it? DM me!" sits at the end of half the posts out there. And the inbox stays empty. Not because the post is bad, because the request is big.
Writing first is expensive
Messaging a business means starting a conversation with a stranger, not knowing what to say, not knowing if they will reply, and knowing you will have to reply back. That is a lot of effort for someone who was merely curious.
Compare it with "save this post" or "the link is in my bio". Neither of those requires inventing a sentence on the spot.
Requests, by how much effort they cost
From easiest to hardest. The further down the list, the more the post has to have earned it.
- Save or share. One tap, no talking to anyone.
- Answering a closed question in the comments: "which of the two?".
- Tapping a link that leads somewhere already filled in.
- Messaging with a ready-made word: "send the word QUOTE".
- Writing a message from scratch. This is the most expensive of all.
If it has to be a DM, give them the first sentence
Half the difficulty is not knowing how to start. "Send me the word CAKE and I will share the sizes" solves it: they do not need to think, only copy.
It works for the same reason a pre-filled form converts better than an empty one. You took the decision out of the way.
One request per post, and not always
A post with three requests ("like, save, comment and DM me") has no request at all: it has a list, and nobody follows lists. Pick the next step that makes sense for that post and ask only for that.
And not every post needs to ask for anything. One that simply teaches, charging nothing at the end, is what makes someone trust the next one that does ask.
Choosing the right request for each post is a whole-month decision, not a per-post one, which is how ReadyMonth builds the calendar.