How to Send Someone a DM Without Being That Guy

HOW TO DM SOMEONE ON INSTAGRAM

Difficult, difficult, lemon, difficult.

An awkwardly worded depiction of how we’ve recently found trying to stand out in a DM. It’s the equivalent of waving at someone you think is looking at you, only to find it’s the guy behind.

But there are some ways we can get it right and be a little bit unique:

• Treat it like a text. Granted, this is more of a stand-out-by-blending-in tactic. If you already sort of know this person, talk to them as if you do. Use your opening line as a hook – be a bit of a tease by mentioning that thing which happened at the party you both went to – you know the one. Or mention a mutual friend – anything to form a genuine connection that isn’t just ‘how are you’.
• Avoid just talking about her appearance. In the long list of how to DM someone on Instagram, this is the number one thing to avoid. Just because Insta is all about the visuals, doesn’t mean we have to fall into this trap of unoriginality. Chances are, every other Tom, Dick, and Harry (names unconfirmed) is also sliding into their DMs with the same chat about their photo with all the likes. Yawn. DM-ing someone on Instagram already shows a certain amount of balls, so live up to expectations with something genuinely insightful from their page – what sort of things are they into? What’s their sense of humour like? Maybe you’ve read something you think they'll like… (whatever you’ve read, make sure it’s their Insta account – judge it right). 
• Reply directly to their story. Push to the front by directly replying to their story – not only is this instant messaging at its finest, but it also shows that you’re directly engaging with their profile, and that’s flattering. Because of the context, this is less random than a one-off message all those how to DM someone on Instagram posts have been telling you to create (we know what you’re thinking but shh this one’s different).