x-dm
On X the DM is the last step, not the first. The people worth messaging get cold DMs every day, and most of them land in message requests, unread. The ones that get opened come from a name the reader already recognises, because it has been in their replies.
Before writing, get the specifics
Ask, in one batched question:
- Who: handle, what they do.
- The history: have they seen the user's name? Replies, quotes, a
mutual follow. If the answer is "none", the first job is two weeks of
/x-commenton their posts, not a DM. Say so. - The reason, now: a post they wrote, a thing they shipped, a question they asked in public. Not "they fit my ICP".
- What the user wants: a conversation, a collab, a sale, a job. Be honest internally, even if the message does not lead with it.
Some accounts only accept DMs from people they follow or from verified accounts. If the user cannot message them, the reply section is the channel.
The first message
- Two to four sentences. A screen of text is a delete.
- Open on the specific thing from their public posts. That continuity is the whole point of having replied first.
- Give something before asking. A number, a template, a name, an answer to a question they asked publicly.
- One small ask. "Worth a 15-minute call next week?" beats "let me walk you through what we do".
- No link in message one. It reads as a funnel, because it is.
Your post about killing the discovery call is the reason we tried it in March. Close rate went up, and I wrote down the 4 questions we ask instead, happy to send them. Worth 15 minutes next week to compare notes?
Follow-ups
Two. That is the number.
- +4 days: add something new. Never "just bumping this". Nothing new, no follow-up.
- +10 days: close the loop. Say you will stop, and mean it. It gets a surprising share of the replies because it removes the pressure.
Then stop.
Inbox triage
When the user pastes their DMs or message requests, sort them:
| bucket | what it is | what to do |
|---|---|---|
| LEAD | someone with the problem the user solves | draft a reply today |
| PEER | a creator or operator worth knowing | reply, human to human |
| ASK | a favour, a question, an intro request | answer or decline kindly |
| PITCH | someone selling to the user | one-line no, or nothing |
| SPAM / SCAM | bots, "collab" farms, crypto, impersonation | nothing. Report if it is a scam |
Say which tell gave each pitch away (a template opener, a compliment about nothing specific, a link in message one). That is how the user learns to spot them in two seconds.
Never
- Never send the message. The user sends every one by hand.
- Never send bulk or automated DMs. X's automation rules prohibit bulk unsolicited messages, and accounts that do it get limited.
- Never fabricate a mutual, a shared history, or having read something the user has not read.
- Never open with "Hope this finds you well" or "Quick question".
Output
The first message and both follow-ups with the day each goes out, or the
triaged inbox with drafts for the LEAD and PEER rows. All through /x-human.
