Instagram has exploded into one of the most influential social networks, with over 1.4 billion users worldwide. But with its massive reach also comes challenges, like connecting with accounts that have privatized access to their profile.
In this extensive 2000+ word guide, I‘ll provide a complete walkthrough on how to direct message private Instagram accounts, as an experienced social media marketing expert and influencer agency founder.
You‘ll learn:
- Step-by-Step Instructions for Messaging Private Profiles
- Limitations When Messaging Private Accounts
- Expert Tips to Properly Engage Private Profiles
- Recent Instagram Updates Impacting Private Messaging
- Alternative Contact Strategies for Hard-to-Reach Accounts
- Tools and Techniques to Improve DM Response Rates
- How Instagram Algorithms Impact Messaging Delivery
- Use Cases and Benefits of Contacting Private Accounts
- Risks and Mitigations When Messaging Private Users
- My Exclusive Game Plan for Effectively Engaging Private Accounts
Let‘s get started!
How to Send a DM to a Private Instagram Account
Contrary to public profiles, private Instagram accounts do not openly display follower counts, posts, or stories. Their entire presence is restricted.
But you can still direct message any private account on Instagram through these simple steps:
Step 1: Locate the Private Profile
Use Instagram‘s search bar to find the exact username of the private account you want to message. Double check the spelling.
For common names, you may need to filter the results by category or location. Instagram product designer @mikekrieger is a popular private account example.
Step 2: Visit Their Profile Page
Once you‘ve identified the correct private profile, visit it by tapping on the username. You‘ll notice a padlock icon indicating restricted access.
Step 3: Tap the 3-Dot Menu Icon
In the top right corner of the private profile, tap on the 3 vertically stacked dots to open the menu.
Step 4: Select ‘Send Message‘
This will open your Instagram Direct message thread with the user, where you can type out your message.
And that‘s all it takes to send a DM to any private or public account on Instagram!
Now let‘s dive deeper into the limitations and restrictions around messaging private profiles.
Limitations When Messaging Private Instagram Accounts
Instagram imposes certain visibility restrictions when messaging private accounts:
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No Read Receipts: You won‘t get notifications when private accounts read your messages. Your messages will seem undelivered.
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Can‘t See Online Status: IG hides the online/last active status of private profiles from non-followers. So you won‘t know if they‘re online to immediately respond.
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Limited Profile Access: You can only view the private account‘s username, profile pic, and bio preview unless they approve you.
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No Content Access: Private accounts‘ posts, stories, reels, lives, etc. are inaccessible to you as a non-follower.
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Restricted Messaging: Instagram limits how many messages an account can send within a time period, to prevent harassment and spam.
According to Instagram‘s data, over 500 million users have set their accounts to private for enhanced security and privacy.
So messaging limitations are the tradeoff for connecting with guarded accounts. Proper Instagram etiquette and expectations setting become crucial.
Next I‘ll share expert tips for properly engaging private profiles through direct messages.
Expert Tips for Messaging Private Instagram Accounts
When reaching out cold to private Instagram accounts, employ these proven tactics for increasing response rates:
1. Personalize Each Message
Avoid copy-pasting generic messages. Include specific details on why you want to connect with this particular account.
Call out their work you admire or interests you have in common. Personalization results in 34% higher open rates according to [Campaign Monitor](https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/2019/07/17– MUST-KNOW-STATS-ABOUT-VIDEO-MARKETING/).
2. Introduce Yourself
Briefly explain who you are and your intent for messaging them. Give context on how you discovered their profile.
3. Keep Messages Concise
Get straight to the point within 2-3 sentences. Don‘t inundate private accounts with long blocks of text without their consent.
4. Ask Open-Ended Questions
Give private accounts a reason to respond by asking smart questions they‘ll be motivated to answer.
5. Offer Value
Propose ideas for how you can provide value, like making useful connections or sharing relevant resources.
6. Follow Up Strategically
If they haven‘t responded after a few days, politely follow up with a short check-in. But don‘t harass repeatedly.
7. Respect Their Privacy
Ultimately it‘s up to private accounts whether to engage. Don‘t take non-responses personally or make demands on their time.
In summary, thoughtful and selective direct messaging wins when engaging private Instagram accounts. Quality over quantity.
Now let‘s examine recent changes by Instagram that affect private messaging protocols.
Recent Instagram Updates Impacting Private Messaging
Over the past few years, Instagram has continually refined its messaging policies around privacy and security:
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Anti-Harassment Measures: Restricting repeatedly messaging non-followers who don‘t respond, to curb harassment.
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Limiting Bulk Messaging: Blocking third-party apps allowing mass automated messaging, seen as spammy.
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Member Requests: Private accounts can require follow requests before allowing DMs.
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Restricted Accounts: Extremely private accounts can restrict all messaging from non-followers.
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Close Friends Messaging: Threads app lets you privately message your inner circle more intimately.
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Algorithmic Feed & Messaging: IG increasingly controls what you see from accounts you don‘t closely engage with.
As Instagram evolves, messaging becomes more exclusive and tuned to your relationships. Cold-messaging private accounts productively requires more personalized charm and value.
Next let‘s explore options beyond direct messaging to contact unresponsive private accounts.
Alternative Contact Strategies for Hard-to-Reach Private Accounts
If direct messaging a private account proves ineffective, consider these alternative contact channels:
Comment Thoughtfully on Their Posts
Private accounts may allow public commenting on their posts (although this is increasingly rare). Leave value-adding remarks on multiple posts over a period of time to pique their interest.
Interact Consistently With Their Content
Proactively like, share, and engage with a private account‘s posts, stories, reels, live videos, etc for a couple weeks. This can organically catch their attention.
Send Them an Instagram Reel
Record a short video greeting directly addressing the private account and politely explaining why you want to connect. Reels have high visibility.
Leverage Mutual Connections
See if you share any connections with the private account through tools like Social Rank or FollowerWonk, and request an introduction.
Identify and Message Their Inner Circle
Study who the private account engages with regularly, and reach out to those closer connections who may be more responsive.
Connect on Alternative Platforms
Check if the account is public and active on other networks like Twitter, Facebook, etc. and try messaging them there.
Run Targeted Ads
Use Instagram and Facebook ads targeting the account‘s username, interests, and demographics to get on their radar.
With persistence across multiple channels, you can eventually engage most elusive private accounts. But also respect their space if they remain unresponsive.
Next let‘s go over some tools and techniques that can aid the private messaging process.
Tools and Techniques to Improve DM Response Rates
Beyond crafting messages properly, also leverage tools and techniques to elevate your private messaging:
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IG Avatars: Create custom fun avatars to represent your brand uniquely and appear more engaging.
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Personas: Build messaging personas tailored to niche demographics you want to target.
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Relationship Mapping: Use social listening to analyze personas and identify their core connections for outreach.
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Response Libraries: Craft a menu of personalized responses to common queries to save time.
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IG Bots: Deploy chatbot apps like igdm.io to schedule and automate DM sequences based on responses.
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Saved Replies: Use Instagram‘s built-in Saved Replies to quickly access pre-written message templates while maintaining personalization.
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Follower Mentions: Reference and compliment a private account‘s followers in your message to establish familiarity.
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Emojis: Judiciously use emojis to add tone and personality that leaps out in the Instagram Direct inbox.
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Polls: Create engaging polls as conversation starters that privates accounts will want to chime in on.
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Offers: Float exclusive offers like discounts or early access to incentivize private accounts to open your DM and respond.
With the right tools and tactics, you can streamline messaging private accounts while humanizing the experience.
Next let‘s examine how Instagram algorithms impact your messaging reach.
How Instagram Algorithms Impact Private Messaging Delivery
Instagram actively monitors all activity on the platform through advanced AI algorithms. This includes how you message:
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Relationship Algorithms: Instagram notes accounts you frequently interact with to optimize your feeds and messaging around them. Messaging accounts you have no connection to may have low visibility.
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Spam Detection Algorithms: If you message too many unassociated accounts in a short period or use blacklisted words, Instagram may throttle or block your messaging privileges.
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Timing Algorithms: When you message accounts tends to influence response rates. According to Sprout Social, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 11am-1pm tend to have highest IG engagement.
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Engagement Algorithms: Accounts that respond back to your messaging and have longer conversations are weighted as higher priority by Instagram‘s algorithms.
Understanding how underlying algorithms work can help strategically time and frame your messages for improved visibility and response.
Now let‘s explore real use cases and benefits for needing to message private Instagram accounts.
Use Cases and Benefits of Contacting Private Accounts
There are many potential reasons you may need to conact an Instagram account that‘s private, such as:
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Business Partnerships: Private entrepreneurs, influencers, or potential sponsors.
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Exclusive Access: Private artists, photographers, musicians, or activists distributing sought-after content.
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Niche Communities: Private groups around specific interests like parenting, health, etc.
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Friends and Family: Having private conversations outside of public comments and likes.
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New Connections: Interesting private profiles you want to network with.
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Support Tickets: Handling private customer service conversations.
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Lead Generation: Contacting potential leads behind a private profile to qualify them.
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Account Recovery: Regaining access to your own lost private account.
Messaging opens doors to crucial opportunities and relationships occluded by private settings. The benefits of connecting with privatized accounts often outweigh the hurdles.
Now let‘s discuss risks to be aware of when messaging private accounts.
Risks and Mitigations When Messaging Private Users
While invisible profiles limit public exposure, outreaching private accounts isn’t without risks:
Wasting time on unresponsive accounts – Mitigate by defining your goals and ideal personas for messaging before outreach.
Instagram restricting your account – Prevent by spacing out messages and avoiding banned messaging tactics.
Accidentally spamming or harassing – Take care to message selectively with a personalized, polite tone.
Impersonation accounts – Vet accounts thoroughly and look for verification badges to avoid scams.
Sharing sensitive information – Be cautious about what you disclose over Instagram messages to unknown accounts.
Listening to hard sales pitches – Politely disengage private accounts trying to aggressively sell you, rather than conversing.
With common sense and measured habits, the risks of Thoughtfully messaging private accounts remains low while the rewards persist.
Now let me share my proven game plan for engaging private accounts tailored to your goals.
My Exclusive Game Plan for Effectively Engaging Private Accounts
Based on years of managing social campaigns, here is my data-backed game plan for succeeding at private Instagram messaging:
For Sales Prospecting
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Research target personas and companies. Identify their likely private IG handles through tools like LinkedIn and Hunter.io.
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Craft personalized value propositions addressing their pain points. Float exclusive discounts or content offers to incentivize a response.
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Focus on accounts in the consideration or decision stage of the sales cycle, when they‘re more receptive.
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Follow up consistently with helpful tips and resources related to their needs, without aggressive selling.
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Track response metrics to identify what messaging resonates best with your targets. Refine and iterate.
For Community Management
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Monitor private community hashtags and conversations around your brand for outreach opportunities.
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Delight VIP private customers who complain with attention and exclusive perks to turn them into evangelists.
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Share early access to new products or content with engaged private accounts to get buzz and reviews spreading.
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Collaborate with private influencers in your niche by providing assets and information for them to feature rather than paying sponsorships.
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Foster more intimate conversations at scale through the Close Friends feature.
For Influencer Marketing
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Identify key influencers with substantial private followings in your industry.
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Research each influencer‘s interests and the types of brand partnerships they‘ve responded well to in the past.
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Craft partnership proposals that incentivize them to open your message, like lead generation programs.
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Build authentic relationships over time through consistent value-adding messages and interactions.
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Once they agree to a sponsorship, handle all details privately over DM from rights usage to payment.
While tactics may differ based on goals, the core emphasis on selectivity, personalization, and value creation remains for private messaging success.
I hope this comprehensive 2000+ word guide has equipped you to confidently engage any Instagram account through strategic direct messaging. Let me know if you have any other questions on executing this effectively! I‘m happy to chat more in the comments.
