Guide: Start a flow when someone sends a keyword
This page: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-starts/start-a-flow-when-someone-sends-a-keyword
Topic: Flow starts
Time: about 3 minutes
Who can do it: Owner, Administrator or Manager
Author: https://anantgupta.xyz (Anant Gupta, founder of CommentWatchDog)
Start in the app: https://app.commentwatchdog.com/en/inbox
Result when done: A DM with your word (or any DM) starts the flow.
Context: The message start listens to DMs: an Instagram message on Instagram, a Messenger message on Facebook. Because the person wrote to you, the chat is already open, so the flow can send messages, ask questions and branch at once.

Before you start:
1. Instagram and Facebook both.
2. The same keyword rules as comments: up to 50, up to 80 characters each.
3. One message gets one automatic answer: a keyword automation first, then the greeting, then a catch-all.

Steps:
Step 1 of 4: Open a flow and pick the start.
Where: Automation, then New automation and Start from a blank canvas; the window Start automation when… lists the Triggers. The message start reads Instagram message on Instagram and Messenger message on Facebook (Someone sends you a message). To change the start of a flow you already have, click its first card and press Change beside Starts with.
Link: https://app.commentwatchdog.com/en/inbox (Open the app)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-flow-starts.en.webp (Start automation when…: every start of the page.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-flow-starts-phone.en.webp (The starts on a phone.)
You should see: The start lands as the first card, and the panel on the right, Trigger, opens its settings.

Step 2 of 4: Choose which messages.
Where: Trigger panel, Which ones: Any message, Has a keyword (the message contains any of your words), or Is exactly (the whole message is one of them). Is exactly ignores a leading ¿ or ¡ and the punctuation at the end.
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm.en.webp (Which ones, here set to Has a keyword.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm-phone.en.webp (The same on a phone.)
You should see: The start card reads the choice in a sentence.

Step 3 of 4: Add the keywords.
Where: Keywords, under Which ones: type a word and press Enter. Capitals don't matter; accents on Latin letters are ignored; a keyword typed with quote marks matches the word without them.
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm.en.webp (The keywords as chips.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm-phone.en.webp (The same on a phone.)
You should see: Each keyword is a chip.

Step 4 of 4: Say how often one person can start it.
Where: Trigger panel, How often per person, under the keywords: Every time, Once ever, Once a day or Once a week. Someone who already went through it is skipped quietly.
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm.en.webp (How often per person.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-start-dm-phone.en.webp (The same on a phone.)
You should see: Someone who writes the word again follows the rule you picked.

If something is off:
Problem: Another automation answered instead
Fix: One message gets one automatic answer. Two live automations that could answer the same message are flagged in the editor with the choice of which answers; the more specific one wins until you choose.
Problem: It answered a word inside another word
Fix: It does not: a keyword must start a word. Check the message for the keyword on its own, or use Is exactly.

Common questions:
Question: What if two automations match the same message?
Answer: Only one answers. A keyword automation goes first, then the greeting for a first message, then a catch-all such as Any message or the AI agent. Between two keyword automations, the editor flags the clash and the more specific one answers until you choose.
Question: Can the flow start on any message at all?
Answer: Yes. Choose Any message under Which ones. It is the catch-all: keyword automations still answer first.
Question: Does a quick reply tap count as a message?
Answer: A quick reply posts its title as the person's message, so a tap is read like typed text.

Related guides:
- Start a flow when someone comments: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-starts/start-a-flow-when-someone-comments
- Send a message with buttons and quick replies: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-steps/send-a-message-with-buttons-and-quick-replies
- Answer messages that contain a keyword: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/keyword-automations/answer-messages-that-contain-a-keyword

Plain text of this guide: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-starts/start-a-flow-when-someone-sends-a-keyword.md
All guides for assistants: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/llms.txt