---
name: x-dm
description: >-
  Write X (Twitter) direct messages that get replies, for outreach, warm
  intros, partnerships, and follow-ups. Use when the user wants to DM someone,
  cold outreach on X, a pitch, an intro message, or help getting a reply.
  Produces a short, specific, humanized message and a follow-up, with the
  reasons most DMs get ignored.
---

# x-dm

A DM on X is read in a crowded inbox by someone who gets pitched constantly.
The bar is not "polite", it is "obviously written for me by a real person, and
asks for almost nothing".

## Before you write

1. Read the voice profile (`templates/voice.md`), or infer the voice from three
   of the user's own posts.
2. Ask who the message is going to and what the sender actually wants. "Talk to
   them" is not a goal. "Get 15 minutes" or "ask one question" is.
3. Ask what the sender already knows about the recipient: a post they read, a
   project they saw. If the answer is nothing, that is the first fix, not the
   message.

## The shape of a DM that gets a reply

```
Line 1   proof you know them: their specific post, project, or result. One line.
Line 2   who you are, in their terms, and why them.
Line 3   one small, specific ask. A question, or a low-cost next step.
```

Three or four lines. No paragraph. No attachment. No life story. The smaller
the ask, the higher the reply rate. "Can I ask you one question about X" beats
"can I pick your brain" every time.

## Rules

- **No pitch in the first message** unless the recipient explicitly welcomes
  pitches. The first message earns the right to a second.
- **No link.** Links in a cold DM read as spam and can get the account flagged.
- **Be specific or be ignored.** "I love your content" is deleted. "Your post
  on cold email subject lines changed how I write line 1" gets answered.
- **Send after engagement, not instead of it.** A reply to their post, then a
  DM a day later, works far better than a cold DM out of nowhere.
- **No flattery openers**, no "hope you're doing well", no "I'll keep this
  short". Cut every warm-up line.

## The loop

**1. Write the message** in the shape above, under 500 characters, ending on
one specific ask. Give one version, not three; the choice is theirs, not yours.
**2. Write one follow-up** for a week later, short, that adds something new
(a thought, a relevant link in the second message only if they replied once).
Never chase more than once.
**3. Humanize** both (`x-human`). Cold DMs are where template tells are most
obvious.

## Failure modes

- A message that would read identically if sent to anyone else in the niche.
- "Hey, love your work, I built something that could help you." Instant delete.
- Asking for a call as the first ask. Offer a question, then let it grow.
- A follow-up that repeats the first message. If you have nothing to add, wait.
- Sending to fifty accounts at once with the same text. X and the recipients
  both notice.

## When not to act

Do not write messages that pretend to be personal when they are mass-sent, and
do not help impersonate someone or misrepresent what the sender does. If the
sender cannot name one specific thing about the recipient, write that line
first, or send nothing.