What is a DM on Twitter ?
On social media, platform members tend to create their own jargon. Internet users must therefore become familiar with a new lexicon by joining a given network. However, users use the same terms for common options like Story or DM.
In this case, only the technical details change from one community to another.
What is a DM ?
DM stands for Direct Message on Twitter. It is a message addressed directly to a person and is only visible to that recipient. A DM is not displayed on the publicly accessible interface, unlike tweets.
To a certain extent, it can be considered as the internal e-mail of Twitter. However, these private messages are limited by the tweet format, which is 280 characters.
You can basically only send a DM to followers. Also, you are only supposed to receive direct messages from someone you follow. In practice, you can send a private message to someone who accepts DMs from any user.
You will also receive DMs from any network member, even non-subscribers, if your security settings allow it.
On the other hand, you can send or receive private messages, if you’ve traded with someone in the past. This can happen if you have unsubscribed from the profile in question or vice versa. It may also be a member of a group discussion you have been participating in.
The DM option remains available in these different cases.
How to send a private message on Twitter ?
You can send a private message to a follower, a follower or an account open to DMs. If you want to reach a private profile, it is also possible to identify it in a tweet to challenge it. This technique sends a notification to the target user who will take the necessary action.
Depending on the case, the recipient can send you a DM directly or follow you beforehand.
It’s fairly easy to send private messages to followers, on a web browser or mobile app (Android or iOS). Moreover, this functionality is not affected by the Twitter shadowban which only affects the public parts (Tweet, Moment, Fleet…). To send a DM:
- Log in to your Twitter account;
- From the home page, click on Messages in the left side panel;
- Press the New Message icon at the top of the screen ;
- In the displayed interface, fill in the name of the recipient, then press Next ;
- Enter the content of the message in the corresponding field, then click on the arrow icon to send the DM.
The messaging window works like an SMS conversation interface, when the person you are talking to replies. In addition, old messages will be displayed as soon as you add the name, if you have already talked with the recipient.
How to see DMs on Twitter ?
To see the DMs, just press the envelope icon visible from the Twitter home interface. You will then open the section dedicated to private messages. If you are looking for a specific message, the platform provides you with a search bar in this section.
Click on this field before entering the keywords to find or the names of the participants in the conversations.
Depending on the search criteria, the results will be organized by messages, accounts or discussion groups. You can then access the content by clicking on the desired message. However, it should be noted that the search function does not support GIFs and images.
You won’t be able to use these media to find a discussion.
On the other hand, the internal search engine cannot find deleted conversations. These will disappear from your profile for good. On the other hand, they can appear in the account of your interlocutor, if he did not delete these exchanges on his side.
The same applies to group discussions that are saved in the inboxes of the participants.
Why I can’t send DMs on Twitter ?
Many factors can block the sending of DMs on Twitter. The most common cause is the lack of a link between your account and the recipient’s account. You can’t send a private message to a user:
- Who is not a follower;
- Who you don’t follow ;
- Which does not accept DMs from any member of the network.
Also remember to check your email address or phone number. The absence of this information can indeed prevent authentication and limit the actions of your profile. On the other hand, each account is limited to 1,000 DMs per day.
Beyond this daily limit, you will not be able to send or receive private messages.
Finally, anti-spam measures can be triggered by sending private messages or identical links to several profiles. In this case, you won’t be able to use the DM feature for at least 30 minutes. You have to wait for the time indicated by the platform before accessing this service again.