# How to answer a DM by topic instead of an exact keyword

> In a DM or story-reply automation, tick a topic under “Or answer by what they mean”, such as Asking the price. Replavia then answers however the person phrases it, on every plan.

- Topic: Automations
- Plans: Free: included · Pro: included · Scale: included
- In the app: Open Automations — https://app.stage.mydmflow.com/automations
- Last checked: 2026-10-29
- Web page: https://stage.mydmflow.com/help/answer-by-topic

## What it does

People ask the same thing in many ways. “How much?”, “what’s the cost” and “your rates?” all mean the same. With a topic, all of them reach one automation. You do not have to list every wording yourself.

It works on every plan, including Free.

## Steps

1. Open an automation, or create one.
2. Under **Select a trigger**, choose **User DMs you** or **User replies to your story**.
3. In **Set up keywords**, add your keywords if you want any.
4. Under **Or answer by what they mean**, tick one or more topics.
5. Click **Save & activate**.

## The topics

| Topic | What it catches |
| --- | --- |
| Asking the price | How much something costs. |
| Ready to buy | Wants to order or pay right now. |
| Is it available | Stock, sizes, or whether you still have it. |
| Shipping and delivery | Where you ship, how long it takes. |
| Booking a time | Appointments, sessions, slots. |
| Brand or collab enquiry | Someone proposing paid work or a partnership. |
| Needs help | A problem, a refund, something broken. |

## Your keywords come first

Replavia checks the automation’s keywords first. The topic is only used when none of them match. So a keyword you chose always wins over a topic.

## Why not on comments?

Topics are only offered for DMs and story replies. A comment automation sends a DM to someone who did not message you. A loose match there could message people who never asked. For example, “how much did this cost you to make?” under a reel is often a compliment. Comments keep exact keywords. See [Keywords and matching](https://stage.mydmflow.com/help/keywords-and-matching).

## Good to know

- It is rule-based, not AI. Replavia matches a fixed list of words and phrases for each topic. That is why it costs nothing and gives the same answer every time.
- Words match whole, so “rate” does not match inside “rated”.
- The repeat rule still applies. A person gets the reply once a day for a DM, or once per story for a story reply, even if they send several messages.