Scroll through Instagram or YouTube today and a new kind of call to action is hard to miss. Instead of asking audiences to “click the link in bio,” brands and creators are increasingly asking viewers to comment. “Comment YES for the link.” “Drop a heart and we will DM you.” “Comment PDF to get the guide.”
What appears simple is quietly reshaping how digital marketing converts attention into action. This approach, now widely referred to as “comment-to-convert,” is turning comment sections into high-intent sales funnels, particularly for Indian D2C brands and creators operating on social-first platforms.
The shift reflects a broader change in how social media platforms reward engagement and how consumers prefer to interact with brands. Likes have become passive signals. Comments, by contrast, indicate intent.
Indian marketers say this tactic is working because it aligns with how algorithms and audiences behave today.
“If likes paid the bills, marketing would be easy,” says Gaurav Soni, Head of Media at Perfetti Van Melle India. “What matters now is meaningful interaction. A comment shows involvement, curiosity, and often purchase intent.”
Platforms like Instagram explicitly prioritise posts that generate conversation. Content that attracts replies, questions, and back-and-forth discussion is more likely to surface repeatedly in feeds, Stories, and Explore pages. As a result, comment-heavy posts gain disproportionate reach compared to content that only accumulates likes.
For brands, this creates an opportunity. A comment is not just engagement. It is permission to start a conversation.
Once a user comments, brands can respond publicly or move the interaction into private messages using automation tools. Instagram’s API now allows keyword-based triggers that send instant DMs when specific words are commented. What follows is often a personalised link, discount code, or product explanation delivered at the moment of highest interest.
Indian D2C brands are adopting this quickly.
Fashion, beauty, wellness, and food brands are using comment-to-convert tactics to bypass cluttered feeds and expensive ad funnels. Instead of pushing users to external websites immediately, brands initiate a chat, reducing friction and increasing conversion likelihood.
Internal campaign data from Indian social commerce startups shows that comment-triggered DMs regularly achieve click-through rates between 60 and 80 percent, significantly higher than standard paid ads. This is because the user has already opted in by commenting.
The psychology is simple. Commenting creates a micro-commitment. It signals readiness to engage. When a brand responds instantly, the interaction feels personal rather than promotional.
“Instagram DMs have become a direct pipeline for conversions when approached strategically,” says Aastha Duggal, social media strategist and digital consultant. “When users comment voluntarily, they are already halfway through the funnel.”
Creators are also benefiting.
Mumbai-based fashion influencer Radhika Jagtap recently experienced rapid growth after implementing automated comment responses on her reels. Her posts frequently attract comments asking where products can be purchased. By setting up keyword-triggered replies that instantly sent links and details, she transformed engagement into measurable outcomes.
“I used to miss messages because I could not reply fast enough,” Jagtap says. “Now, even when I am offline, every interested comment gets a response. That changed everything.”
Within weeks, she saw a sharp increase in follower growth and brand collaborations, driven by consistently high engagement metrics.
For creators, comment-to-convert is not just about sales. It boosts algorithmic visibility, which leads to higher reach, stronger creator credibility, and more partnership opportunities.
Brands are taking note.
According to industry estimates, campaigns that generate sustained comment activity are up to three times more likely to be amplified organically by Instagram’s recommendation system. This has made comment engineering a deliberate part of content planning.
On YouTube, the tactic is evolving differently but with similar outcomes. While YouTube does not offer direct messaging, creators encourage viewers to comment to unlock pinned links, giveaways, or exclusive resources. High comment volume pushes videos into recommendation feeds, increasing watch time and discovery.
Indian education and finance creators have successfully used comment-based engagement to build email lists, course sign-ups, and affiliate revenue. One education creator reported collecting over 10,000 qualified leads from a single comment-driven campaign in under a week.
Brands operating at scale are also adjusting their systems to respond to this behaviour.
“Consumers are increasingly forming purchase intent in comment sections,” says Deepash Jain, Vice President at Myntra. “We see people discover products through creators, refer to them by informal names in comments, and expect instant access.”
Jain notes that Myntra has adapted its search and discovery systems to reflect how consumers talk about products socially, not just how brands describe them formally. When comments drive interest, brands that listen closely convert faster.
D2C founders echo this.
Rimjim Deka, Founder and CEO of Littlebox India, says creator-driven, comment-led sales transformed her brand’s trajectory. “Everything changed when we began experimenting with creator-linked engagement,” she says. “In a few months, social-driven revenue went from zero to over fifty lakh rupees a month.”
She attributes the success to trust. “These customers felt like they were buying through a conversation, not an ad.”
Despite its effectiveness, marketers warn that comment-to-convert is not without risk.
Platforms discourage engagement bait that feels manipulative or repetitive. Posts that ask users to comment without offering genuine value risk being downranked. Algorithms increasingly assess the quality of interaction, not just volume.
Experienced marketers advise aligning comment prompts closely with content relevance. Asking viewers to comment for useful information, exclusive access, or genuine participation performs better than generic calls for engagement.
There are also moderation challenges. Viral posts can attract spam comments, bots, or unrelated promotions. Brands need systems in place to filter responses and maintain conversation quality.
Speed is another critical factor. Research shows that response delays of more than a few hours significantly reduce conversion probability. This has driven adoption of automation tools, particularly for smaller brands that cannot manage high comment volumes manually.
However, automation must feel human. Overly generic replies can damage trust. Brands that balance efficiency with personalisation perform best.
As social platforms continue to blur the line between content and commerce, comment-to-convert strategies are likely to become more sophisticated. Instagram is already testing deeper DM-based shopping features, while creators are building micro-funnels entirely within comment threads.
For Indian marketers navigating high competition and rising ad costs, this approach offers a low-cost, high-intent alternative. It transforms engagement from a vanity metric into a measurable growth lever.
The broader implication is clear. In the social media economy, conversations are no longer just signals of interest. They are pathways to conversion.
Comment sections were once treated as noise. Today, they are where sales begin.
Disclaimer: All data points and statistics are attributed to published research studies and verified market research. All quotes are either sourced directly or attributed to public statements.