How a Substack welcome DM sequence works
A welcome sequence starts when someone subscribes to your publication. Narrareach checks your subscriber list for new sign-ups, waits the delay you choose, then sends the first message as a Substack direct message from your account. Two hours is the default because it feels prompt without arriving before the welcome email has been read. You can set any delay in hours, up to 30 days (720 hours).
A sequence can have up to five messages. Each later message waits a set time after the previous one, so a common pattern is a thank-you after two hours and a short question three days later. Only people who subscribe after you turn the sequence on are messaged; turning it on never messages your existing list.
If the first message cannot go out within 48 hours of its due time, for example while your Substack connection needs a refresh, that welcome is skipped rather than arriving days late and out of context. Substack's own documentation notes that people you subscribe to can always message you, and the same subscription relationship is what makes a writer-to-subscriber DM land directly.
- Keep the first message short and end with one easy question, such as what made them subscribe.
- Use a second message a few days later only if it adds something: a best-of link or a question about topics.
- Remember that readers who only read by email may not open the Substack app, so the DM complements your welcome email rather than replacing it.