What the other person sees

Worth understanding, because it is your reputation on the other end of it.

They comment

Your public reply appears under their comment immediately, exactly as it would without a gate.

They get the follow request

A direct message with your follow request text and a button. Nothing else is sent yet.

They tap the button

• If they follow you, your real message arrives right away, and they never see the gate again for this automation.
• If they do not follow you, they are asked once more, immediately, as long as this automation has asks left for them.

If they ignore it

Nothing happens. They may be asked again later if your cooldown has passed and asks remain, and after that they are left alone.

If they reply with words instead of tapping

That works too. Any message from them lets dmrabbit check their follow status, so the gate resolves.

Why the button matters

The button is what carries them back into the conversation. It is not decoration, so the follow request is the one automated message that never has anything appended to it, on any plan.