Best Practices

These best practices will help you find more high-quality signals and convert them into conversations.

Listener Configuration

Start Broad, Then Narrow

When creating a new listener:

1. Begin with broader keywords and a lower threshold (60-70%)
2. Review initial signals for quality and relevance
3. Tighten keywords by removing terms that aren’t producing good signals
4. Raise threshold if you’re getting too much noise

Tip

It’s easier to filter out noise than to discover you missed opportunities due to overly strict settings.

Use Multiple Listeners

Create separate listeners for different purposes:

Listener	Purpose	Keywords
Lead Generation	Find prospects	Intent phrases, solution terms
Competitor A	Monitor competitor	Competitor name, product features
Competitor B	Monitor competitor	Competitor name, product features
Brand Monitoring	Track your product	Your product name, common misspellings

This gives you:

• Separate signal streams
• Different thresholds per use case
• Clearer analytics

Leverage Brand Info

Add your brand information in Settings → Workspace:

• Brand name
• Domain
• Keywords you target
• Competitors you track
• Industry

CatchIntent uses this to suggest relevant keywords when creating listeners.

Keyword Strategy

Intent-Indicating Keywords

Focus on phrases that show buying intent:

High Intent

These convert best:

• “recommend” + category
• “looking for” + solution type
• “alternative to” + competitor
• “switching from” + competitor
• “best tool for” + use case

Medium Intent

Good for early engagement:

• “vs” comparisons
• “anyone use” + category
• “how do you handle” + problem
• “what’s your stack for” + use case

Lower Intent

Use selectively:

• Category names alone
• Competitor names alone
• Generic problem terms

Keyword Performance Monitoring

Check keyword performance regularly:

1. Go to your listener
2. View the health panel
3. See which keywords are producing signals

Low signal rate — Keyword may be too broad. Consider:

• Making it more specific
• Removing it entirely
• Adding qualifying terms

Low matched count — Keyword might be too specific. Consider:

• Broadening the term
• Adding related variations

Engagement Best Practices

Timing Matters

Respond quickly to high-intent signals:

• < 1 hour — Best response rate
• 1-4 hours — Good response rate
• > 24 hours — Conversation often stale

Be Helpful First

Don’t pitch immediately. Instead:

1. Answer their question — Provide genuine value
2. Share context — Explain your experience
3. Offer help — Only then mention your product if relevant

Caution

Subreddits and communities have strict rules against self-promotion. Read the rules before engaging.

Disclose Your Affiliation

If you work for or founded the product you’re recommending:

• Be transparent about your connection
• Focus on how you can help
• Let the product speak for itself

Example Responses

Good response:

“I’ve dealt with this exact problem. The key is [insight]. We actually built [product] to solve this—happy to share how we approached it if that’s helpful.”

Bad response:

“Check out [product]! It’s the best solution for this. Here’s a link: [link]“

Managing Signal Volume

Too Many Signals?

If you’re overwhelmed:

1. Raise relevance threshold — Go from 70% to 80% or higher
2. Narrow keywords — Remove broad terms
3. Use scheduled summaries — Daily digests instead of real-time
4. Prioritize high-relevance signals — Focus on 80+ scores first

Not Enough Signals?

If you’re not getting signals:

1. Lower threshold — Go from 80% to 70% or lower
2. Broaden keywords — Add more variations
3. Add platforms — Enable Reddit, X/Twitter, HN, or Bluesky
4. Check listener health — Ensure keywords aren’t too narrow

Team Coordination

Signal Ownership

Avoid duplicate responses by:

• Using signal statuses (mark as “Contacted”)
• Coordinating in Slack/Discord threads
• Assigning team members to specific listeners

Workflow Example

1. Signal arrives → Status: New
2. Team member claims it → Status: Reviewed
3. Member responds → Status: Contacted
4. No fit → Status: Ignored

Role Assignment

Consider assigning listeners by role:

Role	Listener Focus
Founder	Lead generation, high-intent
Sales	Lead generation, competitor switching
Product	Brand monitoring, feature requests
Support	Brand monitoring, complaints

Measuring Success

Metrics to Track

Signal quality:

• Signals reviewed vs. ignored
• Response rate from engagements
• Conversations started

Conversion:

• Signals → Contacted
• Contacted → Demos/trials
• Demos → Customers

Iterating Based on Results

Weekly review:

1. Which signals led to conversations?
2. What keywords generated best leads?
3. What false positives keep appearing?
4. What should we adjust?

Use these insights to refine your listeners over time.

Common Mistakes

Don’t Do This

1. Setting threshold too high initially — You’ll miss good signals
2. Only monitoring one platform — Opportunities exist everywhere
3. Using generic keywords alone — “CRM” will flood you with noise
4. Responding with pure sales pitches — You’ll get ignored or banned
5. Ignoring listener health — Poor keywords waste your signal quota
6. Not coordinating with team — Multiple responses look spammy

Do This Instead

1. Start at 70% threshold and adjust up
2. Enable all relevant platforms to maximize coverage
3. Use intent phrases like “looking for”, “alternative to”
4. Be helpful first, product second
5. Review keyword performance weekly
6. Use statuses and threads to coordinate