People on Reddit often name a product without tagging its account. I track those posts and comments with keyword alerts.
I use the alerts to find questions and complaints about our brand. I pick terms I can check each day. Broad words like “marketing” find too many posts.
Reddit keyword alerts worth keeping
I start with the company name, product name, web address, and common misspellings. Then I add competitor names and words people use when they compare products. Questions about problems our product solves get their own terms.
I keep brand terms apart from competitor terms. I check brand questions each day. Other posts can wait until my next review.
Reddit’s search help shows how to search posts and comments. It also shows how to use AND, OR, and NOT. I test each term there first. I drop terms that find mostly unrelated posts.
Search posts and comments before adding alerts
I test each term this way:
- Search each brand term across Reddit and in the communities where customers post.
- Read recent posts and comments. Note the terms that bring in wrong matches.
- Add a product word to a common name or leave out a wrong topic.
- Turn on alerts for the terms that find real questions.
- Cut terms that keep finding unrelated posts.
For a free email setup, F5Bot watches Reddit, Hacker News, and Lobsters. Its free plan has limits on keywords, alert count, and speed. That can still be enough for a small brand.
Mentionkit puts Reddit posts and comments in one inbox. I can send a thread to support after I read it. The Reddit keyword alerts page shows the setup.
Reply without ignoring the group rules
I open the full thread before I reply. I read earlier comments and the group rules. Some groups let company staff answer questions. Others limit company posts.
Customer questions come first. I answer the exact question and link to a help page when it adds detail. If someone reports a product fault, I check the facts and give one next step. I do not paste the same sales reply into every thread.
I save repeat questions for our support and product staff. When the same setup question comes up again, I check our help page. I reply to a competitor post only if the person asks something I can answer.
If the person has already got an answer, I leave the thread alone. I keep sales replies out of posts that ask for help with a different product.
Conclusion
I don’t want our company account in every thread that names us. I answer when I can help with the question and say where I work. If I can’t help, I leave the thread alone.
