# Create a listener: track keywords across social platforms (https://snitchfeed.com/docs/listeners/create)





A listener tells SnitchFeed which posts to collect and how to score them. Create one for each topic you want to watch: your brand, a competitor, a pain point you solve, or a campaign.

## What is a listener? [#what-is-a-listener]

A **listener** is a saved monitoring setup. It watches Reddit, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Bluesky and Hacker News for the keywords and profiles you choose. Every post it collects becomes a **mention** with a [Fit Score](/docs/fit-score).

A listener decides what gets **collected**. A [feed](/docs/feeds) decides what you **see**, and what gets sent to Slack, Discord, email or webhooks.

* Each new listener gets its own feed automatically.
* One feed can combine several listeners.
* Alerts belong to feeds, not listeners.

A listener has five sections, the same ones you see in the editor:

| Section            | What it holds                                                                                                                               |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Intent Signal**  | A plain-language description of the posts you want, plus what to score down. See [Intent & Brand Context](/docs/listeners/listener-intent). |
| **Keywords**       | The search terms, each with its own platforms and filters. See [Keywords](/docs/listeners/keywords).                                        |
| **Authors**        | Profiles to always follow, and accounts to include or block. See [Track profiles](/docs/listeners/tracked-profiles).                        |
| **Reddit**         | Subreddits to include or exclude, and whether to search posts, comments or both.                                                            |
| **Scan Intervals** | How often X, LinkedIn and Hacker News are checked. See [Scans & backfill](/docs/listeners/scan-intervals).                                  |

A listener can also be **profile only**: tracked profiles and no keywords.

### Plan limits [#plan-limits]

|                                                          | Starter | Pro |
| -------------------------------------------------------- | ------- | --- |
| **Listeners**                                            | 3       | 10  |
| **Keywords and tracked profiles** (across all listeners) | 10      | 30  |

Paused listeners still count toward both limits. See [Plans & billing](/docs/workspace/plans-and-billing).

## Before you start [#before-you-start]

* **Fill in Brand Context.** SnitchFeed uses it, with the intent signal, to score mentions. Find it under **Workspace Settings → Brand Context**. See [Brand Context](/docs/listeners/listener-intent#brand-context).
* **Know what costs credits.** Scans on X, LinkedIn and Hacker News use credits, and so does AI scoring of each mention. See [Credits](/docs/credits).

## Create a listener with Snitch AI [#create-a-listener-with-snitch-ai]

<Steps>
  <Step>
    Click **+ Listener** in the top bar. It opens **Snitch AI** with a prompt to set up a listener.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Answer its questions about what you want to find.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Review the proposed setup it shows, then click **Create listener**.
  </Step>
</Steps>

You can change anything later in the editor. See [Snitch AI](/docs/features/snitch-ai) for what else it can do.

## Create a listener in the editor [#create-a-listener-in-the-editor]

Open **Listeners** in the sidebar and click **Create a new Listener**. The section list sits on the left. A **Required credits/mo** estimate shows below it.

<Steps>
  <Step>
    ### Name the listener [#name-the-listener]

    Type a name in **Name your new listener**. Its feed gets the same name.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Write the intent signal [#write-the-intent-signal]

    Open **Intent Signal**. Answer &#x2A;*What kind of posts are you looking for?** in 200 to 500 characters: who you want to hear from and which situations matter.

    Optionally, answer &#x2A;*What is not relevant to you?** (up to 500 characters), for example job posts or giveaways. Click **Save Intent**. See [Intent & Brand Context](/docs/listeners/listener-intent) for examples.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Add keywords [#add-keywords]

    Open **Keywords** and click **Track Keyword**. Enter a **Main Term** and pick at least one platform. Repeat for each term.

    See [Keywords](/docs/listeners/keywords) for what to track and how each field matches.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Authors [#authors]

    Open **Authors**. It has two parts:

    * **Authors (Tracked Profiles)**: paste a LinkedIn or X profile URL and press Enter. SnitchFeed collects every new post from that account, even with no keyword match. See [Track profiles](/docs/listeners/tracked-profiles).
    * **Authors (Keyword Tracking)**: **Only from these authors** limits keyword matches to the accounts you list. **Never from these authors** drops posts from them.

    Author entries must match exactly. A leading `@`, `u/` or `/u/` is ignored.

    | Platform    | Enter                                      | Example                                     |
    | ----------- | ------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------- |
    | X           | The handle, without `@`                    | `snitchfeed`                                |
    | LinkedIn    | The full name shown on the profile         | `Jane Doe` (does not match `Jane Doe, PhD`) |
    | Reddit      | The username, with Reddit's capitalization | `spez`                                      |
    | Bluesky     | The full handle                            | `theunhacked.bsky.social`                   |
    | Hacker News | The username                               | `pg`                                        |

    Capitalization is ignored on every platform except Reddit.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Reddit [#reddit]

    Open **Reddit** if any term runs on Reddit. It shows **Not listening** when none does.

    | Setting                                | What it does                                | Default |
    | -------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | ------- |
    | **Only these subreddits**              | Limits matches to the communities you list  | Empty   |
    | **Exclude these subreddits**           | Drops matches from the communities you list | Empty   |
    | **Search Posts** / **Search Comments** | Chooses what to match                       | Both on |
    | **Include NSFW Results**               | Includes adult content                      | Off     |

    Subreddit names are case sensitive (`SaaS`, not `saas`). A leading `r/` is ignored, and you can paste a comma-separated list.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Set scan intervals [#set-scan-intervals]

    Open **Scan Intervals** to choose how often X, LinkedIn and Hacker News are checked. Defaults: X every 4 hours, LinkedIn every 12 hours, Hacker News every 6 hours. Reddit and Bluesky match in real time. See [Scans & backfill](/docs/listeners/scan-intervals).
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Save [#save]

    Click **Save** at the top. The listener needs at least one term or tracked profile, and every term needs at least one platform.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What happens after you save [#what-happens-after-you-save]

* **A feed is created** with the listener's name. It shows Medium and High **Fit score** mentions, sorted by Fit Score. Open it from **Feeds**.
* **Historical backfill starts** on Reddit, X, LinkedIn and Hacker News, so the feed is not empty while you wait. See [Historical backfill](/docs/listeners/scan-intervals#historical-backfill).
* **Tracked profiles are fetched** once right away, then on the X or LinkedIn interval.
* **Scanning begins.** Reddit and Bluesky match new posts as they appear. X, LinkedIn and Hacker News are checked on their intervals.

New listeners send no alerts until you turn them on for a feed. See [Notifications](/docs/notifications#turn-on-alerts-for-a-feed).

## Edit a listener [#edit-a-listener]

Open **Listeners**, pick the listener, change any section and click **Save**. Some changes affect mentions you already have. SnitchFeed lists them in a confirmation dialog first:

| Change                                          | Effect on existing mentions                  |
| ----------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------- |
| Delete a keyword term                           | Its mentions are archived.                   |
| Add an author to **Never from these authors**   | Their mentions are archived.                 |
| Add an author to **Only from these authors**    | Mentions from other authors are archived.    |
| Add a subreddit to **Only these subreddits**    | Mentions from other subreddits are archived. |
| Add a subreddit to **Exclude these subreddits** | Mentions from that subreddit are archived.   |

To change the intent signal, edit it and click **Update Intent**. SnitchFeed asks how many recent mentions to re-score. **Save** stays blocked until you do. See [Re-scoring after a change](/docs/listeners/listener-intent#re-score-mentions-after-a-change).

Adding a term, changing a term's query, **Whole word** or **Case sensitive**, or turning on a new platform for a term starts a backfill for that term.

<Callout type="warn" title="Deleting a listener cannot be undone">
  The trash icon at the top of the editor deletes the listener and all its
  data. To confirm, type `delete` followed by the listener name. To stop
  collecting without losing data, pause the listener instead.
</Callout>

## Next steps [#next-steps]

* [Keywords](/docs/listeners/keywords): pick terms that find buyers, not noise.
* [Intent & Brand Context](/docs/listeners/listener-intent): tell SnitchFeed which posts matter.
* [Notifications](/docs/notifications): get alerts for new mentions.