Frequently asked questions

Needle is for founders and GTM teams who want buyer-ready threads in public communities. Manual search is a custom query you run on demand across the networks your plan includes, with sentiment and fit signals. Auto Search uses your brand’s saved phrases, sites, and schedule in Settings to run scheduled passes automatically, with optional digest alerts when new matches appear. Save competitors to spot when those names appear in posts. Trending Problems highlights rising pain in startup and technical communities. [Needle Directory](/directory) is a public catalog for your product listing. Plan names and limits are on Pricing. Free utilities (no account) live on the tools hub.

Every new account starts with a 7-day free trial - full access, no card. From signup you get manual search, recurring Auto Search for your brand, digest alerts, reply drafts, and exports; your first Auto Search run starts as soon as brand onboarding finishes. When the trial ends your leads stay readable and actions pause until you subscribe. Trending Problems has a public preview. Free tools need no account at useneedle.net/tools. A standard Directory listing does not require Search. See Pricing for plans and trial terms.

Sign up - your 7-day free trial starts automatically, no card. Complete brand onboarding and your first Auto Search run starts right away. Run Manual search for on-demand queries and configure your brand, Auto Search, and optional digest alerts under Dashboard → Settings. When the trial ends, pick a plan on Pricing to resume monitoring. See Getting started and Search in the docs.

Instead of opening Reddit, Hacker News, GitHub, Stack Overflow, Product Hunt, and other sites one by one, Needle Search runs across the communities your plan includes in one workflow. Unlike plain keyword alerts, it filters out noise and ranks what is left by buying intent, so you open threads where people compare tools, ask for recommendations, or describe urgent pain first. Across all customers (measured Sep 15 - Oct 15, 2026), Needle dropped 83% of keyword matches as noise, only about 1 in 20 posts read was a strong buying signal, and 98% of leads surfaced within 24 hours of posting.

Apollo, Clay, and Sales Navigator are contact and account tools: they tell you who could buy from filters like role, company size, and industry. Needle is a customer discovery and buyer-intent tool: it finds problem-aware buyers who are publicly discussing a problem, asking for recommendations, or comparing tools right now on Reddit, Hacker News, GitHub, Stack Overflow, and other communities. Many teams use both - Needle to see who needs a product like theirs this week, then a contact tool to reach the right person. Depending on plan, leads can go to Slack, Google Chat, Discord, Notion, Airtable, a webhook, or (on Scale) HubSpot and Pipedrive, and they can be exported as CSV. Plans start at $15/month after a 7-day free trial.

Solo covers 8 networks: Reddit, Hacker News, GitHub, Stack Overflow, Lobsters, Mastodon, Bluesky, and Product Hunt. Growth adds YouTube, Tumblr, and Forums (11 networks). Scale adds X (Twitter) and LinkedIn (13 networks). Full limits are on Pricing.

Needle Directory is a curated catalog of products on Needle. You can browse listings, vote, and submit your own with a public page, logo, and media. Submitting a listing does not require a paid Search plan. See Needle Directory in the docs.

You complete steps for Details, Media (logo required), Trust & visibility (free backlink verification, optional paid verification skip, optional featured placement), then Preview and submit. Listings are reviewed before publication.

Featured placement is an optional one-time paid boost: a limited featured window (about 30 days; exact dates appear in checkout and on your listing) for extra visibility where we surface featured picks. It is not a subscription and does not auto-renew. If a featured window is already active, checkout for a new boost is blocked until it ends.

Verification skip is a separate one-time add-on that waives automated backlink verification for that draft listing. It does not include featured placement.

Manual search is a one-off run you start: you enter a query for that run, pick timeframe and networks, and results stream live. It counts toward your plan’s manual search run limits.

Auto Search uses the saved setup for your brand in Settings (keywords/phrases, networks, how often Needle runs again, and lookback). Needle runs scheduled passes automatically; those passes do not use your manual search quota. Solo includes 1 brand, Growth up to 3, and Scale up to 5. If you need more than 5 brands, contact us at support@useneedle.net.

Digest alerts (optional, plan-dependent) notify you when Auto Search finds new posts since the last digest. Connect destinations and cadence under Dashboard → Settings. Supported channels vary by plan - see Pricing for the current list. Manual search does not send scheduled digests.

Sentiment summarizes emotional tone (for example frustration versus enthusiasm). Buying intent estimates how close someone is to action - comparing tools, asking for recommendations, or describing urgent pain. Together they help you open the highest-leverage threads first.

When you save competitors for a brand in Settings, Needle can call out when those names appear in a post - helpful for comparisons and switching intent. Only public posts are analyzed.

Trending Problems surfaces active pain and demand signals across communities, scored for strength and urgency, with Global and US views. Use it to validate language and timing before you double down on a niche.

When you find a strong thread, Needle can suggest short replies from your brand context - tone (casual, professional, witty) and how directly you mention your product. You edit and post yourself; there is no blind auto-posting or unsolicited DMs.

Search the problem, not your product name - for example people comparing tools or asking for alternatives. Try 3-20 descriptive words, iterate on wording, and revisit the same phrasing over time instead of one-off tab hopping.

Manual Search counts toward plan limits (runs and max results per run). Automatic Auto Search runs do not consume that manual quota. Time windows and caps differ by plan. See Pricing and Plans and limits.

We analyze public conversations. Your account, searches, Auto Search results, and brand settings are treated as yours; we do not sell your data or use it for third-party ad targeting. See the Privacy policy.

We collect what we need to run the product - account details (such as email and name), billing handled by our payment provider, and your in-app activity (search text you run, Auto Search settings and results, and settings you choose). Retention follows our privacy and data policies.

Yes. 7 days of full access, no card. Your first Auto Search run starts as soon as onboarding finishes, and the 7 days count from when it completes. When the trial ends, your leads stay readable and monitoring pauses until you choose Solo, Growth, or Scale. See Pricing for current plans, limits, and networks.

It starts automatically when your first scan finishes - no card, nothing charged. You get full access for 7 days: manual search, recurring Auto Search, digest alerts, reply drafts, and exports. When the trial ends your dashboard stays readable (your leads stay saved) and every action pauses until you subscribe. Promo codes apply to your first paid invoice. Choose a plan whenever you're ready on Pricing.

Needle offers Solo, Growth, and Scale, with monthly and annual billing options where offered. Compare features, limits, and networks on Pricing.

Each plan caps manual search volume, results per run, history depth, exports, digest channels, and related features so the service stays fast and fair. Solo includes 1 brand, Growth up to 3, and Scale up to 5. If you need more than 5 brands, contact us at support@useneedle.net. Full limits are on Pricing and Plans and limits.

You can change plans over time. Cancel at period end (access until the end of the paid window) or immediately - immediate cancel ends access now without refund for the current period. You can subscribe again from Pricing after a full cancellation. Billing questions: Refund policy and support@useneedle.net.

Today Needle is per account. Teams usually use individual subscriptions; shared billing for seats may come later based on demand.

Needle works best when buyers discuss products in public communities (Reddit, Hacker News, Stack Overflow, etc.). Pure B2C brands often get stronger signal from consumer research tools. If your buyers show up in technical or founder communities, Needle can still help - see Who is Needle for?.

ChatGPT and Perplexity synthesize answers from training data and the web. Needle finds live public threads where buyers compare tools, rank them by intent and fit, and can monitor your brand on a schedule. Use AI assistants for general research; use Needle when you need specific conversations to join or track.

Solo includes 1 brand profile, Growth up to 3, and Scale up to 5. If you need more than 5 brands, contact us at support@useneedle.net.

Yes! Each brand profile has its own dedicated settings workspace. You can configure unique lookback windows, Auto Search phrases, target networks, and notification channels per brand. Available channels depend on your plan: Slack and Google Chat on Solo; Discord, Notion, Airtable, and webhooks added on Growth; Microsoft Teams, HubSpot, and Pipedrive added on Scale.

Use the brand selector dropdown at the top of the dashboard or settings page. Switching the brand instantly scopes your dashboard view, Auto Search results, and configurations to that specific brand.

Yes. Go to Dashboard → Settings → Brands, open the brand, and choose Delete. This permanently removes the brand and its saved Auto Search history, and its website becomes available for another account to claim. You must keep at least one brand on your account, so if it is your only one, add a new brand first.

No. Auto Search runs automatically in the background on your configured schedule and does not consume your manual search runs quota. Only on-demand searches run via the Manual Search tab consume your manual search limit.

Yes. On Growth and Scale plans, you can save competitor websites and keywords. Needle will automatically flag when those competitors are mentioned in matching public posts.

A way to earn recurring commission on every customer you refer. Share your personal referral link; when someone signs up through it and becomes a paying customer, you earn a share of their payments - not just the first one. Full terms and an earnings calculator are on the Affiliate Program page.

The program is exclusive to active Needle subscribers. If you are on a paid plan, claim your link from the Affiliate program entry in your profile menu or the Affiliate program card in Settings. Users without an active subscription see an upgrade prompt instead - subscribe to unlock the program.

You earn a percentage of the pre-tax amount on every paid invoice from each referred customer - monthly subscriptions earn on every monthly invoice, annual plans pay the percentage of the full annual charge upfront - recurring for a fixed window that starts at their first paid invoice (not their signup). There is no cap on referrals. The current rate and window are shown on the Affiliate Program page and in your affiliate portal.

No. Trial and verification charges never earn commission - you are paid only once a referral becomes a paying customer. This also means you never earn from someone who churns during their trial, and your earning window starts at their first real payment.

60 days from the click, and attribution is bound to the customer’s account rather than the browser. If someone clicks your link on a phone and pays weeks later from a laptop, you are still credited.

Each commission clears for 30 days after the customer’s payment (covering refunds and card disputes), then pays out in the next monthly run once your cleared balance reaches the payout minimum. In practice money arrives 30-45 days after the payment - at most around 60 if it lands just after a batch closes. The 60-day attribution window is separate: it is how long a click stays credited, not a payout delay. Choose PayPal, Wise, or bank transfer in your portal’s payout settings.

The commission for that charge is reversed. If it was already paid out, the amount is deducted from your future balance. Lost card disputes work the same way.

Your link stops crediting new referrals, but everything you have already earned is still honoured and remains payable. Resubscribe at any time and your original link and code reactivate automatically.

No. Self-referrals are blocked, and bidding on Needle trademarks or brand terms in paid ads is not allowed - either can void commissions and end your participation in the program.

In your affiliate portal: profile menu → Affiliate program, or the Affiliate program card in Settings. It shows clicks (total + last 30 days), signups, paying customers, commission clearing vs. ready for payout, lifetime paid out, and recent activity. Read the full affiliate guide in the docs.

Join our Discord community or email support@useneedle.net. We typically respond within about one business day.