Find people switching from a competitor
How to catch switching moments in public. One sentence describes the signal, intent scoring ranks it, and a reply is drafted in your voice for your approval.
By Max Gillespie, founder of Oetzi
People announce a switch before they make it, because they want help choosing. The window between "we are leaving this tool" and "we picked one" is usually days, and it happens in public. Oetzi watches seven platforms for that moment, scores each match for buying intent, and drafts the reply in your voice for approval.
What does a switching moment look like in public?
An announcement plus a question. On Reddit: "we are moving off our tool at renewal, what are people using instead for a team of twelve". On LinkedIn, longer: "after three years we are migrating, here is what we are evaluating". On X, blunt: "canceling today, recommendations welcome".
Two details separate a real switch from a complaint: a deadline, usually a renewal, and a list of two or three products already named. If both are present, someone is buying this month.
How do I describe the switching signal in one sentence?
Describe the decision, not the brand. Something like "teams saying they are leaving a named competitor at renewal and asking which tool to move to". That is compiled into native searches per platform plus a scoring rubric, seven days backfill immediately, and it sweeps on your cadence. Add the constraint you are good at, such as team size or self-hosting, because switchers name their constraints out loud.
How does the intent score rank a switcher?
Each match gets a 0 to 100 score with the reason written out, plus a tag for who is talking: buyer, current customer, feature request, or competitor user. A switching post usually lands as competitor user with a high score, and the reason names the deadline or shortlist it found. Read the reason before the post, since it says whether the person is comparing or complaining. Find live conversations where people are actively evaluating covers the distinction.
What do I do with a switching match?
Reply with the answer to their constraint, not a pitch. Two variants are drafted in your voice, nothing goes out without approval, and the version that works names the one thing they said they need.
If the thread is busy, pull the people who engaged with it for 1 credit, refunded when fewer than three come back, because quiet readers are often evaluating the same switch. Tag them, and record outreach so nobody hears from you twice. Monitor competitor complaints is the earlier stage of the story.
What does finding switchers cost in credits?
A sweep of one signal across every platform is 2 credits and refunds when nothing qualifies, so one switching signal swept every weekday is about 40 credits a month, inside the 100 included with the $49 plan. Reading, the inbox, translation, voice, edits, and publishing are all free. Optional spends: a people graph pull at 1 credit, a verified contact at 1 credit with misses free, and a share of model check at 2 credits per question.
Questions
How do I find users switching from a competitor?
Describe the switching moment in one sentence, including the competitor and the deadline words people use, such as renewal or migration. That becomes native searches across X, Reddit, LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky, Hacker News, and Substack Notes with a scoring rubric on top. Matches arrive with an intent score, the reason written out, and a who-is-talking tag, so switchers sort above complainers.
Should I mention my product in the reply?
Yes, once, and only as the answer to what they asked. The reply that works names the constraint they raised, explains how you handle it, and stops. Drafts come in two variants in your voice and wait for approval, so you decide how direct to be. Nothing posts automatically, and no message is ever sent privately to a stranger.
What if the switcher is already on a shortlist that excludes me?
That is still worth a reply, because shortlists change when someone answers well in public and because other readers are making the same decision quietly. It is also a signal for the engine side: a share of model check shows which products get named for your category's buying questions, and which threads those answers cited.
Oetzi is an AI marketer for founders who need users. It finds the threads where people ask for a product like yours on seven platforms, checks whether the AI engines recommend you, and drafts replies, posts, and short video in your voice. You approve everything. 100 credits included, 10 free to try with no card, 50 bonus credits with the first payment.