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# Setting Up Smart Keyword Alerts with Context

Smart keyword alerts help you monitor podcast mentions with precision by combining traditional keyword matching with context-aware questions. This guide will help you create effective alerts that capture relevant mentions while minimizing noise.

## Overview

Smart alerts in Podscan consist of three main components:

* Keywords and phrases to match
* Context-aware questions to verify relevance
* Notification preferences

## Step-by-Step Setup

### 1. Creating a New Alert

1. Navigate to the Alerts section: ![Alert Heading](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_3yewvh.png)
2. Click "ADD NEW ALERT": ![Add New Alert Button](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_1apvdhg.png)
3. Enable the alert using the toggle switch and give it a name. That's purely internal, so you can pick whatever you want. ![Alert Name](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_vx2h6w.png)

### 2. Configuring Keywords

Add your keywords and phrases following these best practices:

* Use quotation marks for exact matches (e.g., "custom cabinet")
* Combine related terms (e.g., 'renovation', 'closet')
* Consider common misspellings or variations
* ![Misspellings](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_1jtyo1x.png)

### 3. Adding Context-Aware Questions

Context-aware questions help filter out irrelevant mentions. This is particularly useful when you expect to get a lot of false positives due to overlapping brand names.

* Make questions specific and answerable with yes/no — only episodes where the answer is a clear "yes" will make it through the alert
* Focus on the context that matters for your use case. This can be about the content, the tone, of even the themes of the episode.

Examples: 
* "Does this episode talk extensively about renovating a kitchen or installing custom cabinets?"
* "Do the guests talk about their personal experience with WMF Steak Knives?"
* "Does the episode focus mostly on anecdotes and personal viewpoints?"
* "Do people talk negatively about The New York Times in this episode?"
* "Is there a mention of future candidates for CEO at Acme Corp?"
![Context Question](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_w4v5z.png)

### 4. Setting Alert Boundaries

Refine your alert by:

* Selecting specific podcast categories to monitor. This is really helpful to avoid whole industries that produce false positives.
* Setting up ignore lists for irrelevant podcasts (or your own!)
* ![Boundaries](https://storage.crisp.chat/users/helpdesk/website/5ec8e994fe60b000/image_jhribl.png)

### 5. Configuring Notifications

Finally, choose your preferred notification methods:

* Email notifications (immediately): recommended for alerts that you want to react to immediately
* Summary emails (daily/weekly): recommended for all long-term tracking
* Webhook integrations can integrate mentions into systems like Zapier, ITTT, and Make.
* CSV attachments can optionally be sent with every email

## Best Practices

1. **Start Specific** : Begin with narrow, specific alerts and broaden them if needed
2. **Test and Refine** : Monitor initial results and adjust keywords/questions
3. **Use Categories** : Restrict alerts to relevant podcast categories
4. **Regular Maintenance** : Review and update alerts periodically

## Advanced Features

* **Sentiment Analysis** : Enable sentiment analysis to understand the context of your mention.
* **API Integration** : Set up webhooks for real-time notifications

## Troubleshooting

Common issues and solutions:

* Missing mentions: Broaden your keywords. Add related terms and make your context questions more lenient. It's always easier to refine a false positive than not getting mentions at all.
* Too many irrelevant results: Make your context questions more specific. Block podcasts and categories that reliably misfire.
* Not receiving notifications: Check email limits and spam folders. When in doubt, set your email frequency to daily.

## Next Steps

* Review your alerts' performance in the Alerts dashboard
* Set up collections to organize important mentions
* Configure webhook integration for automated workflows

Need help? Contact the Podscan team for assistance with complex alert configurations.