Ever had this happen?
You post something casual on Facebook, LinkedIn, or X. Nothing crazy—just a regular update.
You set your phone down.
Minutes later—buzz.
Text or email from one of your favorite companies.
It feels… off. Like someone was literally watching you post.
Here’s the thing: someone was.
Well, not a person. A bot.
This isn’t coincidence—it’s high-level marketing automation. And as marketers and business owners, it’s one of the most powerful (and honestly, kind of creepy) tools out there right now.
Let me show you exactly how it works.
The “Magic” Is Really Just a 4-Step Process
What you experienced is called a multi-channel workflow triggered by “social listening.”
It’s not magic—it’s just a really sophisticated “if/then” statement.
Step 1: You’re Already in Their System
You didn’t just appear out of nowhere.
At some point, you gave them your info. Maybe you bought something, downloaded a guide, or signed up for a webinar.
Your email and phone number are sitting in their CRM database.
Step 2: They “Stitched” Your Profile
This is the critical part.
The company used software to find your public social profiles and connect them to your contact record. It’s called “identity resolution.”
Their CRM doesn’t just see you as jane.doe@email.com anymore.
It sees you as:
- jane.doe@email.com
- (123) 555-1212
- @JaneDoePosts on X
- /in/janedoe on LinkedIn
- Your Facebook profile
You’re now one unified profile in their system.
Step 3: The Social Listening Bot is Watching
They’ve got a social listening tool running around the clock.
It’s not watching everyone—just monitoring public activity from contacts already in their database.
The moment you post something publicly, a flag goes up.
Step 4: The Automation Fires
Your post is the trigger.
The system instantly launches a pre-built workflow:
WHEN: Contact makes a new post…
WAIT: 3 minutes (to seem less robotic—though that barely helps)…
THEN: Send text or email to contact
They’re designed to hit you the second you’ve proven you’re online and active. They’re hoping to catch you while you’re already on your device.
The Big Question: Is This Smart… or Just Creepy?
This is the line marketers are walking right now.
The “Smart” Case
You’re engaging people when they’re provably active.
You’re not texting them at 3 AM. You’re reaching them at a high-engagement moment when they’re more likely to notice and respond.
The “Creepy” Case
It breaks the fourth wall.
It makes people feel surveilled, not served. It can instantly kill trust and make your brand feel less like a partner and more like a stalker.
The Bottom Line
Before you rush out to set this up, ask yourself: Does this actually serve your customer, or does it just startle them?
Just because we can track all this doesn’t mean we should.
The most effective marketing still runs on trust. A bot that pounces the second someone posts might be doing the exact opposite of building that.
What do you think?
Have you experienced this? Brilliant tactic or privacy invasion?
I’d genuinely love to hear your take in the comments.