# How to get users for an AI agent: 10 channels that work in 2026

*List it where buyers look, make it readable by other agents, and show it working.*

> How to get users for an AI agent: verified directories and marketplaces, MCP and llms.txt, demo videos, Reddit, Product Hunt, SEO, and a 30 day plan.

Source: https://www.appgrowthmarketer.com/ai-agents/how-to-get-users-for-an-ai-agent
Author: Ar.Bhavesh Panse, AI App Growth Marketer (https://www.arbhaveshpanse.com)
Published: 2026-09-26 · Updated: 2026-09-26

to get users for an AI agent, list it where buyers already search, make it readable by other AI tools, and show it doing one real job on video. then add founder posts, community answers, a launch, search pages and small paid tests. pick two or three channels, run them for 30 days, and measure finished jobs, not signups.

for positioning, pricing and trust, read [AI agent marketing](https://www.appgrowthmarketer.com/ai-agents/ai-agent-marketing) first. for AI apps, see [how to get users for my AI app](https://www.appgrowthmarketer.com/playbooks/how-to-get-users-for-my-ai-app).

## How to pick your channels

pick channels by asking where your buyer already goes when they need this job done. a developer looks in an MCP registry or an assistant's app directory. a small business owner searches Google or asks in a community. a creator scrolls short video. start with the two channels closest to that moment, and add one at a time.

## 1. Agent and AI tool directories

AI tool directories are websites that list and categorize AI products, and some focus on agents. a listing is cheap, fast and stays up, so it is a sensible first step. it helps people who search by category find you, and gives your agent a public page to link.

directories i verified before writing this:

- [There's An AI For That](https://theresanaiforthat.com/launch/): manual review, a one-off $49 basic review fee at the time of writing, and it accepts MCPs and GPTs
- [Futurepedia](https://www.futurepedia.io/): a large curated directory of AI tools, with a listing option from the site
- [AI Agents Directory](https://aiagentsdirectory.com/) and [AI Agent Store](https://aiagentstore.ai/): agent-focused directories with a submit or list your agent option
- [Hugging Face Spaces](https://huggingface.co/docs/hub/spaces-overview): host a public demo of your agent. static Spaces are free, and Gradio or Docker Spaces need a paid plan, though free personal accounts can host up to two Gradio Spaces on ZeroGPU

**cost:** 1 to 2 hours per listing, from free to low one-off fees. **measure:** referral visits and first finished jobs from each directory.

## 2. Assistant, integration and template marketplaces

integration marketplaces put your agent inside tools people already pay for, which is where buyers go when they want a job done. these are the strongest listings for most agents because users arrive ready to connect. they take more work, since each one has its own review and technical requirements.

| marketplace | what it takes |
|---|---|
| [ChatGPT app directory](https://venturebeat.com/technology/openai-now-accepting-chatgpt-app-submissions-from-third-party-devs-launches) | an app built with the Apps SDK, submitted through OpenAI's developer platform for review. submissions opened in December 2025 |
| [GPT Store](https://openai.com/index/introducing-the-gpt-store/) | a GPT saved for everyone plus a verified builder profile |
| [Claude connectors directory](https://claude.com/docs/connectors/building/submission) | a remote MCP server over HTTPS, submitted from a paid Claude plan. it is listed as a community connector by default |
| [Zapier](https://docs.zapier.com/platform/publish/public-integration) | free to build and publish, then a 90 day beta where Zapier recommends docs and Zap templates |
| [n8n workflow library](https://n8n.io/workflows/) | submit workflow templates that use your agent, through n8n's creator program |

rules change, so read each one first. OpenAI's [submission guidelines](https://developers.openai.com/apps-sdk/app-submission-guidelines), for example, require a verified identity, a privacy policy and a demo account for reviewers.

**cost:** 2 to 10 days of build and review work per marketplace, usually no listing fee. **measure:** installs, active connections after 7 days, and jobs run through each integration.

## 3. Be discoverable by other agents

other agents discover your agent when it is easy for software to read and call. that means an llms.txt file that points to your key pages, clean markdown docs, an OpenAPI description of your API, and an MCP server. more buyers now ask an assistant to find or run a tool, so this is part of distribution.

1. **llms.txt:** a [proposed standard](https://llmstxt.org/) for a markdown file, usually at your site root, that points AI tools to your most useful pages
2. **MCP server:** [MCP](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/docs/getting-started/intro) is an open standard for connecting AI applications to outside tools and data. publish yours to the [official MCP registry](https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/registry), which verifies you own the namespace. it is still labelled a preview, so expect changes
3. **OpenAPI spec:** the [OpenAPI Specification](https://www.openapis.org/what-is-openapi) describes an HTTP API in JSON or YAML, so tools can call yours without guessing
4. **clean docs:** one page per task, plain examples, and no key details hidden behind a login

**cost:** 1 to 3 days of developer time. **measure:** API and MCP calls from new accounts, and whether assistants describe your agent correctly when you ask them.

## 4. Demo videos on TikTok, YouTube and X

short demo videos work because an agent's value is a visible before and after. film the agent doing one real job, speed up the boring middle, and end on the finished result. post the same clip to TikTok, YouTube Shorts and X, then watch which job and which hook bring people who actually finish a job.

**what to do:** one 30 to 60 second screen recording a day for two weeks, each showing a different job or a different hook. **cost:** about 1 hour a day, no money. **measure:** signups per post and first finished jobs, not views.

## 5. Founder-led posts on LinkedIn and X

founder-led content means the person who built the agent posts what they learn while building and selling it. it works for agents, especially B2B ones, because buyers want to know who is behind software that acts for them. real numbers, real mistakes and short demos beat polished announcements.

**what to do:** three posts a week: a demo, a customer lesson, a "how i would do X" post. reply to every comment. **cost:** 2 to 3 hours a week. **measure:** replies, direct messages asking for access, and demo calls booked.

## 6. Reddit and communities

Reddit, Discord and Slack groups are where people ask "is there a tool that does this". answering those questions well is one of the cheapest ways to reach users who already feel the pain. the catch is that most communities ban self-promotion, so you must help first and follow every group's rules.

my own SAFE Reddit method came from 40+ banned Reddit accounts, and the core rule is roughly ten useful comments for every one that mentions your product. say who you are, answer the question fully, and never fake engagement. steps: [first 100 users from Reddit](https://www.appgrowthmarketer.com/playbooks/first-100-users-from-reddit).

**cost:** 30 to 60 minutes a day, no money. **measure:** clicks and signups from each community, and which comments get removed.

## 7. Product Hunt and Show HN

launch sites give you one concentrated day of attention from early adopters. Product Hunt is free to use, its [launch guide](https://www.producthunt.com/launch) suggests going live at 12:01am Pacific, and it says you cannot ask people directly to upvote. Hacker News [Show HN](https://news.ycombinator.com/showhn.html) needs something people can try, ideally without a signup.

for an agent, ship a sandbox that works without an account, and pick Product Hunt's AI Agents category. prep list: [first 100 users from launch sites](https://www.appgrowthmarketer.com/playbooks/first-100-users-from-launch-sites).

**cost:** 1 to 2 weeks of prep, launch day fully booked. **measure:** signups and finished jobs in the first 72 hours, and the questions people ask.

## 8. SEO pages for the jobs your agent does

every job your agent does is also a search, like "how to summarize support tickets" or "how to find leads from LinkedIn". a page that answers that question honestly, then shows the agent doing it, brings buyers at the exact moment they need help. these pages grow slowly but keep working.

**what to do:** one page per job, manual method first, then a short demo of the agent doing it. **cost:** about 3 hours per page. **measure:** organic visits and signups per page after 60 to 90 days.

## 9. Partnerships

a partnership puts your agent in front of another company's users, usually because it makes their product more useful. good partners sell to the same buyer but do a different job. a shared template, an integration or a co-hosted demo can reach more of the right people than months of solo posting.

**what to do:** list ten tools your users already use and propose one shared workflow, with you writing the tutorial. **cost:** a few hours of outreach, then build time. **measure:** signups from each partner's audience.

## 10. Small paid tests

small paid tests are cheap experiments to learn which message and audience bring users who finish a job. run them only after a demo has already worked organically, because paid spend multiplies a message that works and burns money on one that does not. keep the budget small and the kill rule written down.

**what to do:** boost your two best organic demo posts, with the same daily budget each, for one week. **cost:** illustrative only: $20 a day for 7 days. **measure:** cost per finished job, not cost per click or install.

## A 30 day plan

this 30 day plan gets an AI agent its first users and a clear signal on which channel to keep. week one sets up listings and discoverability, week two builds demos, week three works communities and posts daily, and week four is a public launch. every signup gets a personal message from the founder.

| days | do this |
|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | write the one-sentence pitch, can and cannot do lists, and a sample data sandbox |
| 4 to 7 | list in two directories, publish llms.txt, clean up docs |
| 8 to 14 | film one demo a day, post to TikTok, YouTube Shorts and X, start one marketplace listing |
| 15 to 21 | three founder posts a week, daily community answers, two job pages for search |
| 22 to 26 | prep Product Hunt or Show HN, publish the MCP server if you have one |
| 27 to 30 | launch, reply to everyone, run a small paid test behind the best demo |

## First 100 users checklist

use this checklist to see what is missing before you chase more traffic. most agents that stall at a handful of users are missing a sandbox, a clear trust page or personal follow up, not another channel. tick each item, fix the gaps first, and only then add a new channel or a paid test.

- [ ] one-sentence pitch naming one job
- [ ] sandbox or sample data that works without an account
- [ ] can do and cannot do lists, and a data page
- [ ] two directory listings and one marketplace listing
- [ ] llms.txt and clean docs published
- [ ] ten demo videos posted
- [ ] daily community answers, rules read first
- [ ] a launch date booked
- [ ] a personal message to every signup, and finished jobs tracked by channel

## Frequently asked questions

### Where can I list my AI agent?

start with places your buyers already search. that can mean the ChatGPT app directory, Claude's connectors directory, the official MCP registry, Zapier or n8n template libraries, Hugging Face Spaces, and AI tool directories like There's An AI For That. pick the two or three that match how your agent is used, not all of them.

### How do AI agents get discovered by other agents?

by being easy for software to read and use. publish an llms.txt file that points to your key docs, keep docs in clean markdown, describe your API with an OpenAPI spec, and offer an MCP server listed in the official MCP registry. then AI assistants can find your agent, understand it and call it.

### How long does it take to get 100 users for an AI agent?

there is no reliable average, because it depends on the job, the buyer and how much time you put in. treat anyone who promises a fixed number of days with caution. the 30 day plan on this page is built to get your first users and a clear signal on which channel to keep, for next month.