When you think about social media marketing strategies, you probably think about popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

However, due to their sheer popularity, these social media platforms are being invaded and exploited to the fullest by marketers.

Cutting through the noise and reaching the right people often becomes a challenge. Which is why you should start exploring alternate social media platforms such as Reddit.

Reddit may not be your first choice when it comes to social media marketing. However, when done correctly, Reddit marketing is an extremely effective way to increase website traffic.

It can also reinforce your brand's reputation and establish you as an authority figure in your industry.

Before discussing some handy Reddit marketing tips, let's first take a look at why the social media platform is so important.

Disclosure: This content may contain a few affiliate links, which means if you click on them, I will get a commission (without any extra cost to you).

Understanding Reddit

The slogan of Reddit rightfully describes it as, “the front page of the internet.” Simply put, Reddit is a news aggregation and discussion website.

Redditors share information pertaining to different categories (known as subreddits) such as politics, technology, history, art, and more.

They can also upvote or downvote content shared by their fellow Redditors. When a thread gets enough upvotes, it is featured on the Reddit’s homepage.

According to Alexa, Reddit is the fifth most visited website in the U.S. It also has more than 330 million active monthly users and gets more than 21 billion screen views per month.

This puts Reddit at par with other social media platforms such as Twitter and Pinterest.

It is also interesting to note that the U.S. accounts for more than 38% of Reddit’s desktop traffic.

According to We Are Flint, 42% of internet users between the ages of 18 and 24 years old have visited Reddit. The Reddit users from this age group are more likely to be internet-savvy.

Therefore, if they find a piece of content that impresses them, they may share it on Reddit as well as other social media networking websites.

statista reddit marketingImage via Statista

11 of the Best Reddit Marketing Tips

If you are a digital marketer, it is high time you start exploring the endless possibilities of Reddit marketing. However, successful Reddit marketing requires a well-planned strategy.

It isn’t just about sharing content that promotes your brand/website. One wrong move could put you in the league of spammers and even get you banned from the website.

Here's how to use Reddit as a marketing tool:

1. Keep Your Profile Real

In order to get started with Reddit marketing, the first thing you need to do is create an account.

While this can be done in a few simple steps, the real challenge is to build a credible profile.

Redditors are extremely wary of promotional content and often shun profiles that belong to marketers. That’s why Reddit marketing is different from Facebook or Twitter marketing.

The first step is to create a Reddit profile that showcases you as a real person. If you want to earn more credibility, start posting meaningful comments and links on relevant threads.

This will help you win karma points and position you as someone who wants to add value to the Reddit community.

It is advisable that you amass a significant number of karma points before you start posting your own content.

Reddit marketing is effective only if you’ve built a tight community.

real profile reddit marketing

Image via Reddit

Another of the most useful Reddit marketing tips, is that you should be extremely careful while selecting your username. It can’t be changed or modified once your profile has been created.

2. Choose the Right Subreddits

Reddit is essentially made up of a plethora of smaller communities known as subreddits. Each subreddit pertains to a particular subject and is managed by a moderator.

The key to successful Reddit marketing strategies is to select the subreddits that are relevant to your brand and your products or services.

For instance, if you are a photographer, the subreddit r/photography is relevant to your niche.

As you start contributing to the subreddit with comments and links, you start building a strong rapport with your community.

Over time, it can establish your expertise on subjects related to photography.

subreddits reddit marketing

Image via Reddit

For Reddit marketing, it is important to note that not all subreddits are equally popular on Reddit. Subreddits such as r/politics, r/news, and r/sports have millions of subscribers.

On the other hand, niche subreddits such as r/copywriting and r/advertising have a smaller number of engaged Reddit users.

While popular subreddits often help drive more traffic, targeting the niche ones is more effective for conversions.

In addition, you can also post under one of the popular yet generic subreddits for Reddit marketing. Here are some examples:

  • r/todayilearned – You can submit an interesting piece of news or trivia under this subreddit.
  • r/askreddit – You can use this to engage with fellow Redditors and solicit their opinions and ideas on different subjects.
  • r/IAmA – Under this subreddit, you can share information about unusual professions and unexpected life situations.

If your content doesn’t pertain to any of the existing subreddits, don’t hesitate to create your own subreddit.

You’ve got to take initiative to ace Reddit marketing. Also, you can always invite other Redditors to participate.

If the quality of your content is good, Reddit users will engage with it and contribute to the growth of your subreddit.

3. Post Quality Content

At the end of the day, Reddit is a content-sharing website. Redditors use the social media platform to find fresh, interesting, and insightful information.

In order to make your mark with Reddit marketing, you need to share meaningful and relevant content.

Only then will you be able to earn enough upvotes to make it to the coveted homepage of Reddit.

Once you have selected the subreddits you want to target, look deep into what is being shared. Make sure your content resonates with the existing content on these subreddits.

Creating relatable content is key to finding success with Reddit marketing strategies.

In addition, every subreddit has its own set of rules. You must ensure that your content doesn’t violate any of these regulations.

Some of the topics that seem to fare well on Reddit include:

  • Politics and current affairs
  • Educational content and trivia
  • Personal journeys and stories of challenges and survival
  • Photography and art
  • Science and technology
  • Video games

If you’re going to post about these subjects, make sure you adhere to the platform’s guidelines.

When it comes to Reddit marketing, it’s better to play by the rules. Otherwise, you could risk getting banned.

Along with maintaining the quality of your content, you should also post attractive captions. This will help you grab the attention of your audience and engage with them.

All of your effort should be directed towards sharing genuine and valuable content that adds meaning to a reader’s life.

If that is not the case, your content will not see the light of day on Reddit.

4. Don’t Indulge in Spamming

What sets Reddit apart from other social media platforms is the fact that it is heavily moderated. Every subreddit is governed by its own set of rules and regulations.

Any comment, link or post that violates these rules will be penalized. In some cases, this could even lead to your account and domain getting banned from the website altogether. So, tread carefully with Reddit marketing.

The only way to avoid this is to refrain from posting overly promotional content. Redditors are a skeptical lot and will go to any length to find out if you are a genuine user or just another marketer.

Therefore, in addition to posting content from your own website, you should also share interesting and relevant blog posts and articles by others.

You should also avoid posting content that sounds like a sales pitch. Always remember that the end goal of Reddit marketing is to establish yourself as a trusted source of information in your niche.

In addition, posting the same comment multiple times on different subreddits can be seen as spamming.

Therefore, it is advisable that you tailor your comments for every subreddit. For effective Reddit marketing, remember that subtlety works the best.

5. Share and Grow

It is true that asking Redditors for upvotes on your content can lead to severe consequences.

However, there is no harm in sharing your post with your friends to see if they’d like to comment on it.

This is especially useful when you have just started out with Reddit marketing and don’t have a huge number of followers.

While a few comments may not seem like much, they can be instrumental in giving your posts initial traction.

While it may work fine on other social media platforms, for Reddit marketing, it’s not a good strategy.

6. Maintain Consistency

Consistency and perseverance are crucial for your success in any form of social media marketing. Reddit marketing is not an exception.

In order to build your social media network and promote your brand, you must engage with the Reddit community on a regular basis.

Appearing once in a blue moon to post some top-notch content won’t take you very far.

The right approach for Reddit marketing is to post insightful information consistently to help others.

Once you have selected the subreddits you want to target, take a look at the questions that are being asked.

Be active and provide meaningful answers to those questions. This can go a long way to establish your brand’s authority in your industry. This, in turn, will help build brand trust and credibility.

7. Start Your Own AMA

“Ask me anything” is a great way to engage with your Reddit community and get insights into their needs and concerns.

It boosts engagement and positions you as a brand that truly cares about your audience.

Through this Reddit marketing tactic, you reinforce your expertise in the industry. Not just that, it can also help you understand what kind of content your audience is looking for.

This, in turn, can help you create content that addresses the problems and issues faces by your audience.

8. Use Reddit as a Tool for Customer Service

The most obvious benefit of Reddit marketing is that it allows you to directly engage with your target audience.

However, you must also keep in mind that a section of your existing customers might also be using the platform.

They may use it to express concerns about your brand or ask questions related to your products/services.

Therefore, it is advisable that you keep an eye on Reddit to spot discussions about your brand and your products or services. Reddit can be a brilliant tool for customer service.

If a user has questions about your product, answer their query or direct them to a thread with the right answer.

If they are talking about how much they like your product or service, comment with a note of thanks.

There might also be cases where someone talks about their negative experience with your brand.

You can use that opportunity to connect with them and assure them that such a thing won’t happen again. And you can help resolve their issues.

This is also a great space to find out if customers have any suggestions about how you could improve your product. Let them know that you value their feedback and will work on it.

9. Explore Reddit Ads

There is no alternative to quality content in order to succeed in Reddit marketing. However, you can explore the various advertising opportunities on Reddit to bring your content to the forefront much faster.

You can choose to advertise your post on all of Reddit or target specific subreddits.

Social media marketers can choose between two types of Reddit ads – link ads and text ads. Link ads allow you to redirect users to a website outside of Reddit. These can be extremely effective in driving traffic to your website and blog.

You can attempt to entice your audience with promotional offers and discounts.

Text ads, on the other hand, link to a Reddit post which, in turn, can contain more text and links. Text ads can help boost engagement and start conversations about your brand.

Depending on your end objective, you should make judicious use of the different types of ads for Reddit marketing.

10. Create a Calendar

Want to remind users about upcoming events that are linked to your business? Set up a calendar.

It will inform the users about what’s coming up next. At the same time, it can create anticipation.

For inspiration, you can check out the Phillies subreddit. Users always want to know what the team is doing and when games are scheduled.

They regularly update the calendar and rank board to get their fans engaged. This Reddit marketing tactic is extremely helpful when you’re trying to build a community on the social media platform.

the phillies subreddit reddit marketing

Image via Reddit

11. Ask for Feedback

Reddit thrives on people asking honest questions. People go to the platform to ask uncomfortable questions and get truthful answers. That’s a boon for anyone who is getting started with Reddit marketing.

Ask questions on the platform which will help you understand your target customers and what they are looking for. At the same time, you can also build brand awareness.

Before you post questions, just keep in mind that your questions need to be sincere.

For instance, Catchtrips.com, in their soft launch phase, asked Redditors what they thought about their site.

As you can see in the screenshot below, they explained their concept and requested that users test their website.

catchtrips.com reddit marketing

Image via Reddit

This Reddit marketing strategy for them was another way of beta testing. In the comments section, people showed their interest in the idea. Some of them even pointed out features that could make the site better.

Do you see what happened here?

They got a bit of clarity on their users’ needs and promoted their product. Whatever your product or service is, this Reddit marketing strategy can work wonders for you.

Take a leaf from the example mentioned above and put your product out. Introduce it to people and get them to try it.

Listen intently to what they have to say about their experiences with your product.

And it’s not just limited to your product. You can also ask questions about your marketing strategy or social media campaigns.

Whatever it is, you’re bound to attract attention to your brand. If you’re lucky, you may even find some customers in the process.

This Reddit marketing strategy works because it is subtle. You’re asking a transparent question instead of bombarding users with promotional content.

Based on the suggestions you get, you can try experimenting with your products and marketing strategies.

FAQs

Q1. Is Reddit good for marketing?

A. Yes. When strategically done, it can help you increase website traffic, establish your authority, reinforce your reputation, and build audience trust.

Q2. How to use Reddit as a marketing tool?

A. The following are ways you can use Reddit as a marketing tool:

  • Create a profile with your real name since Redditors tend to shun promotional content.
  • Select subreddits relevant to your niche or brand.
  • Share engaging and insightful content without violating subreddit rules.
  • Avoid spamming or posting overly promotional content.
  • Share posts and grow your account.
  • Engage others in the Reddit community and maintain consistency in posting.
  • Start an “Ask me anything” session to get insights into your community's needs and drive engagement.
  • Leverage Reddit for customer service. Use it as a tool where people with questions about your offers can ask them and get direct answers.
  • Use Reddit to get feedback.
  • Promote your products/services with Reddit ads.
  • Use a calendar to inform users about what's coming and to build anticipation.

Q3. How much does it cost to advertise on Reddit?

A. The minimum amount you need to start a campaign is $5 on Reddit. However, this can increase since the final amount depends on your cost per thousand impressions.

Q4. What is Reddit mostly used for?

A. Most people use Reddit for social networking. They join conversations about topics that interest them, share information, and keep up with the latest news and trends.

Q5. How do I promote my brand on Reddit?

A. Start by identifying subreddit topics aligned with your brand and target audience. Then narrow them down to those with many subscribers, and that allow self-promotion or content sharing.

Secondly, engage with the communities in those subreddits by upvoting interesting submissions and sharing valuable content from other blogs or media outlets.

Doing this will help you understand the community before sharing your content and will show that you didn't just join to promote your site.

Once you've gained some footing, start posting your content or promoting in these ways:

  • Sponsor your posts, so they get pinned at the top of subreddits.
  • Host an AMA (ask me anything) session about your industry, product, or brand. Ensure you have an interesting host and that they answer questions fast and in an engaging way.
  • Participate in or create a relevant subreddit where current or prospective customers can discuss reasons they love or hate your brand. They can also use a user-created thread or your thread to comment, compliment, or point out issues with your brand. However, keep an eye on the comments so that you can address issues as fast as they appear.

Q6. Is Reddit a safe site?

A. Reddit is primarily a site made by adults for adults, which means it features lots of adult content.

And although there's moderation, you can find almost anything, including hate speech, violent material, pornography, etc.

It's therefore not a safe site for children.

Q7. Why is Reddit so popular?

A. Reddit's popularity stems from various things, including the fact that it offers a wealth of information for almost every topic you may have an interest in.

Best of all?

You can choose to follow only subreddits with things you care about, share content, catch up with the latest, and interact.

It's also possible to curate your own experience based on what you want to see from different subreddits.

Q8.  Is Reddit free?

A. Yes.

However, you can also subscribe to Reddit Premium at $6.99 per month.

Q9.  Is Reddit safe for privacy?

A. Like any other social media site, Reddit collects information needed to serve adverts based on your interests.

However, they do not pressure you to reveal your true identity, unlike other social sites.

If you take precautions and avoid giving Reddit your email address, posting your location, or providing your real name, you can use the site privately.

Conclusion

Reddit marketing is no longer an idea that you can afford to just play around with. Marketers and business owners are using it vigorously to connect with their audiences and grow their brands.

Following these Reddit marketing tips allows you to engage with relevant communities and become a trusted source of valuable information.

It is high time you recognize its importance and start investing time, capital, and resources into Reddit marketing.

The quality of your content can make or break your Reddit marketing strategy. You should attempt to post content that educates readers and gives them an opportunity to learn something new.

Don’t indulge in unfair practices such as sharing promotional content and begging for upvotes.

Redditors are extremely wary of spammers and will do anything to maintain the sanctity of their platform.

I hope the tips mentioned above help you succeed with Reddit marketing. Are there any effective Reddit marketing tactics that you have used?

Share your thoughts and experiences on how to use Reddit as a marketing tool in the comments section below.

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