Reddit marketing

Reddit has one of the sharpest, most sceptical userbases on the internet. They can spot a marketer immediately — and if they do, the best case is your post gets buried. Worst case, your domain or brand gets blacklisted from subreddits permanently.

Spend a couple of months using it like a normal person first. Comment on someone's cat photo. Get into a debate in a tech forum. Post something that has nothing to do with your business. Understand how karma works, why anonymity shapes the culture, and why people there have such a low tolerance for anything that smells like promotion.

Once you actually get it, then think about marketing on it.

It depends entirely on whether your brand has the kind of following that would actually show up and talk to each other. Brands with cult-like communities can pull it off well — the subreddit becomes a place where customers connect, share tips, give feedback, and advocate for you organically. For most businesses though, a branded subreddit just sits empty, which looks worse than not having one at all. And if you are going to create one, make sure you are actually active and monitor it and respond to questions, comments and reviews.

Good examples of brands that have made it work and why:

r/GoPro — over 175k members. GoPro share outstanding user videos and invite the wider photography community in. The content practically creates itself.

r/LifeOnPurple — Purple Mattress built what is essentially a live focus group. Customers post reviews, flag issues, and get input from other users and the Purple team directly.