Reddit is a marketing powerhouse. According to Similarweb, Reddit gets 6.112B of clicks per month. It ranks for just about any Google search query these days.
It is a marketing channel not to miss!
Here’s how you can use Reddit in your marketing strategy.
1. Market Research
Does your business spend hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars on focus groups, surveys, and interviews?
Granted, not all research methods can be achieved through Reddit, but the results from focus groups can be mirrored fairly well. The important thing is learning how to research on Reddit, which is free. Let’s say your business is in the auto industry. Head on over to the Autos subreddit and start combing content. Here is an example topic I found:
Sift through more content and you’ll discover what the gearheads really enjoy. We can extract quality information this way. There are thousands of subreddits and chances are your business is relevant to at least one of them.
2. Lead Generation
Redditors are notorious for renders of fluff, marketing – especially marketing fluff. Redditors are also notorious for up-voting information that is genuinely practical or insightful. So, how do we use this information to generate leads?
Prospect them.
It’s challenging because there are many rules and social customs to learn; however, it can prove immense value to businesses when done properly.
Profiler is a free Google Chrome extension that uses AI to analyze any Reddit user’s activity. If you are doing audience research or outreach on Reddit, this is a great way to get additional insights.
3. Advertising
Digital advertising must surely be a part of your budget. Reddit offers advertising solutions in a very unique way. For starters, any ad that Reddit accepts can be discussed in the Ads subreddit.
Also, Reddit has been very transparent with how they make money. They continually seek to improve the user experience, and as a business, you can learn a lot from the comment sections –in terms of what type of ad content Redditors prefer.
4. Brand Image and Reputation
A tenet of many businesses is community service and philanthropy. Some businesses go above and beyond to create their own fundraising events. Redditors appreciate humble philanthropy. You don’t want to sound spammy, but you want to get the word out. See this example.
Take an awesome picture of your community service or philanthropy event, give it a good title like the example, and submit it to an appropriate subreddit. Pictures have the potential to launch your submission to the front page. Other subreddits may be more appropriate if they complement the theme of your event.
Your business name is associated with the event, which positively influences brand image. Furthermore, with enough up-votes you have a better chance of reaching the eyes of an editor, say Mashable, and landing a mention or even a feature story. Reddit can be an effective addition to your digital business card if you use it properly.
5. Boost Website Traffic
The key to boosting website traffic through Reddit takes a lot of practice. This is a task for your content strategist.
Encourage them to subscribe to relevant subreddits and spend some time on a weekly basis reading what others share and engaging with others’ threads.
Listening is the first step to understanding how Reddit works.
Then, use their experience to develop a Reddit-friendly content strategy. Reddit is an unlimited source of content ideas for your blog or newsletter.
Create content that is well-received on Reddit, and share it with the community where it makes sense.
6. Improving Employee Morale
One sign of an awesome business is happy employees. Don’t be afraid to have fun on Reddit, in fact, if you’re not having fun while trying these tactics, abandon ship.
Redditors appreciate transparency and new ideas.
Use this to your advantage by showing the inside of your business. Literally. Does your office have a certain feng shui? Submit it to /Design. Make sure everyone in the office knows about the post so they can contribute to the conversation.
Reddit is an invaluable yet underutilized marketing resource for businesses of all sizes. With its massive user base and hyper-targeted communities, Reddit offers multiple opportunities for market research, lead generation, brand building, and increasing website traffic.
However, to successfully leverage Reddit, businesses must invest time in understanding the platform’s unique culture. Providing value to the Reddit community is key. With the right approach, Reddit’s crowdsourced wisdom and viral nature can amplify any business’s marketing strategy.
Image: Depositphotos
This article, “6 Reasons to Use Reddit for Marketing” was first published on Small Business Trends