Love it or hate it, Reddit is a name that often generates multiple responses from advertisers and businesses alike. For some, Reddit is an opportunity to create relevance and engagement free from the over-saturation of other channels. For others, it is an enigma that consists of lawless forums and mysterious audiences hidden behind cheeky usernames.
It is no secret that Reddit is a different world compared to its fellow social media counterparts. Scroll through Reddit’s feed and you very well may come across a discussion over the best HVAC units. Keep scrolling further and you may be just as likely to find a picture of a cat riding a unicorn.
No matter how you feel, Reddit currently boasts the title of 6th most visited website in the U.S. (ahead of Twitter and Instagram) with more than 330 million active users and more than 6.2 billion visits in 2019 thus far with no sign of slowdown in sight.
At Firehouse, the proof is in the pudding. This year we began testing and integrating Reddit into our paid social strategy across a handful of clients and have been more than impressed with the results. Not only does this platform’s expansive user base result in higher unique impressions at more affordable CPMs, but Reddit has also led the pack in 2019 as one of Firehouse’s most engaging social media platforms – boasting the highest number of quality website engagements, lower bounce rates and longer time on site.
If that’s not enough, here are four reasons why your business should consider adding Reddit into your media mix:
An Untapped Audience
Think of Reddit users as an entirely new and untapped audience resource. While other platforms cater towards and have become heavily saturated amongst younger female audiences, Reddit has become a staple platform for men aged 18 to49 – a market that has become notoriously elusive and difficult to engage in the social media space.
Taking advantage of Reddit means that you will be able to extend your reach further to audiences who otherwise would never engage with your brand or product, which will help your campaigns become more well-rounded, properly scaled and improve awareness-specific KPIs.
Audiences Are More Likely to Engage
Unlike Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, Reddit’s interface does not support quick, mindless scrolling. Instead it focuses heavily on long-form text, detailed videos and in-depth discussion. The average user time on Reddit is more than 15 minutes – and the platform rewards users who are active, engaged and connected.
This means that rather than losing interest three seconds into a video, the average Reddit user may be more likely to stop and digest the content that is placed before them, making this platform a great tool for businesses that are looking to take advantage of brand awareness or long-form messaging.
Interests Are Guaranteed
While platforms like Facebook and Twitter arguably hold some of the most detailed and in-depth interest-based data on any social network, their targeting is not always accurate. With Reddit, the f targeting is more precise because your audience is telling you exactly what their interests are and what is worthwhile to them through subreddit selection.
There are 1.2 million active subreddits called subreddits. These subreddits can vary from broad (books, movies or news) to extremely niche (aquariums, self-driving cars and mechanic advice). Users follow subreddits that fit within their own unique set of interests and then interact accordingly – completely eliminating the need for inaccurate algorithms and guessing games.
Unmatched Brand Safety
A common misconception about Reddit is that it is the wild, wild west of social media platforms, but what if we told you Reddit is more brand safe than Facebook, Instagram and Twitter combined?
In addition to extensive negative keyword implementations, Reddit also boasts a capability that even the largest platforms cannot offer – a human element.
Each subreddit must be owned by a moderator, an individual who approves and monitors all content, posts and requests. This human element helps ensure nothing irrelevant or inappropriate slips through the cracks within each subreddit feed, something other platforms are unable to guarantee.
At the end of the day, whether or not Reddit is a great fit for your business will vary depending on your niche, goals and campaigns. Regardless of where your business stands, don’t be afraid to give Reddit a shot. This platform may be fairly unexplored today, but it won’t stay that way for long.
