When brainstorming for a pitch, more often than not, the brief wants to reach the target audience effectively, but in the same breath, authentically. To put it plainly, what brands are often really asking for is access to how people actually think and talk – they want to build trust and tap into community in a human way.
PR does a good job of bridging gaps between brands and communities; however, there’s one area that is somewhat untapped despite being a beacon of raw, unfiltered opinions, viewpoints, and personal stories.
It’s Reddit.
With digital algorithms curating feeds and sometimes even influencing us to the point of a personal rebrand, it’s often the case that they prioritise numbers over honesty. In fact, only recently have algorithms started to inform their audiences about potential misinformation, though it is often contested as biased by the audiences themselves. Nonetheless, Reddit remains somewhat uncompromised by this.
Ever searched for an incredibly specific dilemma or situation? Chances are, there’s a Reddit thread out there detailing the exact one, with sometimes tough but genuinely helpful advice from the Reddit community.
It’s a cultural hotbed because it sits comfortably outside of mainstream social media – users don’t gain anything by being polished, aspirational or agreeable with the masses. Its charm is being unapologetically real.
So, as much as it’s great for our personal lives, there’s also an opportunity for PRs to tap into niche subcultures without relying on mainstream perspectives that can often pigeonhole a group.
Reddit for PR people
It’s important to first understand that Redditors do not exactly want to be approached by brands, regardless of whether they do so overtly or covertly.
Reddit is built around communities, not audiences, and that shows in the platform’s functions. Comments can be upvoted or downvoted by others, meaning status is earned through the contents of their contributions rather than reach. That’s why commercial messaging is nearly always met with resistance or dismissal, because it largely stands out like a sore thumb.
Though when it comes to PR, Reddit is best used when we’re completely undetected. Value lies less in participation and more in observation, and it’s especially meaningful when realising that it is quite literally how people think and talk to each other on topics when they aren’t being marketed to. In other words, when they aren’t in a digital panopticon.
It’s an unprompted insight that can identify stress points, unconsidered marketing segments, and blind spots, to name a few.
Simply including Reddit in your search terms can uncover a whole world of information to support your response to a brief, and could lead to a goldmine of authentic accounts and stories from the community… After all, all the best ideas are grounded in real, relevant data. This often leads to a snowball effect, where you start to see a pattern in opinion emerge amongst certain groups, best used as either the launchpad for an idea or a culturally relevant evidence point.
That’s not to say there aren’t ads; Reddit has an opportunity for brands to interact on threads with the Ask Me Anything (AMA) format, along with a more traditional image or video advertisement.
Interestingly, when it comes to image or video advertisements, major brands adapt their messaging to fit into the Reddit style. Brands that do it right, and are met with the least backlash by Redditors, are ones that tap into memes, use a humorous tone, or address Redditors directly in their Call To Action.
Reddit’s General Popularity
The platform has an estimated 1.1 billion monthly active users, as well as 97.2 million daily users [Hubspot], which, for a non-conforming online platform, suggests there are masses of people looking for community and are doing well in building it.
In essence, Reddit has become something of a virtual third space, with Redditors spending an average of 25 minutes per day on Reddit. In fact, its style of being a conversation-heavy platform is what sets it apart from a 3-hour doomscroll on TikTok or Reels. It signifies an intentional interaction, not determined by who has the most followers, but rather what a user wants to discuss or read about.
The 25-minute average, in comparison to a lengthy scroll, mimics something of a conversation with your local coffee shop barista or someone on the train – it’s realistic.
There’s no cookie-cutter user; yes, Gen Z loves it, but at the same time, there are plenty of Gen Xers typing away much-needed life advice for the Millennial facing a crisis. So for brands that truly want to resonate with their audiences, it would be amiss to look over Reddit, especially when it’s as easy as adding one extra word in the search bar.
Conclusion
For brands serious about cultural relevance, overlooking Reddit means overlooking one of the few remaining spaces where people still speak primarily to each other – not to an algorithm, and not to a perceived audience.
Reddit doesn’t offer easy visibility or guaranteed goodwill. What it offers instead is something far more valuable: a view of culture before it’s packaged, optimised, or flattened.
And for any brand attempting to understand the ripple effects of real human behaviour, that should be reason enough to pay attention.
