If you’ve searched for a product review on Google recently, you’ve likely noticed a trend in the results. For example, a search for “Best SaaS” will often show Reddit threads among the top non-sponsored links.
Reddit’s increasing visibility on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs) is relatively new. As of July 2024, Reddit ranked fifth among U.S. sites in terms of visibility in Google’s organic search results — up from 68th a year prior. This dramatic rise means brands that once dominated top rankings for a long time are now being displaced by Reddit threads.
Some speculate that Reddit’s recent AI licensing partnership with Google may have contributed to this surge in visibility, though Google denies any preferential treatment.
For B2B marketers, this presents an exciting opportunity. Reddit, often referred to as “the front page of the internet,” is now a direct route to Google’s first page of results, blending the mechanics of social media marketing and SEO in intriguing ways.
With a strategic approach, B2B marketers can improve organic traffic, increase brand visibility, and engage directly with key decision-makers.
Source: SEMRUSH – [Reddit Organic Traffic]
Why your B2B brand should pay attention to Reddit
There was a time when a mention of Reddit among friends would draw a quizzical look. That time has since passed. When Reddit debuted its IPO in March 2024, it caught the attention of business analysts and marketers alike. Questions shifted from “Isn’t that site just for memes and niche hobbies?” to “How can we leverage this platform to grow our business?”
No, Reddit isn’t just a place for people to share memes, engage in political discussion, and argue over whether or not Al Pacino should have won an Oscar for The Godfather Part 2. It’s home to the second-largest audience of B2B decision-makers, with three out of four saying they planned to use Reddit to inform future purchasing decisions.
The 100,000+ niche communities called subreddits offer a place for users to discuss endless topics, and perhaps most importantly (in this case) business topics — we’re talking trends, professional development, business services, product showcases, and so much more.
Reddit offers an once-in-a-very-long-time opportunity for marketers; a chance for businesses to engage with key decision makers, industry experts, and potential customers in a manner that’s organic and valuable. The convergence of organic social media, paid advertising, and SEO on Reddit make it an essential platform to consider as a part of your B2B marketing strategy.
Building authentic connections on Reddit
While it’s hard to believe the business dealings between Reddit and Google haven’t had some impact on the site’s visibility spike we’ve seen, this prioritization also aligns with something the search giant has been increasingly emphasizing: authenticity in the age of AI.
Reddit features real people sharing real experiences and expertise. Here are some ways your brand can tap into this air of authenticity.
Engaging with niche communities
The heart of Reddit lies in its niche communities. Whether it’s SaaS, telecom, or even a quirky hobby like magnet fishing, there’s a subreddit for it. For B2B marketers, this targeted segmentation is a goldmine. You can engage with users who are genuinely interested in your industry or product category.
If you’re curious as to why so many visit Reddit, think about the number of sponsored articles, astroturfed rating sites, and paid reviews that you’ve encountered when searching for honest information. Users choose the platform over mainstays like Google, Amazon, Twitter/X, Instagram, and Snapchat because they believe the posts and comments are more trustworthy. This is backed up by the data point that 90% of users trust Reddit to learn about new products and brands.
When participating in discussion on subreddits, brands should tread carefully, taking intentional steps to ensure contributions are helpful and not blatantly promotional. Otherwise, you open yourself to downvotes, an action users can take if they do not like or agree with the comment or post, which will severely diminish the visibility of your contribution. To ensure your brand is accepted and not labeled as some sort of self-promotional bot, take care to participate in relevant subreddit and stay on topic. For example, if your brand provides Saas solutions for remote work, engaging in subreddits like r/remotework, r/telecommuting, or r/digitalnomad can position your brand as an authority.
Creating value-driven content
On Reddit, content is king — but it has to offer immediate value to your audience. Purely promotional posts will likely result in downvotes. Instead, focus on sharing educational resources like whitepapers, case studies, industry reports, or how-to guides. These types of content are more likely to be embraced by the community when shared at the right moment.
Reddit’s constant stream of discussions provides an excellent opportunity to understand the challenges and questions your target audience has. Use this information to create content that solves problems, sparks conversation, and offers genuine insight. Transparency and relevance are key.
AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions
What would you do if you could ask your favorite brand anything? Personally, I’d ask Netflix why their algorithm continues to suggest I watch Air Bud.
On a more serious note, Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything sessions ) offer a way for you to interact directly with your audience and build credibility and trust while simultaneously humanizing your brand. This Q&A format also gives you the opportunity to provide educational resources without coming off as overly promotional, something that I’ll continue to empathize as a death sentence on the platform. The questions and feedback provided aren’t just good for keeping the conversation going either; what you’re getting in return for hosting is valuable market insights on your target audience, all without spending a dime!
Paid advertising opportunities on Reddit
If you’re a Reddit user, you may have noticed an influx of ads in your feed. To many, this isn’t much of a surprise as ads are the platform’s largest source of revenue, and the March IPO, if anything, only increased that number (shareholders rise up!).
As of now, Reddit’s advertising has six different ad types, most of which are similar to options on competing platforms: image, video and carousel, for example. Free form, conversation, product, and AMA round out their “promoted post” options.
If these ad types aren’t enough, the platform has a variety of options they call “High Impact Offerings.” This includes, Reddit Takeover, Category Takeover, and First View.
Should you advertise on Reddit? Consider this
Reddit’s full-funnel targeting may be tempting for today’s B2B marketers. But is the juice worth the squeeze?
- You can reach new audiences: 68% of Redditors are not on LinkedIn and 59% are not on Twitter/X.
- High user engagement: Reddit boasts around 500 million monthly active users, who are known for their high level of interaction with content. Users are 22% more likely to actively seek information on Reddit compared to other platforms
- Targeting capabilities: With over 100,000 communities, advertisers can ensure they appear in hyper-relevant subreddits.
- Brand trust: Users are 46% more likely to trust the brand because it’s advertised on Reddit instead of other sites.
The convergence of SEO and Reddit
What once may have been overlooked by SEO strategists, can’t be anymore. The Reddit.com domain is now the third-most visible domain in Google US search, only behind Wikipedia and Amazon.
Why is the platform surging to the top of Google SERPs, and why does it appear to be shielded from any of the recent Google algorithm updates? Steve Paine, SISTRIX, points to their search intent data, which reveals that most of the queries relate to informational search intent often associated with user research.
(Source: SISTRIX)
Of course, there are several other factors as to why the platform continues to rank high:
User Engagement: Reddit threads are a hotbed for discussion. We’ve seen threads created over 10 years ago that still receive comments.
New, User Generated Content: Google will always prioritize fresh, relevant content, and Reddit users are happy to accommodate.
Valuable Content: Threads from subreddit are filled with experts, offering up their helpful thought leadership and links to resources.
What does a Reddit social media strategy look like?
- Identify relevant subreddits: Subreddit search is your best bet for finding niche communities that align with your industry and target audience. Look for subreddits where decision-makers and industry experts frequently discuss trends, products, and services related to your business.
- Make your presence known: Participate in discussions and share your expert advice. Don’t limit your brand handle to being a glorified help desk. And, remember, don’t self promote.
- Create utilitarian content: At the end of the day, you want to provide something of value to the community members. Give them more than one reason to keep you around by providing content like how-to guides, case studies, infographics and the like.
- Leverage Reddit ads: You can start experimenting for as little as $5.00 a day. Use its targeted ad capabilities to test the various formats that include video, image, AMA, and more across a variety of nice communities.
- Utilize the SEO power of Reddit: Monitor threads where your brand and/or product are mentioned. Participate in those threads or create your own valuable content that can be picked up by Google’s search engine, giving your brand higher visibility in SERPs.
- Use polls to gather feedback: Engage your audience with polls or surveys in subreddits related to your industry. Use this feedback to adjust your marketing strategies, product development, or customer service initiatives.
Putting it all together
Leveraging Reddit as part of your organic and paid B2B marketing strategy presents unique opportunities at the intersection of SEO and social media. By being patient and interacting organically on your targeted niche subreddits, you can build a presence that’s both trusted and welcomed with open arms. This in turn can help you generate organic traffic, earn backlinks, and gain market insights not found anywhere else. For more immediate results, Reddit ads complement organic efforts by providing targeted visibility to niche subreddits.
As SEO and social continue to converge, Reddit serves as a key platform where brands can foster both engagement and discoverability. Learn how TopRank Marketing brings key channels like these together into integrated marketing strategy and planning.