Let’s face it – a lot of us, especially those of us who have passed the age of 40, probably don’t know much about the social network called Reddit. Furthermore, had it not been for the recent GameStop short squeeze, triggered on Reddit, some of us could claim today that they’ve never even heard of that social network.
However, for some business owners and advertisers, missing out on Reddit could mean a potential loss, since their target audience may just be waiting for them right there. That’s why we are going to try to understand what kind of businesses Reddit advertising is for. We’ll focus on the demographics of Reddit users, as well as their internet habits and the costs of advertising there. But first, a short introduction for people who are not really familiar with Reddit.
Alt text: “Dive into anything”, Reddit’s slogan.
Source: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/reddit-com-vote-comment-submit-1007072/
The front page of the internet?
Founded in 2005 by three UVa students on spring break, Reddit aspires to be the place for all things social media. A news aggregator, a forum for discussions, or even just a place to share videos of cats being cats – you can probably find it all on Reddit. The Reddit feed is divided into over a million subcategories called subreddits, ranging from politics and health to funny photos of things that look like faces.
“As a social network, Reddit stands out from the big guys like Facebook and Twitter, simply because it doesn’t make an effort to attract billions of users, but rather to give users a reason to spend a lot of time on it,” told us Jonathan Greenwood from Crystalead, a leading digital marketing firm operating worldwide. “In other words, Reddit works hard, so you’ll end up scrolling through its content longer than you had originally planned.”
And the numbers don’t lie. The average visit to Reddit lasts a whole minute longer than a visit to Facebook and almost twice as long as a visit to Instagram. Naturally, more time spent on Reddit means exposure to more ads, which come either in the form of side banners or promoted content (marked by Reddit, as you can see in this example).
Alt text: On the left, promoted content advertising. On the right, a banner advertisement
Source: https://www.reddit.com/
Is your target audience on Reddit?
For starters, you must know that Reddit, with its 430 million monthly active users, is very popular in the United States, but attracts much less attention elsewhere. That’s right, more than half of Reddit’s active users are American. Also, the most common age of a reddit user is, surprisingly, 27. Not too young, but certainly not very old.
Is this the right target audience for you? Ready to start campaigning on Reddit? Hold on to your wallet for just another second. There’s something else you need to know. “Reddit is considered an avant-garde social network, especially when compared to mainstream platforms like Facebook, YouTube and TikTok,” added Greenwood. “This means that its users are a bit harder to crack, advertising-wise. Your content needs to be more sophisticated in order to gain attention.
“We at Crystalead, for example, believe in lead generation as the future of online advertising. This means campaigning on social media with the goal of collecting contact information, like a telephone number or email address, rather than trying to close sales online. That way, the business can sell using more personal and direct contact. With the audience of Reddit being as skeptical as it is toward promoted content, this may just be the right direction for you as well, if you’re thinking about Reddit advertising.”
Alt text: So many options…
Source: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/mobile-phone-smartphone-app-1087845/
How much does it cost?
With Reddit, you can choose a daily/lifetime budget for an ad, or go for the bidding system, common in other social media platforms. Costs aren’t as high as they would be in other networks, since the audience is smaller, and the targeting isn’t as precise. If you’re interested in lead generation, perhaps choosing a bidding system and going for CPC (cost per click) would suit you.
One thing you do need to keep in mind, though, is that you must do your research. Reddit Ads allow you to choose the subreddit you want to advertise on. Don’t choose subreddits just by their sound and popularity. Look at the content posted on it, especially the more popular and upvoted content, and then make your decision. Trust us, it will save you a lot of money and time.