Is Your Brand Missing Out by Not Being There?
Today, March 4th (read: march forth!), is the only date that is an actual command; here at Marketsmith, we take that command seriously. It’s essential for us to always be ahead of the curve, proactively seeking out opportunities to present to clients and partners. That’s why we love celebrating progress forward. And with the rapidly changing social landscape, we wanted to provide insight into the super-hot platform, Reddit, and how marketers can take advantage now. As a marketer, one must strategically and meaningfully activate on social channels by understanding the strengths (and weaknesses) of each channel. Late 2020, we deciphered Facebook’s new ad updates regarding offline conversions and ad fatigue alerts. Today, we will dive into Why Reddit?, based on their audience, targeting capabilities, and ad products available.
The Reddit Audience
Redditors are often younger, passionate people with specific interests looking for a more trusted environment to exchange information and dialogue. Redditors also have a unique appreciation for meme culture and humor, as they often are the engine behind jokes and trends that spread onto other social platforms. Here are some stats reported by the company:
- Larger audiences in niche segments (gamers, tech, fashion, film fans, etc.)
- Skews Millennial/Gen Z, with 58% of users between 18-34
- Time on mobile site: 36 minutes per day
- Unique reach with little duplication on other platforms (47% of Redditors are not on Instagram, while 69% of Redditors are not on TikTok)
Targeting on Reddit
Similar to Facebook, you can target users based on:
- Location: Country, DMA
- Device
- Interest Groups
However, there are some major differences. It is not ideal to target by zip code because the platform uses the location of the user when they are on the app, thus hurting performance. Reddit does offer Community and Expansion targeting options, allowing the advertiser to engage with users in specific communities, as well as expand targeting to people who engage with the selected interests of the campaign. This is different than Facebook’s lookalike modeling, as the interests of Reddit users (and community ties) are much more pronounced.
Reddit’s Ad Products
Reddit’s ad units allow brands to natively reach consumers. Typically, the units are built with all of the elements that resemble a standard Reddit post. As users arrive to Reddit, they are in search of information. It’s similar to creating an ad for Google in the sense that you want to provide some sort of answer to a consumer question, immediately establishing trust and competency.
- Promoted Post/Video Unit: Native content, bought on ad auction (CPM, CPC, CPV)
- Category Takeover: First brand seen in top subreddits within category of choosing
- Front Page Takeover: Own the front page for 24 hours
- Reddit Takeover: First brand seen when users visit main site
- Trending Takeover: Exclusive brand seen in Trending Today (similar to Twitter)
The Playbook for Marketers and Brands
You should consider activating on Reddit if your brand/product:
- Relates to gaming, tech, finance, fashion, or current events
- Communicates a specific message and has a point of view
- Has a sense of humor (plays into meme culture, creates memes, etc.)
- Is/can be a source of knowledge and information
To activate, you should:
- Research relevant, existing threads that relate to your brand or message. Then, create content that adds value to those existing conversations (you don’t have to be Hasbro to connect with members in the r/boardgames subreddit)
- Add value to audience members by participating in or empowering dialogue (debate topics, support with evidence and data, etc.)
