You might have heard of Reddit recently, due to the Gamestop share price boom that was largely driven by an investment forum on the site. This hugely popular online forum allows users to create their own forums and chat groups.
Reddit combines web content, social news, a social network and a forum into one platform. Registered users of Reddit can contribute to forums with content such as text, video, links or images. All content on Reddit can be voted up or down by other members. This means that the best and most relevant content tends to be voted to the top of news feeds. Users can subscribe to their favourite Reddits, so that their most popular feeds appear on their personal Reddit home page.
Registered users can talk about anything and there are forums for everything from news, history and travel through to business, technology and investing. There are around 140,000 active forums on the site, and users can read and participate in all of them freely, except private Reddits, which require admission from the users, who have set up and manage that particular forum.
Reddit is a good platform for businesses to use if they want to interact with people who have an interest in a particular industry or market sector. For example, if your customers are in the auto trade, then you could interact with them on a Reddit group that is focused on running an automotive business.
With the right approach, you can use Reddit as a tool to build an online network. Once you have built up a good following of users on Reddit, you can announce new product launches, special offers and updates on your Reddit group.
You can also use Reddit groups to undertake market research. You could post questions to users on your forum regarding industry trends, their view on what would add value or even discuss challenges that are being faced by particular industry sectors.
If you plan to use Reddit as a marketing tool, it is best to start out as a member. Choose the groups that are relevant to you and your business and start participating in those groups. This will help you to build credibility in your chosen community, before you start your own forum.
As with all social media, posting original content that engages with your target market in a genuine way is the key to success. Give more than you take and don’t spend too much time promoting products or services. Share helpful tips and ideas with people in your industry sector or target market in order to build your brand.
