To get your brand on Reddit, hire someone who already loves Reddit
AI search tools cite forums heavily, giving smaller brands a way in if they show up the right way.
Embracing Marketing Mistakes · EP 129: Unbounce's VP Of Marketing Explains What Actually Wins AI Search Visibility NowVal Riley, the vice president of marketing at software company Unbounce, pays a contractor to be on Reddit and represent her brands there. For a challenger brand trying to be cited in answers from artificial intelligence tools, she says, forums offer a way to break in.
That marks a turnaround from how Riley once viewed Reddit. About eight years ago, she recalled talking with an employee who handled social media who called Reddit "a snake" and said, "I feel like it could bite me at any moment or be my friend." Today, Riley says places like Reddit and Quora are the darling of GEO, the effort to become visible in AI search, and forums that mattered little for traditional search now matter a lot.
Riley said she did not take someone fresh off her team and put that person in charge of Reddit. She sought out a contractor who participates in Reddit regularly and enjoys it, who knows the culture and both the community guidelines and the community vibe.
She described the work through her own examples: maybe slide into this subreddit, maybe answer a question here, maybe come forward as the brand around a big new release. It is, she said, about what is appropriate, and it has to feel authentic.
That authenticity is the point, Riley said, because you cannot fake it anymore. Riley said "if you just roll up and start spamming," "it's not gonna be a good experience," and she agreed that regulars quickly spot outsiders. Her advice, Riley said, is "to find someone with experience in" Reddit to do it right.
Questions people ask
Why do AI search tools cite Reddit so much?
Large language models were trained on large amounts of public web text, which includes years of detailed Reddit discussions, and some AI companies have since signed licensing deals to keep accessing it. The tools also tend to favor firsthand experience and direct answers, which question-and-answer threads provide. That makes a helpful Reddit comment more likely to be quoted than a generic company blog post.
Should that contractor say they work for the brand?
Yes. Most discussion boards require disclosure of affiliation, and Reddit's own rules against spam expect transparency about promotion. A simple line like "I work with [company]" preserves trust and keeps the account from being banned. Undisclosed promotion, once discovered, usually does lasting damage to the brand.
How do I find someone like that?
Start in the discussion boards where your customers already ask questions, and notice who answers well and consistently. Freelance sites and marketing communities can also help, but ask to see an actual Reddit history, not just a resume. Look for years of normal participation, a feel for different community norms, and a willingness to sometimes recommend against your product.