Best practices: Reddit Ads
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Copy and creative best practices for making standout ads on Reddit
You've probably heard redditors are, ahem, picky with their platform. We're here to officially set the record straight—they're not picky, they're passionate.
And even better? They actually want to hear from brands. Here’s your complete guide to walk the walk and talk the talk to connect with your audience on Reddit.
5 Key themes for successful ads
1. Build for mobile
ICYMI: People are on their phones a lot. Ground breaking insight, we know. But with 75%1 of the global Reddit audience accessing the platform via mobile, it means you better be optimizing your ads for prime phone and tablet consumption. Here’s how:
Your winning ratio
Video ads perform best in 4:5, and static ads are great in 4:5 or 1:1 ratios. Discover uses the large real estate of this static ad to showcase bold overlay text that stands out.
54% lower CPA — 4:5 videos have a lower cost per acquisition over a 28-day period.
Don’t overlook overlay
Redditors definitely don’t. Stop them mid-scroll with attention-grabbing, descriptive overlay in your ad design.
Did you see this Joe & the Juice example? Of course you did. How could you miss it?
32% higher CTR—audiences on Reddit are more likely to click on ads with text overlay.
Watch and listen
We agree, redditors are brilliant. But they’re most likely not expert lip readers. Universal UK followed this hot tip and used closed captions to stand out and drive downstream performance.
2.1x positivity—brands are more likely to see positive lift in Brand Favorability when ads include closed captions.
Be your Brand-self
2. Be your brand-self
Redditors don’t dislike ads, they dislike sneaky ads. Trying to disguise your ads as native content may be tempting, but you’ll gain engagement (and trust!) with ads that are just ads.
The new brand transparency
Let’s start with the basics: bring your brand into the ad. Logo placement in the top left corner gets you an A+. But you’ll still pass if you mention your brand name in the headline. Looking for extra credit? For video ads, show your brand within the first 3 seconds.
131% revenue increase—including clear branding in your ad will lead to higher average revenue.
3. Go ahead, show off
Make your ad valuable by showing how your products work, communicating the reason to buy, or giving a preview of them being consumed. Get creative, redditors want to see your product in action.
Show your product
Seems self-explanatory, right? We think so too ... Take a note from MeUndies and bare it all.
1.5x awareness—brands are more likely to see positive lift in Aided Brand Awareness when products are shown in their ads.
Generate FOMO
Experiment with limited-time offers and/or discount codes. Extra upvotes if it’s a Reddit-specific promotion to really show your target audience some love.
24% more clicks—deals and offers get all the extra clicks.
4. Reddit like Reddit
Demonstrate you’ve done your homework by incorporating redditors’ unique lingo and behaviors into your campaign.
Talk the talk
ICYMI redditors have their own language and TIL it matters a lot if you incorporate it into your ads. And yes, that includes calling out specific subreddits like Adrenaline does here.
201% higher advertiser median revenue—a little extra attention to your ad copy can lead to a lot of extra love for your brand.
Shorter headlines, longer videos
Show you understand the way redditors consume content. Keep headlines under 150 characters for easy reading. But test videos of different lengths. We found the sweet spot to be 60 seconds.
Be Prescriptive
5. Be prescriptive
In case you haven’t picked up on this theme, your target audience on Reddit values transparency and clear direction. Consider your call-to-action a top priority and redditors will too.
Call the shots with your CTA
Get redditors ready to “learn more,” “explore the products,” or “buy now” by including a CTA in your headline. Running a video ad? Make sure it’s included there too! Tails.com doubled down and saw 33% higher ROAS compared to other channels2.
1.3x increase in ad awareness—by including a clear call-to-action, you’ll not only gain clicks and revenue but brand awareness too.
Resources for better ads
The technical side of ad best practices
Find the specifics of ad requirements in the help center.
Your checklist for 10/10 performance
Are your ads ready for Reddit? Go through this simple checklist to answer with a strong yes.
Join our community
Have questions about any of these best practices? Looking for marketers just like you? You can do it all in our Reddit community.
See it in action
Dive into the data behind our tips and tricks.
1 Reddit Internal, Global, 2022, App&Web
2 Reddit & Client Internal; Fospha
All engagement statistics in the 5 Key Themes are from: Kantar Brand Lift Data on Reddit April 1, 2022 to October 1, 2022; CTR, CPA Reddit Internal Data April 1, 2022 to October 1, 2022; Installs and Revenue MMP Partners and Internal Reddit Data April 1, 2022 to October 1, 2022