Last month I was scrolling through Reddit at 2am (yeah, I know) trying to find customers on Reddit for my SaaS. I stumbled onto a thread in r/SaaS where someone was literally describing the exact problem my tool solves.

I left a helpful comment. No pitch, just solid advice based on my experience.

Three days later? That person signed up for the paid plan. Became one of my best customers.

That is when it clicked. Reddit is not just a place to waste time - it is where your next 100 customers are having conversations right now. The question is: how do you find them?

Why Reddit is a Goldmine for B2B Leads

Look, I get it. You have tried Facebook ads. LinkedIn outreach. Cold email sequences that get 2% open rates on a good day.

And here is the thing about Reddit that most marketers completely miss:

People on Reddit are actively discussing their problems. Not scrolling mindlessly. Not ignoring your ads. They are literally typing out "I need help with X" and waiting for answers.

A few stats that blew my mind:

Reddit has over 1.5 billion monthly visitors
Users add "reddit" to Google searches specifically because they trust community answers over blog posts
Niche subreddits have hyper-engaged audiences you cannot reach anywhere else

The problem? Finding these conversations manually is like drinking from a fire hose. There are 100,000+ active subreddits. New posts every second. By the time you find a relevant thread, someone else already answered.

The Wrong Way to Find Customers on Reddit

Before I show you what works, let me save you some pain. Here is what does NOT work:

The Spam Approach

You know the type. They join r/entrepreneur, immediately post "Check out my app!" and wonder why they got banned within 24 hours.

Reddit has a word for this: shadowban. Your posts become invisible. You think you are contributing but nobody sees anything. I have seen accounts with 50+ posts that were completely invisible for months.

The Lurker Approach

Some founders take the opposite extreme. They spend hours reading Reddit but never engage. They are afraid of saying the wrong thing.

Here is the reality: if you never comment, you never get noticed. Simple as that.

The Manual Search Grind

This is what I did for way too long. Every morning:

Open 15 subreddits in different tabs
Search for keywords manually
Sort by New to find fresh threads
Try to remember which posts I already responded to

It worked... sort of. But I was spending 2+ hours daily just on Reddit monitoring. And still missing tons of relevant conversations.

What Actually Works: A Data-Driven Approach

Okay so here is the thing. The founders who are crushing it on Reddit are not spending more time. They are spending smarter time.

They use tools to find conversations. Then they spend their energy on what matters: providing genuinely helpful responses.

Step 1: Identify Your Target Subreddits

First, you need to figure out where your ideal customers hang out. For a SaaS targeting marketers, that might be:

r/SaaS (general SaaS discussion)
r/Entrepreneur (startup founders)
r/digital_marketing (marketing professionals)
r/startups (early-stage companies)
r/smallbusiness (SMB owners)

But here is the trick: the obvious subreddits are also the most crowded. Everyone is pitching there.

The real gold is in niche subreddits. r/realestateinvesting if you sell CRM for real estate. r/ecommerce if you have a Shopify tool. r/freelance if you target solopreneurs.

I use Reddit Toolbox to discover related subreddits I would never find manually. You enter one subreddit, and it shows you similar communities your target audience visits.

Step 2: Find High-Intent Conversations

Not all Reddit threads are equal. Some are just people venting. Others have clear buying intent.

The magic keywords to look for:

Problem Indicators:

"frustrated with..."
"looking for alternatives to..."
"anyone else struggling with..."
"is there a tool that..."

Buying Intent:

"recommendations for..."
"what do you use for..."
"best [tool category] in 2025"
"worth paying for..."

When you find someone asking "What is the best project management tool for a 5-person team?" - that is someone ready to buy. They just need guidance.

Step 3: Respond With Genuine Value

This is where most people screw up. They find a great thread and immediately paste their sales pitch.

Nope. Wrong. Will get you banned.

Here is my formula for comments that convert:

Acknowledge their specific situation - Show you actually read their post
Share relevant experience - "I had the same problem when..."
Provide actionable advice - Give them something useful even if they never buy
Mention your solution naturally - IF it is genuinely relevant

Real example of what works:

"Been there with the email chaos. We tried 4 different tools before finding something that stuck. The key for us was X feature. [Tool name] worked for our team, though the learning curve was about a week. Happy to share our setup if you want."

Notice I am not saying "BUY MY TOOL IT IS AMAZING." I am sharing experience and offering to help more.

Step 4: Scale Without Being Spammy

Here is where tools become essential. You cannot manually monitor 20 subreddits for relevant keywords. Well, you can. But you will burn out in a week.

What I do now:

Set up keyword alerts for my niche terms
Get notified when relevant posts appear
Respond to 3-5 high-quality threads per day (max)
Track which subreddits generate actual signups

That last point is crucial. Not all subreddits convert equal. r/SaaS might get you lots of comments but few sales. A tiny subreddit like r/msp (managed service providers) might drive 10x more revenue per interaction.

I use Reddit Toolbox to track this stuff. It exports data to CSV so I can see exactly which communities are worth my time.

Advanced Reddit Lead Generation Tactics

Once you have the basics down, here are some next-level moves:

The Comment Hijack

Find popular posts in your niche (1000+ upvotes). Add a genuinely valuable comment. Even on old posts, your comment might get seen by thousands of people searching for that topic.

Why this works: Reddit posts rank insanely well on Google. "Best CRM for startups reddit" is a real search query. When someone Googles that, they land on a Reddit thread, and if your helpful comment is there...

The Pain Point Analysis

This one is a bit more strategic. Instead of responding to individual posts, collect data on what problems people mention most frequently.

I scrape hundreds of posts from relevant subreddits, then use AI to categorize the pain points. This tells me:

What features my product should highlight
What blog content to create
Which marketing messages will resonate

Honestly, this market research alone is worth the effort. Forget surveys - Reddit is raw, unfiltered customer feedback.

The "Ask for Feedback" Play

Once you have some karma built up, you can post asking for feedback on your product. But there is a right way to do this:

Be honest about being the founder
Ask specific questions, not "what do you think?"
Actually implement suggestions (and tell people you did)

The subreddit r/SideProject is great for this. So is r/alphaandbetausers.

Tools for Reddit Customer Discovery

Alright, I have mentioned tools a few times. Here is the honest breakdown:

| Tool | Price | Best For | |------|-------|----------| | Reddit Toolbox | Free tier available | Scraping posts, finding subreddits, AI analysis | | GummySearch | $50+/month | Keyword monitoring, enterprise features | | F5Bot | Free | Simple keyword alerts (limited) | | Manual | Free | Losing your mind |

Full disclosure: Reddit Toolbox is my own tool. That is how I got into this whole Reddit marketing thing - I built something to scratch my own itch.

The UI could use work, not gonna lie. But it runs locally so there is no API limits, and the free tier includes 30 searches per day. Enough to find dozens of potential customers without spending anything.

Try Reddit Toolbox here - no credit card required.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Let me save you from learning these the hard way:

Mistake 1: Posting links too early

Reddit hates self-promotion from new accounts. Build karma first. Contribute value. Then, when relevant, you can share your own stuff.

Mistake 2: Copy-pasting the same response

Redditors can smell a template from a mile away. Every response needs to be tailored to that specific thread.

Mistake 3: Ignoring the rules

Every subreddit has different rules. Some allow self-promotion on specific days. Some ban it entirely. Read the sidebar before you post anything.

Mistake 4: Giving up too soon

Reddit is a long game. Your first month might yield nothing. But consistent helpful participation builds a reputation that compounds over time.

My Reddit Customer Acquisition Workflow

Here is exactly what I do every day (takes about 30 minutes):

Morning (10 min):

Check keyword alerts for overnight posts
Respond to 2-3 highest-quality threads
Keep responses under 100 words unless the topic warrants more

Lunch (10 min):

Browse "New" on top 3 subreddits
Look for questions I can answer genuinely
Upvote good content (builds goodwill and karma)

Evening (10 min):

Check responses to my comments
Continue conversations (this is where relationships form)
Note any new subreddits worth adding to my list

Total time: 30 minutes. Total leads generated last month: 23 qualified conversations, 7 demo requests, 4 new customers.

Not bad for free marketing.

Getting Started Today

If you are serious about finding customers on Reddit, here is your action plan:

List 5 subreddits where your ideal customer hangs out
Spend 30 minutes reading posts to understand the culture
Identify 3 pain points your product actually solves
Leave 2-3 helpful comments today (no selling, just helping)
Download Reddit Toolbox to scale your efforts

The free tier gives you 30 searches daily. Enough to find every relevant conversation without spending a dime.

Reddit is the most underrated B2B lead generation channel in 2025. While everyone fights over the same LinkedIn audience, you can be building relationships with hyper-engaged communities who are literally asking for solutions.

Just remember: value first, always. The sales follow naturally.

Related Guides:

Reddit Marketing Strategy 2025 - Complete marketing playbook
How to Find Reddit Users - Research potential customers
Subreddit Finder Guide - Discover niche communities

How to Find Customers on Reddit: Complete B2B Lead Generation Guide 2025