Three weeks ago I got my fourth Reddit account permanently banned.

The message was the same as always: "Your account has been suspended for breaking Reddit's rules against spam." I was not even being spammy. One comment mentioned my product after I gave genuine advice. Boom. Done.

That was the moment I realized I had been doing Reddit promotion completely wrong.

So I spent the next two weeks studying what actually works. Talked to other founders who successfully promote on Reddit. Read every guide I could find. Analyzed my own failures.

Here is what I learned.

Why Most Reddit Promotion Fails

Let me be honest about my mistakes first.

Mistake 1: Promoting too early

My old strategy was: create account, join relevant subreddits, start commenting with links. Within 3 days, banned. Every single time.

Reddit's spam detection is actually pretty sophisticated. New accounts that immediately start posting links get flagged automatically. Does not matter if your content is genuinely useful.

Mistake 2: Copy-pasting the same comment

I had this "helpful" comment template that mentioned my tool. Used it across 10 different posts. Reddit detected the duplicate content and flagged it as spam. Fair enough, honestly.

Mistake 3: Ignoring subreddit culture

Each subreddit has its own vibe. What works in r/Entrepreneur (hustle culture, self-promotion accepted) fails completely in r/technology (deeply skeptical of marketing). I treated every subreddit the same. Bad move.

The 90/10 Rule (Actually Works)

The single most important principle I learned:

90% of your Reddit activity should be genuine contribution. Only 10% can be promotional.

This is not just a nice guideline. It is literally how Reddit's algorithm evaluates your account. If your comment-to-promotion ratio is off, you get flagged.

What counts as genuine contribution:

Answering questions without any self-reference
Sharing opinions and experiences
Upvoting and commenting on others' posts
Being helpful just because

What counts as promotion:

Any mention of your product
Links to your website
Comments that could benefit you financially

The math is simple. For every 1 promotional comment, you need 9 non-promotional ones. And you need to build this ratio before your first promotion, not after.

The Account Nurturing Strategy

Here is the exact process I use now for new accounts:

Days 1-3: Zero Activity (Just Browse)

Do not post anything. Just scroll, upvote things you genuinely like, maybe save some posts. Let Reddit see that your account behaves like a normal human.

Days 4-7: Comment Only (No Links)

Start commenting on posts in your target subreddits. Short, genuine responses. Nothing promotional. Build some karma.

Tips that work:

Answer questions in r/NoStupidQuestions or r/AskReddit
Share opinions in hobby subreddits you actually care about
Comment on "rising" posts (more visibility, more upvotes)

Days 8-14: Establish Presence

Continue commenting. By now you should have 50-100 karma. Start paying attention to posts where your expertise is relevant. Help people with detailed answers.

Still no self-promotion. Not yet.

Day 15+: Subtle Mentions

After building credibility, you can start subtle mentions. The key word is subtle.

What "Subtle" Actually Looks Like

Bad (will get you banned):

"Check out my tool at example.com - it solves exactly this problem!"

Also bad (still obviously promotional):

"I actually built a tool for this. Here is the link: example.com"

Okay (might survive):

"I ran into this problem too. Ended up building my own solution because nothing else worked. Happy to share if anyone is interested."

Good (natural and helpful):

"Yeah this is frustrating. I use a desktop tool called [ProductName] for this since the API limits were killing me. Not perfect but saves maybe 2 hours a day. The real trick though is [continue with genuinely useful advice that has nothing to do with your product]..."

See the difference? The product is mentioned as a small detail in a larger helpful comment. The focus is on solving the problem, not on pushing the product.

Subreddits That Allow Self-Promotion

Some subreddits explicitly allow promotion. Use these for direct marketing:

Always allowed:

r/SideProject (designed for this)
r/IMadeThis (show what you built)
r/AlphaAndBetaUsers (find early testers)
r/RoastMyStartup (get feedback)

Self-promo threads: Many subreddits have weekly "self-promotion" megathreads. r/Entrepreneur has one. r/startups has one. Check the sidebar rules.

Be careful:

r/SaaS (allowed but users are skeptical)
r/Entrepreneur (allowed but competitive)
r/smallbusiness (some promo allowed)

Almost never allowed:

Any tech subreddit (r/technology, r/programming)
Any hobby subreddit unless you are a known member
Any subreddit with "no self-promotion" in the rules

The Alternative: Content Marketing on Reddit

Here is what works better than direct promotion: creating genuinely useful content.

Instead of commenting with product links, I write posts that teach something valuable. At the bottom, maybe a small mention: "I built a tool that helps with this - [name]" with no link.

People who want to find it will search for it. And those searches (branded keywords) are actually valuable for SEO.

Example of content that works:

"Here is how I [solved problem] - lessons from 6 months of trying"
"I analyzed 500 posts in r/[subreddit] - here is what I found"
"The complete guide to [topic] in 2025"

The post provides value. The product is an afterthought. Reddit rewards this approach with upvotes instead of bans.

Tools That Help (Without Getting You Banned)

A few things that make Reddit marketing easier:

For finding opportunities:

I use Reddit Toolbox to filter posts by keyword and comment count. Looking for posts with high upvotes but low comments - that is where your response will actually be seen. The tool runs locally so it does not trigger any API limits.

For monitoring mentions:

F5Bot (free) sends email alerts when keywords are mentioned. Set up alerts for your product name, competitor names, and problem keywords.

For tracking what works:

Keep a spreadsheet. Every comment you make, note: subreddit, type (promotional vs genuine), result (upvotes, replies, ban). After 30 days you will see patterns.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Here is what nobody tells you about Reddit marketing:

It is slow. Really slow.

Building enough karma and credibility to promote safely takes 2-4 weeks per account. You cannot rush it. Any shortcut (buying karma, using bots, mass-posting) gets detected and punished.

If you need immediate results, Reddit is not the channel. Use paid ads, cold email, or Twitter.

But if you are willing to invest the time, Reddit converts like crazy. The people who find you through Reddit are actively looking for solutions. They are warm leads, not cold traffic.

My conversion rate from Reddit is 4x higher than from Google ads. It just takes longer to build.

Quick Summary

First 2 weeks: No promotion at all. Build karma with genuine comments.
Follow 90/10 rule: 9 helpful comments for every 1 mention of your product.
Never post links in comments: Just mention your product name. Let people search.
Use self-promo subreddits: r/SideProject, r/IMadeThis, weekly threads.
Create value-first content: Posts that teach something, product mentioned at the end.
Be patient: This takes weeks, not days.

The accounts I manage now have survived for months. No bans. Steady traffic. Actual customers.

It works. It is just slow.

Related Guides:

How to Promote on Reddit Without Getting Banned (2025 Guide)