What is Reddit, and how is it different from other social media platforms? What is it that makes defining Reddit so tricky?
I mean, suppose you’re not a Facebook user; you’re familiar with the site. This article seeks to provide you with all the information you require to get started.
Once you’ve mastered the basics, a whole new universe of possibilities will open up to you.
Outline
- What is Reddit?
- What is a subreddit?
- Is Reddit a form of social media?
- What is Reddit’s karma system?
- Post & Comment on Reddit
- Search Before Sharing on Reddit
- Aligning With Reddit lingo & jargon.
- Using Reddit for Business
- Reddiquette
- Summary
What is Reddit?
And how is Reddit different from other social media platforms?
Thus, what is Reddit, and why does it regard itself as “the internet’s front page”?
Indeed, it currently has over 1.5 billion users and is the sixth most-visited website in the United States — one that suggests that it is more popular than Instagram, Twitter, eBay, Linkedin, and Netflix.
But still, what is Reddit?! Reddit is still a mystery!
Reddit is a colossal platform that integrates web content, social news, forums, and a social network. Members who have registered can contribute content to the site in photographs, text, videos, and links. All content on the site is subject to member voting.
This meritocratic approach assures exciting content rises while uninteresting content sinks to the bottom. As a result, Reddit creates most online memes and viral sensations.
Reddit is a world unto itself.
Reddit is intriguing, given its niche orientation.
The platform is a mashup of trends, micro-communities, the media, micro-cultures, and inside jokes – which is precisely what makes it remarkable.
That is why Reddit’s unique alien mascot, “Snoo,” is the ideal mascot for this peculiar community-based platform.
What is a Subreddit?
And how does it work?
Reddit, as already indicated herein, functions similarly to a forum.
A subreddit is a small community within Reddit focused on a specific topic — and there is a subreddit for anything. Sure, you have your standard topics covered with subreddits such as:
- Business: r/entrepreneur or r/smallbusiness
- Crafts: r/SomethingIMade or r/Crafts
- Cooking: r/cooking or r/AskCulinary
- Travel: /r/travel/or /r/backpacking/
- However, this is not the end of it.
- Fitness: r/Fitness or /r/GYM/
Whatever you can imagine, a subreddit will exist for it. I’m candid.
Are you still skeptical?
Check a look at this.
There is a designated subreddit for people to share Photoshopped photographs of birds with human arms: /r/birdswitharms/There is another subreddit for people to share worthless stories: /r/pointlessstories.
Or how about r/subreddit? CatsStandingUp’s It’s a community of people who share photos and videos of cats standing up.
Each niche community has its own rules and etiquette and its subscriber base and content.
On the right-hand sidebar, you can check the subreddit’s rules:
You can sort posts using the drop-down menu at the top of each subreddit feed:
- Controversial: Posts that receive a relatively equal amount of upvotes and downvotes.
- Rising: Posts that currently receive a lot of upvotes
- Top: The most popular posts in a subreddit
- Hot: Posts that are popular right now
- New: Recently shared posts
The Reddit experience is based on niche communities, content voting, and filter posts by Hot, New, Controversial, Top, and Rising. These factors contribute to the rapid growth of the most popular posts.
Although highly improbable, you can always create one if a subreddit is missing.
Is Reddit Social Media?
A social media website is defined as a networking platform through which individuals share and exchange information and ideas in virtual communities.
Reddit ticks all the boxes as regards these aspects.
But really, is Reddit social media? It’s a little perplexing.
Most social media platforms have accounts and personal feeds and largely augment the websites to foster social interaction with other people.
Reddit is an exception to this rule.
Rather than that, Reddit is more akin to a forum, with aggregated content taking precedence and users generally remaining anonymous.
Ph.D. Reddit researcher Tim Squirrel puts it succinctly: “If Facebook involves people you know posting stuff you care about, Reddit involves people you don’t know sharing stuff you care about.”
That’s fine, but is Reddit a social media platform?
In a nutshell, it is, nevertheless, somewhat distinct from the majority of social networking sites.
The fundamental distinction is in Reddit’s community values. Reddit prioritizes community participation and shared experiences over individuality. The objective is to create value as a member of the subreddit community.
That is, it is not about you on Reddit. It’s a community endeavor.
Thus, Reddit is not a fan of user-generated content compared to most social media networks.
It is acceptable to post a shameless selfie or a photograph of your breakfast on Instagram, for example. If you do this on Reddit, though, you should anticipate a tidal surge of harsh comments and downvotes.
Some may argue that the world is divided into people: those who do not use or understand Reddit and Redditors — passionate admirers of the website.
How do you become a Redditor, then? What Is Reddit and How Can You Use It?
Given that we’ve addressed the question “What is Reddit?” let’s get started.
For starters, anonymity is critical to Reddit’s success.
Most users avoid using their actual names or birth years in their usernames, and this practice is severely discouraged.
Additionally, it is usual for users to have a few “primary” profiles and a few “throwaway” accounts that they use for specific occasions or subreddits. For instance, check the usernames used by the moderators of the subreddit /r/backpacking:
As a result, a bizarre phenomenon has developed.
The pervasive anonymity lays the groundwork for openness — in other words, anything goes on Reddit. You are free to share and participate. Additionally, transparency keeps this anonymity in check.
Each user has access to the complete history of their postings and users. This makes subreddit communities and moderators self-police and determines a user’s authenticity based on previous posts and “Reddit karma.” Therefore, while creating an account, consider choosing an anonymous username.
It’s easy to create an account. All you need is an email address, an unoccupied username, and a password.
Reddit will recommend popular subreddits to subscribe to when you first sign up. Then, you can browse other subreddits at reddit.com/subreddits.
Additionally, you may traverse subreddits here by using the tabs at the top of the page.
Enters Reddit Karma
What is Reddit Karma?
Due to Reddit’s anonymity, it relies on “karma” to determine a user’s legitimacy. Each user’s profile contains information about their accumulated karma points.
Your influence on the site improves as your karma increases. The higher your karma, the more seriously other users will take you.
However, karma is classified into two kinds:
- Comment karma is earned when you leave an upvote in a post’s comment section.
- Post karma is earned when your posts are upvoted on the subreddits.
Additionally, you can lose karma if enough users downvote your posts and comment that your score goes below zero. However, how do you increase your karma on Reddit?
For starters, subscribe to subreddits you believe you can contribute actively. Which interests and pastimes do you have?
Do you have knowledge, experience, or skill in a particular area? Then, take an active role in the subreddits that interest you.
Typically, you must share top-quality content regularly and comment on thoughtful posts on others’ posts. Additionally, responding to comments made on your posts is beneficial.
Additionally, you can ask or answer questions on r/askreddit.
Building karma on Reddit requires effort and attention, so we frequently strive to contribute to positive content.
Post & Comment on Reddit
Reddit is a fantastic community.
Individual contributions to subreddits, posts, and discussions are integral to the site’s viability. Additionally, posting and commenting on Reddit earns you upvotes, which helps you build your karma.
To create a new post, navigate to a subreddit and click “Create Post” beneath the title and description of the subreddit.
On Reddit, you can share three different kinds of posts:
- Link: Share a link with a brief headline that will direct people to another webpage or piece of content.
- Post: Compose something and, if possible, include some media.
- Image & Video: Use a short title to share media files.
It’s worth mentioning that specific subreddits restrict you to posting only one of these three sorts of posts.
Search Before SharIng on Reddit
Before you share something, utilize the Reddit search option to ensure that you are not reposting something that has already been shared – this is frowned upon by Redditors.
Shortcodes may assist you in conducting more precise searches. For instance, if you wish to search for “cats” in post titles, type “title: Cat” into the search box.
Below is a list of possible search queries on Reddit:
- Author: The user who submitted the post is referred to as the author. For instance, President Trump is the author.
- NSFW: NSFW entries. Set to yes if the submission is NSFW; alternatively, set to no. 1 or 0. NSFW: No or nsfw:0, for example.
- Selftext: The body of a self-post. As an illustration, consider the text: cats.
- Site: The domain of the URL that was supplied. As an illustration, consider the site: example.com.
- Subreddit: The subreddit for submissions. For instance, see the subreddit: cats.
- Title: The title of the submission. As an illustration, consider the title: cats.
- URL: The URL of the submission-the website’s address. For instance, URL: cats.
Further, you can search for multiple fields simultaneously, for example, “cats subreddit: picture site: Imo.com.”
Ultimately, make an effort to ensure that whatever you submit adds something fresh and exciting to the subreddit.
Unless, of course, you’re posting on /r/pointlessstories.
Aligning With Reddit’s Lingo and & Jargon
After perusing Reddit posts and reading comments for a while, you’ll discover that Redditors have established their jargon.
There are several abbreviations and slang terms that are used in communication.
When first starting, it’s beneficial to brush up on the fundamentals. As such, here is a glossary of common Reddit terminology to assist you in acclimating to this new environment.
A Reddit Terminology Glossary
IAMA: “I Am A.” The title of a post in which the Reddit community interviews noteworthy people. President Obama, Snoop Dogg, and Neil deGrasse Tyson appeared. Additionally, there is a subreddit. — /r/IAMA.
AMA stands for “Ask Me Anything.” It is a call for Redditors to ask any questions they like, with the assurance that they will be answered. It typically opens with the phrase “I am a [insert anything intriguing about yourself], Ask Me Anything.”For example, check out r/AMA.
AMAA stands for “Ask Me Almost Anything.”
Brave or So Brave: Used to dismiss a comment satirically or ridicule someone who agrees with a common opinion.
DAE: “Does Anyone Else?” A reference to a widespread emotion or circumstance. Additionally, there is a subreddit — /r/DAE.
Cake Day: The day a user first joins Reddit – like a birthday- on user profiles, cake days are displayed.
EDIT: An indication that a comment has been modified after it was initially posted.
ETA: “Edited To Add” info.
FTFY: “Fixed That For You.” When a user makes a slight adjustment to a previous comment that alters its meaning beneficially or hilariously.
ELI5: “Explain Like I’m 5-Years Old” A request for a straightforward explanation of something. Additionally, there is a subreddit – /r/explainlikeimfive.
MIC: “More on Comments.”
X-Post: “Cross Post.” A pointer to a post that has already been made on another subreddit.
IIRC: “If I RecA Is Correct.”
Power User: A Reddit user with a high karma score is well-known to many Reddit users.
A novelty account is used just for comical interests, typically used to communicate jokes relating to the account’s username.
THIS: A hint that you concur with a comment and wish to call attention to it. These comments are frequently downvoted.TIL: “Today I Learned.” Information that a user has recently acquired and wants to share. Additionally, there is a subreddit — r/TodayILearned.
OP: “Original Poster.” The individual who first posted the post is currently being discussed.
Whoooosh: used to imply that a joke has “passed over someone’s head” and they have failed to get it.
RTFA stands for “Read the F***ing Article.”
TL: DR:: “Too Long; Didn’t Read.” A concise summary of a more significant passage of text. The original commenter or another user can share it.
These are just a few of the most typical terms — for additional Reddit jargon assistance, check the comprehensive glossary (here). How to Use Reddit for Business
Using Reddit for Business
Redditors are quick to chastise anyone who engages in self-promotion, marketing, URL shorteners, or anything else that makes it appear as though you’re selling something on Reddit.
Bear in mind that this platform is entirely concerned with the community.
Thus, while you may be persuaded to pursue and slip your products into a subreddit, say r/shutupandtakemymoney, there is always a risk that it will boomerang and hurt your business’s brand.
To be sure, the most secure way to use Reddit for business is to leverage Reddit ads.
Ads are allowed to run these commercials because they are transparent about their intent to promote their business. Secondly, they’re exploiting a specific promotional space rather than taking up subreddit feeds with self-serving content.
Reddit ads let you target users by focusing on the subreddits they subscribe to. That enables you to reach highly targeted, passionate, and engaged niches with your marketing messaging.
Reddiquette
Implement Compliance with the Rules or Face the Consequences
“Reddiquette” is the term used to refer to Reddit’s unique set of rules and etiquette – which, as you’ve already noticed, is quite extensive.
You may read the entirety of Reddit’s etiquette guide (here).
It is critical to follow reddiquette to avert “shadowbanned.”
Due to the anonymity and pervasive use of multiple accounts, Reddit developed the concept of “shadowbanning.”
That’s the word used to describe the act of permanently banning a user from Reddit if they violate the rules – without notifying the user.
They will continue to see the shadowbanned user’s posts and comments, but others will not.
It stops people who violate the rules from creating a new account and continuing their wrongdoing.
A shadowbanned user’s profile, on the other hand, will display an error page.
Moreover, if you believe you have been shadowbanned, you can log out and check your profile. Additionally, you can pursue these instructions if you think you have been shadowbanned unfairly.
What is the best way to avoid being shadowbanned?
Bullying, insults, personal assaults, criminal acts, trolling, and posting personal information on Reddit will all result in you being shadowbanned.
Put it another way, be courteous.
Always put other people and the community first whenever you engage on the site. Instead, aim to participate and add value. Additionally, check-in mind and adhere to each subreddit’s unique restrictions.
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Summary
Reddit makes for a one-of-a-kind social network.
It places a higher premium on community and contribution than on the individual. And it’s where you’ll learn about new trends, memes, and viral sensations before the rest of the world does.
Recognize:
- The most effective approach to employing Reddit is contributing to subreddits and comment threads.
- Reddit capitalizes on anonymity and where almost anything is acceptable.
- There is a stringent code of ethics, and reddiquette is extremely important.
- Accumulating karma points takes time, but your influence will expand as you do.
- The most secure way to use Reddit for business is to leverage Reddit ads.
- There is a vibrant niche community for almost any interest or subject.
- Keep holds not to abuse the community for your gain.
Have you discovered any worthwhile subreddits to check? Tell us in the comments section below!
