Reddit Ads Targeting: Communities and Keywords
Reddit’s targeting is built around what people read and discuss, not their job title. For B2B advertisers, the strongest options are usually communities and keywords, combined with your own customer and website audiences.
How does Reddit Ads targeting work?
You can target people by the communities they engage with, by interests, by keywords that appear in posts and conversations they view, and by your own audiences: website visitors, customer lists and lookalikes. Location, device and language narrow it further. For B2B, start with communities and keywords that match the problem you solve. Setting up ad groups is covered in how Reddit Ads work.
| Targeting | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Communities | Reaching active discussions in your niche | Small communities limit reach |
| Keywords and conversations | People reading about your problem or competitors | Broad keywords drift off topic |
| Interests | Larger awareness audiences | Less precise for B2B |
| Custom audiences | Retargeting visitors, reaching customer lists | Needs the pixel and enough list size |
| Lookalikes | Finding people like your customers | Quality depends on the seed list |
How do you choose communities?
List subreddits where your buyers discuss work: role-based (sysadmins, data engineers), tool-based (your category and your competitors’ products), and problem-based. Check activity and tone. Group them into ad groups by theme so you can compare.
| Ad group | Communities and keywords | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ops roles | r/logistics, r/supplychain, r/freight | Where 3PL operators talk |
| Tools | Keywords: routing software, WMS names | People comparing tools |
| Retargeting | Website visitors, 90 days | Already know us |
How should you use keyword targeting?
Use specific phrases buyers use: the problem, your category and competitor or tool names. Avoid broad single words. Review where ads appeared and refine. Keyword research habits from search ads apply; see Google Ads keyword research.
How do custom audiences help?
Retarget website visitors who read your pricing or docs, upload customer lists to exclude existing customers or to build lookalikes, and use engagement audiences. All depend on the Reddit Pixel and good data; see Reddit conversion tracking. Max campaigns can expand targeting automatically; see Reddit Max campaigns.
One theme per ad group.
Mixing communities and keywords in one ad group hides what works. Separate them and let the data tell you.
How should you build targeting?
- List 10 to 30 communities and 20 specific keywords.
- Group them into two or three ad group themes.
- Add a retargeting ad group for site visitors.
- Exclude current customers and irrelevant placements.
- Review placement and community reports weekly.
Frequently asked questions
How do you target B2B buyers on Reddit?
Through the communities and keywords they engage with, plus retargeting and customer lookalikes.
Can you target by job title on Reddit?
Not like LinkedIn. Reddit targets by communities, interests, keywords and your own audiences.
What is Reddit keyword targeting?
Showing ads to people viewing posts and conversations that contain your chosen keywords.
Can Reddit Ads retarget website visitors?
Yes, using the Reddit Pixel to build custom audiences of visitors.
How many communities should an ad group target?
Enough for reach on one theme, often 10 to 30 related subreddits.
Should I exclude existing customers?
Usually yes, by uploading a customer list, unless you are running expansion campaigns.