Reddit isn’t just for memes.
Did you know there is a subreddit on Reddit called LegalTech? It has ~10,000 members, and describes itself as being for ‘those in the legal field interested in improving the legal profession through the use of technology’.
Recently at FirstMotion, we were doing some AI search optimisation strategy work for a B2B software brand in the ‘contract lifecycle management’ software category. Basically software that helps you manage contracts – either as an in house legal team, or in a law firm.
After lots of audience intelligence work, we developed our prompt map. One of those prompts that we established could be used towards the middle or end of a B2B buyer journey was a comparative analysis of two products in the space:
I’m comparing Ironclad and LinkSquares for legal contract automation – which is better? Who else should I consider?
For this prompt, ChatGPT used Reddit as the most frequently used source – being cited in 57% of chats relating to this prompt.
Thanks to our analytics tools, we can see the various Reddit discussions being cited by tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity when they are responding to users prompts:
So if you thought Reddit was just for investing in meme coins – think again. There are very serious professional B2B buyers, like Jennifer, the General Counsel above, using Reddit in very niche communities which are extremely highly regarded by AI search tools.
Of course Reddit wasn’t the only source – here are some of the others ChatGPT used:
LegalTech is just one example. For B2B software companies in technical niches like developer tools, security, cloud etc – Reddit is likely to be even more active around these topics. Maybe it’s a cliché, but it’s still the case that more ‘techy’ buyer personas might be more likely to be spending time on Reddit.
Why is Reddit often cited by LLMs?
There’s a clear logic to why Reddit dominates:
- Authenticity: The posts are written by real users in real situations.
- Nuance: Reddit threads don’t just compare features – they surface gotchas, unfiltered opinions integration headaches and actual outcomes.
- Freshness: Active threads are updated, revisited and built upon. LLMs prefer live ecosystems over static blog content.
Reddit’s chaotic, unfiltered nature is exactly what makes it valuable. It provides a context and depth that AI models crave.
Reddit is feeding LLMs – and brands are reacting
Recently, Reddit Chief Executive told the Financial Times “20 years of conversation about everything” and so it’s no surprise that LLMs love Reddit.
Multiple advertising and agency executives speaking during this month’s Cannes advertising festival told the FT that brands were increasingly exploring hosting a business account and posting content on Reddit to boost the likelihood of their ads appearing in the responses of generative AI chatbots.
In 2024 Reddit and OpenAI announced a partnership – one of only a few examples of an AI company not just crawling the web and helping themselves to content, but actually investing in a properly licensed commercial relationship. This is a clear sign of how LLMs like ChatGPT value Reddit’s content.
There’s never been a better time for a B2B software brand to invest in a Reddit strategy.