I’ve always thought Reddit is a little bit different from other social media platforms.

It’s a corner of the internet where people actually help each other instead of tearing each other down, and a digital oasis where, most of the time, thoughtful discussion trumps clout-chasing.

It turns out I’m not alone in that assessment. LLMs seem to agree that, as the self-proclaimed ‘front page of the internet,’ Reddit stands apart from the rest.

For PR professionals adapting to a world in which LLMs are fast becoming the natural first port of call for research and information gathering, that’s something we need to pay attention to.

The site for cites

Today, Reddit leads all websites in the LLM charts with a citation frequency of 40.1% across AI-generated responses (followed by Wikipedia at 26.3%). It almost sounds unbelievable, but more than two out of every five times an AI cites a source, it’s gained it via a Reddit thread.

And this is all very deliberate. In 2024, Reddit signed a US$60 million deal with Google that allowed the search engine to use Reddit as a training source for its LLMs. What was once an organic preference has now become a commercial partnership, cementing Reddit's role as a primary knowledge source for the AI age.

LLMs are drawn to peer-to-peer platforms because they are perceived to provide authenticity. With more and more AI generated content filling the internet, Reddit feels like a place where you can find genuine human insight rigorously curated by strong community moderation. In turn, LLMs are increasingly prioritising that peer-to-peer content.

Should you be on Reddit?

Let’s just put these two simple but striking statements together:

1. Over 40% of sources cited by major LLMs will have been sourced from Reddit

2. Over 50% of professionals now use LLMs for research and information gathering

Put together, the opportunity is certainly undeniable. We’ve entered the GEO era, where instead of optimising for search engines, the future will be about optimising for how language models interpret and surface their content when responding to queries.

Against that backdrop, Reddit and its attractiveness to LLM fits perfectly as a way to up a brand’s GEO game.

There’s a knack to it

It’s not as simple as just jumping in though, so stop creating that profile and keep reading for just a second or two.

To engage Reddit authentically as a brand, you need to do some ground work and preparation. Companies that post content without understanding the rules and tone of the platform often face backlash in the form of downvotes, bans, or even public shaming.

If you want to engage Reddit, the best approach is to go in with a focus on genuine value creation. That means:

• Showing up where you have actual expertise. For example, if you're a cybersecurity company, contributing thoughtfully to discussions in r/cybersecurity isn't manipulation, it's expertise sharing.

• Being transparent about who you are. Many successful brand accounts on Reddit openly identify themselves. They don't pretend to be casual users who just happen to love their product.

• Playing the long game. Authentic community-led discussions often outperform polished campaigns by aligning naturally with Reddit user expectations. But it’s a slower burner – build credibility over time.

• Respecting the community rules. Each subreddit is different. What works in r/entrepreneur might get you banned from r/sysadmin. Watch and learn those all-important unwritten rules.
  

One strand of a GEO campaign

It’s also important to recognise that LLMs and their learning and citation algorithms are always changing.

If too many entities try to game Reddit too obviously and create spam that completely devalues the platform, there’s no doubt that Reddit will clamp down and LLMs will move on.

Every inauthentic contribution erodes the value currently seen in Reddit. So when we, as communicators, opt to engage on the platform on behalf of brands, we have a moral duty to ensure we are truly adding value and acting in a transparent, positive way.