Reddit tests new search ads

Search ads will turn that competitive advantage into an asset for brands. The new format is part of a broader effort to promote Reddit content while it’s still on Reddit. The platform’s greatest hits often go viral on other platforms, where those posts are sometimes paired with unrelated videos. To keep more traffic in house, Reddit has rolled out a new video product that resembles TikTok.

Paid media in search results promotes Reddit’s homegrown community, but in other areas, the ads will be unable to help Reddit grow its position in the search game. The role of generative AI chatbots in that industry has become a major topic of discussion. Large language models (LLMs) scrape social platforms and use those data points to response to search queries.

Reddit was once the king of chatbot referrals; that advantage inspired other platforms to copy its signature layout. YouTube has since snatched the chatbot referral crown from Reddit.

The LLMs, however, scrape creator content rather than ads. So while Reddit is turning its results pages into an opportunity for brands, those advertisers will still have to link up with creators if they want to meddle with chatbot-based searches.