reddit-hand-skill

Reddit Management Expert Knowledge

Reddit API Reference

Authentication (OAuth2 Script App)

Reddit API requires OAuth2 authentication for all endpoints.

Step 1: Get access token (app-only / client_credentials):

curl -s -X POST "https://www.reddit.com/api/v1/access_token" \
  -u "$REDDIT_CLIENT_ID:$REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET" \
  -d "grant_type=client_credentials" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0"

Response: {"access_token": "...", "token_type": "bearer", "expires_in": 86400, "scope": "*"}

Note: client_credentials provides app-only access. Most read endpoints (listing posts, fetching comments, searching) work normally. Posting and commenting use the app's identity. For full user-level actions (e.g., voting, managing subscriptions), the more complex OAuth2 authorization code flow is required.

All subsequent requests must include:

Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN
User-Agent: LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0

Core Endpoints

Get subreddit posts (hot):

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/hot?limit=25"

Get subreddit posts (new):

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=25"

Get subreddit posts (rising):

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/rising?limit=25"

Submit a new post (self/text):

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "sr=SUBREDDIT&kind=self&title=TITLE&text=BODY" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/submit"

Submit a link post:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "sr=SUBREDDIT&kind=link&title=TITLE&url=URL" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/submit"

Post a comment:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "thing_id=FULLNAME&text=COMMENT_TEXT" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/comment"

Note: thing_id is the fullname of the parent (e.g., t3_abc123 for a post, t1_def456 for a comment).

Get comments on a post:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/comments/POST_ID?limit=50"

Get user info (self):

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/v1/me"

Search within a subreddit:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/search?q=QUERY&restrict_sr=on&limit=25"

Rate Limits

Always check response headers:

• x-ratelimit-remaining: Requests remaining
• x-ratelimit-reset: Seconds until reset
• x-ratelimit-used: Requests used this window

---

Reddit Content Strategy

Understanding Subreddit Culture

Before posting in any subreddit:

1. Read the subreddit rules (sidebar/about page)
2. Observe top posts of the past month for style cues
3. Note common formatting (titles, flair usage, post length)
4. Understand what gets upvoted vs downvoted
5. Check if the subreddit allows self-promotion or links

Common Subreddit Rule Patterns

Different subreddits enforce very different rules. Here are real examples:

r/python — Strict self-promotion rules:

• 10:1 ratio: For every self-promotional post, you must have 10 non-promotional contributions
• No link-only posts — must include discussion or explanation
• Required flair for post type (Help, Discussion, News, etc.)

r/AskReddit — Strict formatting:

• Title must be a question ending with "?"
• No text body allowed (title only)
• No yes/no questions — must invite discussion

r/science — Academic rigor:

• Links must go to peer-reviewed research or reputable news covering research
• No anecdotal claims, personal opinions, or speculation
• Comments that don't cite sources may be removed

r/programming — Anti-spam:

• No "What language should I learn?" posts
• No job postings or hiring threads
• Blog posts must have substantial technical content, not marketing

Key rule categories to parse from any subreddit:

1. Post format: title-only? text required? link required? flair required?
2. Self-promotion: allowed? ratio requirement? disclosure needed?
3. Content restrictions: banned topics? required sources? minimum quality?
4. Account requirements: minimum age? minimum karma? approved submitters only?
5. Engagement rules: must respond to comments? no drive-by posting?

Toxicity & Moderation Signals

Before posting or replying, scan for these red flags:

• Thread locked or removed — moderators already intervened, do NOT engage
• Controversial marker (dagger symbol) on comments — indicates divisive topic, tread carefully
• OP deleted account — thread may be abandoned or toxic
• Heavily downvoted parent — replying to a -10 comment rarely goes well
• Personal attacks in thread — disengage entirely, do not escalate
• Moderator stickied warning — check the first comment for mod notices ("reminder: be civil", "this thread is being monitored")
• Rapid comment deletion — if many comments in a thread show as [deleted], moderators are actively pruning; avoid posting

When generating replies, NEVER:

• Take sides in heated debates — provide balanced perspectives
• Use sarcasm or irony — easily misread in text
• Correct grammar/spelling unless directly relevant to the discussion
• Reply to comments that are clearly trolling or bad-faith

Bot Detection & Shadowban Avoidance

Reddit communities and moderators are increasingly hostile to automated accounts. Bot detection works through behavioral patterns, not just content analysis.

Common bot detection signals (avoid ALL of these):

Shadowban indicators and detection:

A shadowban means your content is invisible to others. Check for:

1. Profile 404: https://www.reddit.com/user/USERNAME/about.json returns 404 when accessed without your auth token
2. Comment invisibility: Your comment does not appear in the thread when fetched anonymously (without Bearer token)
3. Sudden zero engagement: 5+ consecutive comments with 1 karma (only your own upvote) across different subreddits

If shadowban is detected:

• STOP all posting immediately
• Do NOT create a new account (ban evasion violates Reddit TOS)
• Alert the user with evidence (which comments are invisible)
• User can appeal at https://www.reddit.com/appeals

Subreddit-level shadowban (AutoModerator filtering): Some subreddits use AutoModerator to silently remove posts from accounts that meet certain criteria (new accounts, low karma, specific keywords). Signs:

• Comment appears in your profile but not in the thread
• Only happens in specific subreddits (not site-wide)
• Resolution: Message the subreddit moderators via modmail to request approval

Comment Removal Pattern Recognition

Track every comment/post for removal to identify problematic patterns:

Removal types:

Building a removal pattern database: After each session, record removals:

{
  "subreddit": "r/example",
  "content_type": "comment",
  "content_preview": "first 50 chars...",
  "removal_type": "mod_removed | automod_filtered | spam_filtered",
  "probable_cause": "contained link | keyword X | self-promo ratio",
  "timestamp": "ISO8601"
}

After 10+ data points, analyze for patterns:

• Which subreddits remove content most often?
• Which content types (links, long posts, short comments) get removed?
• Do specific keywords correlate with removal?
• Does time of day matter (some mod teams are more active at certain hours)?

Post Types That Perform Well

Title Writing Best Practices

• Be specific: "How I reduced build times by 80% with Cargo caching" beats "Build optimization tip"
• Use numbers when possible: "5 things I wish I knew..."
• Ask genuine questions: "Has anyone tried X for Y?"
• Avoid clickbait -- Redditors penalize it
• Match the subreddit's tone (formal for r/science, casual for r/programming)

Comment Engagement

Good replies:

• Answer the question directly, then add context
• Share personal experience with specifics
• Provide sources for claims
• Ask thoughtful follow-up questions
• Acknowledge when someone makes a good point

Bad replies (avoid):

• Generic "Great post!" or "This!"
• Unsolicited self-promotion
• Pedantic corrections without substance
• Sarcasm that could be misread
• Argumentative tone

---

Reddit Etiquette (Reddiquette)

Do

• Vote based on quality, not opinion
• Read the full post before replying
• Consider the subreddit's purpose
• Use appropriate flair
• Be constructive in criticism
• Credit original sources

Don't

• Spam the same content across subreddits
• Use alt accounts to upvote yourself
• Post personal information (doxxing)
• Harass or bully other users
• Engage in vote manipulation
• Post low-effort content repeatedly

---

Safety & Compliance

Content Guidelines

NEVER post:

• Personal information about anyone (doxxing)
• Harassment or bullying content
• Spam or repetitive self-promotion
• Misleading claims presented as fact
• Content that violates subreddit-specific rules
• Illegal content or content encouraging illegal activity

Account Health

Monitor account standing:

• Keep post-to-comment ratio healthy (more comments than posts)
• Build karma organically through genuine engagement
• Avoid posting too frequently (triggers spam filters)
• Diversify activity across multiple subreddits

---

Worked Examples

Example 1: Product Launch on Reddit

Scenario: You are launching a developer CLI tool and want to generate awareness on Reddit.

Phase 1 — Subreddit Research (Week 1-2 before launch)

Identify target subreddits and evaluate each:

Target subreddits (prioritized):
1. r/commandline       — 350k members, accepts tool announcements, requires demo/screenshot
2. r/programming       — 5M members, strict anti-marketing, only accepts substantial technical posts
3. r/opensource         — 200k members, friendly to launches, requires repo link
4. r/devtools           — 50k members, niche but highly targeted
5. r/sideproject        — 100k members, launch-friendly, expects "what I built" framing

Fetch subreddit rules programmatically:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/commandline/about/rules"

Phase 2 — Karma Building (Week 1-2 before launch)

Before posting about your product, build credibility:

Day 1-3:   Answer questions in r/commandline and r/programming (3-5 helpful comments/day)
Day 4-7:   Share a useful tip or short guide unrelated to your product
Day 8-10:  Engage in discussions, upvote good content, reply to others' posts
Day 11-14: Share a technical deep-dive related to your product's domain (not the product itself)

Phase 3 — Launch Posts (Launch Day)

Craft posts per subreddit culture:

For r/sideproject (casual, story-driven):

Title: "I built a CLI tool that does X — here's what I learned"
Body:
- Paragraph on the problem and motivation
- Short demo (gif/video link or code block)
- What went wrong during development
- Link to repo
- "Would love feedback on X"

For r/programming (technical, anti-fluff):

Title: "X: an open-source CLI for Y written in Rust [with benchmarks]"
Body:
- Link directly to repo or blog post with technical depth
- Performance comparison table
- Architecture decisions
- NO "please star my repo" language

For r/commandline (practical, demo-focused):

Title: "X — does Y in Z seconds from your terminal"
Body:
- Install instructions (one-liner)
- Usage example with real output
- Screenshot or asciinema link
- Comparison to existing tools

Phase 4 — Engagement (Launch Day + 48 hours)

Response templates:

Phase 5 — Follow-Up (Week after launch)

• Reply to every comment within 12 hours
• Post an update in r/sideproject if you hit a milestone (e.g., "Hit 500 stars, here's what I changed based on Reddit feedback")
• Do NOT cross-post the same content -- write fresh posts per subreddit

---

Example 2: Community Monitoring and Sentiment Tracking

Scenario: You manage a brand's Reddit presence and need to track mentions, sentiment, and emerging issues.

Step 1 — Set Up Monitoring Queries

Search for brand mentions across Reddit:

# Search all of Reddit for brand mentions
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/search?q=%22BrandName%22+OR+%22brandname%22&sort=new&limit=25&t=day"

Monitor specific subreddits where your audience lives:

# Monitor r/technology for relevant topics
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/technology/search?q=BrandName&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&limit=25&t=week"

Step 2 — Sentiment Classification

Categorize each mention into:

POSITIVE   — Praise, recommendation, success story
NEUTRAL    — Factual mention, question, comparison
NEGATIVE   — Complaint, bug report, frustration
CRITICAL   — Security concern, viral complaint, legal risk

Scoring signals from Reddit data:

score > 100 + sentiment=NEGATIVE  → High-priority alert (viral complaint)
score > 50  + sentiment=POSITIVE  → Amplification opportunity
num_comments > 20 + any sentiment → Active discussion, monitor closely
upvote_ratio < 0.5                → Controversial, may escalate

Step 3 — Alert Thresholds

Step 4 — Weekly Report Template

## Reddit Weekly Report — [Date Range]

### Summary
- Total mentions: X (up/down Y% from last week)
- Sentiment breakdown: X% positive, Y% neutral, Z% negative
- Top subreddits: r/sub1 (N mentions), r/sub2 (N mentions)

### Trending Topics
1. [Topic] — [Subreddit] — [Sentiment] — [Link]
2. ...

### Action Items
- [ ] Respond to [specific thread] — negative sentiment, high visibility
- [ ] Engage with [specific thread] — positive, amplification opportunity

### Competitor Activity
- [Competitor A]: N mentions, trending topics: ...
- [Competitor B]: N mentions, trending topics: ...

### Metrics
| Metric | This Week | Last Week | Change |
|--------|-----------|-----------|--------|
| Total mentions | | | |
| Positive % | | | |
| Avg post score | | | |
| Response time (hrs) | | | |

---

Example 3: AMA (Ask Me Anything) Management

Scenario: You are organizing an AMA for a tech CEO in r/technology.

Preparation (2 Weeks Before)

1. Contact the subreddit moderators:

   • Message the mod team through modmail (not individual DMs)
   • Propose date, time, and AMA subject
   • Ask about specific rules for AMAs (verification, scheduling, flair)
   • Confirm the post format they expect

2. Schedule for peak engagement:

   Recommended AMA times (US-centric subreddits):
   - Tuesday-Thursday, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM EST
   - Avoid: weekends, holidays, major news days
   - Post the AMA thread 30-60 minutes before the host starts answering
   

3. Prepare the AMA post:

   Title: "I'm [Name], [Role] at [Company]. [One-line hook]. AMA!"
   
   Body:
   - Brief intro (2-3 sentences about credentials)
   - Why this AMA is happening (new product, milestone, event)
   - Proof/verification (link to tweet, photo with timestamp)
   - "I'll start answering at [TIME] [TIMEZONE]. Ask me anything!"
   - Links to relevant context (website, blog post, prior work)
   

During the AMA (2-3 Hours)

Real-time engagement strategy:

1. Sort comments by "best" and "new" alternately every 15 minutes
2. Answer top-voted questions first (these set the tone)
3. Answer at least 20-30 questions in a 2-hour session
4. Mix short answers with detailed ones — avoid walls of text for every question
5. Skip hostile/troll questions silently — do NOT acknowledge them
6. For tough questions: answer honestly or say "I can't discuss that yet"
7. Upvote good questions (even tough ones) — shows good faith

Response length guide:

Follow-Up (24-48 Hours After)

• Post an edit to the original AMA: "Thanks everyone! I answered [N] questions. Check back — I'll try to answer a few more this week."
• Answer 5-10 more highly-upvoted questions that were missed
• Share the AMA link on other platforms (Twitter, LinkedIn) to drive continued engagement
• Compile a "best of" summary with links to the strongest Q&A exchanges

---

Advanced API Patterns

Pagination Handling

Reddit uses cursor-based pagination with after and before fullnames.

Paginate through subreddit posts:

# Page 1
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=100"
# Response includes: "after": "t3_abc123"

# Page 2
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=100&after=t3_abc123"
# Response includes: "after": "t3_def456" (or null if last page)

# Page 3
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=100&after=t3_def456"

Pagination rules:

• limit max is 100 per request
• after returns items chronologically older than the given fullname
• before returns items chronologically newer (useful for "check for new posts since last poll")
• When after is null in the response, you have reached the last page
• Reddit caps listing depth at ~1000 items regardless of pagination

Paginate backward (newer items):

# Get posts newer than a known fullname
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=25&before=t3_abc123"

Flair Management

Get available flairs for a subreddit:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/api/link_flair_v2"

Submit a post with flair:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "sr=SUBREDDIT&kind=self&title=TITLE&text=BODY&flair_id=FLAIR_ID&flair_text=FLAIR_TEXT" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/submit"

Set flair on an existing post (requires mod or post author permissions):

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "link=t3_POST_ID&flair_template_id=FLAIR_ID" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/api/selectflair"

Moderation Endpoints

These require moderator permissions on the target subreddit.

Get moderation queue:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/about/modqueue?limit=25"

Approve a post/comment:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "id=FULLNAME" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/approve"

Remove a post/comment:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "id=FULLNAME&spam=false" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/remove"

Get moderation log:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/about/log?limit=25&type=removelink"

Distinguish a comment as moderator:

curl -s -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  -d "id=FULLNAME&how=yes" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/api/distinguish"

Multi-Subreddit Monitoring

Monitor multiple subreddits in a single request:

# Combine subreddits with "+" for a merged feed
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/python+rust+golang/new?limit=50"

Search across multiple subreddits:

# Use the subreddit field in search to restrict
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/search?q=BrandName+subreddit%3Apython+OR+subreddit%3Arust&sort=new&limit=25"

Get subreddit metadata for comparison:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/about"

Key fields in response: subscribers, active_user_count, created_utc, public_description, submit_text, submission_type.

Polling Strategies for Real-Time Awareness

Reddit has no webhook support. Use polling with these patterns:

Efficient polling loop:

1. Fetch /r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=10 every 60 seconds
2. Store the fullname of the newest item seen
3. On next poll, use ?before=LAST_SEEN_FULLNAME to get only new items
4. If response is empty, no new posts — sleep and retry
5. If response has items, process them and update LAST_SEEN_FULLNAME

Polling frequency by priority:

Respect rate limits while polling:

At 30 requests/minute (app-only auth):
- 1 subreddit at 60s interval = 1 req/min → can monitor ~25 subreddits
- 1 search query at 60s interval = 1 req/min
- Reserve 5 req/min for ad-hoc queries
- Total budget: 30 req/min, plan accordingly

---

Subreddit Analysis Framework

Evaluating a Subreddit Before Posting

Before investing effort in any subreddit, run this assessment:

Step 1 — Pull subreddit metadata:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/about" | python3 -c "
import sys, json
d = json.load(sys.stdin)['data']
print(f'Subscribers: {d[\"subscribers\"]:,}')
print(f'Active now: {d[\"active_user_count\"]:,}')
print(f'Created: {d[\"created_utc\"]}')
print(f'Type: {d[\"submission_type\"]}')
print(f'Description: {d[\"public_description\"][:200]}')
"

Step 2 — Measure actual engagement (not just subscriber count):

# Get top 25 hot posts and examine their scores and comment counts
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/hot?limit=25"

Calculate from the response:

Engagement Score = median(post_scores) * median(num_comments)
Activity Ratio = active_user_count / subscribers
Health Indicator = (posts_per_day > 5) AND (Activity Ratio > 0.001)

Step 3 — Subreddit quality scorecard:

Peak Engagement Hours by Subreddit Type

Optimal posting times vary by audience. All times in EST:

To measure a specific subreddit's peak hours:

# Pull the last 100 posts and extract their timestamps
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/r/SUBREDDIT/new?limit=100"
# Parse created_utc for each post and bucket by hour-of-day
# Cross-reference with score to find high-score hours, not just high-volume hours

Competitor Presence Analysis

Step 1 — Search for competitor mentions:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/search?q=%22CompetitorName%22&sort=new&t=month&limit=100"

Step 2 — Build a competitor activity profile:

For each competitor, track:
- Which subreddits they are mentioned in (and by whom -- users vs the company)
- Frequency of mentions (per week)
- Sentiment of mentions (positive / neutral / negative)
- Whether they have official accounts engaging in threads
- Common complaints about them (your opportunity)
- Common praise for them (your benchmark)

Step 3 — Competitor comparison matrix:

Content Format Preferences by Subreddit Type

Deep Subreddit Culture Analysis

Beyond reading the sidebar, you must understand how a subreddit actually behaves. Rules are the minimum; culture is what determines success.

Step 1 — Analyze the top 25 hot posts for these signals:

For each post, record:
- title_length: number of words
- body_length: number of words (0 if link post)
- is_question: does title end with "?"
- has_code_block: does body contain ``` or 4-space indent
- has_external_link: does body contain URLs
- flair_used: which flair, or none
- top_comment_style: first 3 top-level comments — length, tone, use of sources

Step 2 — Build a subreddit profile:

{
  "subreddit": "r/example",
  "median_title_words": 12,
  "median_body_words": 150,
  "question_post_ratio": 0.4,
  "code_block_frequency": 0.6,
  "link_post_ratio": 0.2,
  "dominant_flair": "Discussion",
  "comment_style": "detailed_technical",
  "avg_comment_length_words": 45,
  "humor_tolerance": "low",
  "self_promo_tolerance": "very_low",
  "newcomer_friendliness": "moderate"
}

Step 3 — Adapt your behavior to the profile:

Cross-Subreddit Content Adaptation Strategy

When engaging with the same topic across multiple subreddits, each community requires a different approach. Never copy-paste.

Adaptation matrix example — posting about "a new Rust CLI tool":

Timing stagger for multi-subreddit posts:

• Post first in the most niche subreddit (e.g., r/rust)
• Wait 4-8 hours, observe reception
• If positive (score > 10, good comments), adapt and post to the next subreddit
• Wait another 4-8 hours between each subsequent post
• Never post to more than 3 subreddits for the same content within 48 hours

---

Growth & Reputation Building

Karma Building Strategies (Comment-First Approach)

New accounts or accounts entering a new subreddit should follow the comment-first approach:

Week 1-2: Listen and respond

1. Sort by "new" in your target subreddits
2. Find questions you can genuinely answer
3. Write substantive, helpful comments (3+ sentences with specifics)
4. Respond to 3-5 threads per day
5. Do NOT mention your product, company, or project at all

Week 3-4: Establish presence

1. Start sharing relevant resources (not yours) that help the community
2. Engage in discussions about trends and opinions in your domain
3. Build recognition by being consistently helpful
4. Your username should start becoming familiar to regulars

Week 5+: Contribute original content

1. Share a technical write-up, tutorial, or analysis (unrelated to your product)
2. If well-received, you have earned the trust to occasionally mention your work
3. Always frame self-promotional content as "I built X" (transparent) not "Check out X" (spammy)
4. Maintain the 10:1 ratio — 10 helpful contributions for every 1 self-promotional post

Karma accumulation benchmarks:

Building Authority in Niche Subreddits

Authority is built through consistency and expertise, not volume:

1. Pick 3-5 subreddits maximum -- spreading across 20 subreddits builds no authority anywhere
2. Develop a recognizable voice -- consistent formatting, depth of answers, specific expertise area
3. Answer the hard questions -- skip the easy ones that 10 people will answer; tackle the ones that require real expertise
4. Follow up on your own answers -- if someone asks a follow-up, respond promptly
5. Cite sources and show work -- "I benchmarked this myself, here are the numbers" is worth 100x "I think X is faster"
6. Accept corrections gracefully -- being wrong publicly and handling it well builds more trust than never being wrong

Cross-Posting Etiquette and Strategy

Cross-posting (sharing a post from one subreddit to another) has specific norms:

Do:

• Use Reddit's built-in cross-post feature (preserves attribution)
• Cross-post to subreddits where the content genuinely fits
• Add a comment explaining why it is relevant to the new subreddit
• Wait at least a few hours between cross-posts (avoid appearing spammy)

Don't:

• Cross-post to more than 2-3 subreddits
• Cross-post to subreddits that explicitly ban it (check rules)
• Copy-paste the same text as a new post instead of cross-posting (treated as spam)
• Cross-post your own content excessively

Strategic cross-posting pattern:

1. Post original content in the most specific/niche subreddit first
2. If it gains traction (>20 upvotes, positive comments), cross-post to a broader subreddit
3. Customize the title for the new audience
4. Engage in comments on BOTH subreddits

Handling Negative Feedback and Criticism

Negative feedback on Reddit is public and permanent. Handle it strategically:

Response framework:

1. PAUSE — Do not respond within the first 15 minutes. Emotional responses backfire.
2. ASSESS — Is the criticism valid, partially valid, or trolling?
3. RESPOND (or don't):
   - Valid criticism: Acknowledge, thank them, explain what you will do about it
   - Partially valid: Acknowledge the valid part, clarify the rest with facts
   - Trolling/bad faith: Do NOT respond. Silence is the best response.
4. FOLLOW UP — If you promised to fix something, come back and confirm when it is done

Response templates by situation:

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Analytics & Reporting

Post Performance Metrics

Key metrics to track for every post:

Fetch post performance:

curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN" \
  -A "LibreFang Reddit Hand/1.0" \
  "https://oauth.reddit.com/by_id/t3_POST_ID"

Quality indicators:

High engagement:    upvote_ratio > 0.85 AND num_comments > 20
Controversial:      upvote_ratio 0.40-0.60 (heavily split votes)
Viral potential:    score > 100 within first 2 hours
Dead on arrival:    score < 5 after 4 hours
Comment quality:    avg comment length > 100 chars (real discussion vs memes)

Engagement Trend Tracking

Track performance over time by recording metrics at regular intervals:

For each post, capture at:
- T+1 hour:   score, num_comments, upvote_ratio
- T+4 hours:  score, num_comments, upvote_ratio
- T+24 hours: score, num_comments, upvote_ratio (final snapshot)

For account-level tracking:
- Weekly comment karma change
- Weekly post karma change
- Number of posts/comments per subreddit
- Average score per post by subreddit

Growth trajectory assessment:

ROI Measurement for Business-Related Reddit Activity

Trackable outcomes:

ROI formula: (Value of outcomes - Total cost) / Total cost where cost = (hours/week * hourly rate) + content creation time + tool costs.

Weekly Reddit Activity Report Template

## Reddit Activity Report — Week of [Date]
- Karma: [post] / [comment] (change: +/- [N]) | Removal rate: [N]%
- Posts: [N] (avg score: [N]) | Comments: [N] (avg score: [N])
- Notable: [Thread title] — [subreddit] — [link]
- Plan: [Target subreddits] | [Content planned]