Reddit said on November 3 that it is beginning to test ad placements in search results pages, with a select group of eligible advertisers.
What happened
In a post on its corporate site, Reddit said the placements reuse its existing ad targeting on search results pages, which it describes as having “high purchase and search intent.” Ads may appear based on a range of factors, including how closely they relate to the user’s query. Reddit’s examples are a search for “espresso station,” which could surface ads for espresso machines, coffee beans or mugs, and a search for “home office setup,” which could surface ads for monitors, desks or office chairs.
Reddit calls this an initial test. During it, the company says it will evaluate how users respond to the ads so it can refine the experience for users and advertisers over time. The post names no advertisers, markets, pricing or start dates.
Why it matters
The test follows Reddit’s October results, which we covered in Reddit Posts $847 Million in Ad Revenue and Flags Falling Search Referrals. A site that reports falling search referrals has a reason to sell more of the searching that happens on its own pages. Reddit’s pitch is that those pages carry a stated query.
Reddit has also been adding advertiser controls this autumn, including brand suitability controls built with Zefr. How those controls apply to ads shown beside search results is not addressed in the post.
One thing to ask
In our reading, the first question for any advertiser invited into the test is whether search placements will be reported on their own line. The post does not describe reporting. If spend lands in the same totals as feed placements, a team cannot tell whether a result came from a person who typed a query or one who scrolled past a post. Ask for the placement breakdown in writing before the test starts, and set the comparison against your current Reddit results first.
Source: Reddit
