Client Situation

Sprout Labs had a deadline: prove Reddit could work in three months or move onto others channels that would. They needed to build authority with parents actively searching for reading help for their children, do it without risking bans or backlash, and generate data clear enough to justify continued investment.

In 90 days, they went from an unknown Reddit presence to ranking top-of-SERP for high-intent keywords, driving 150,000+ targeted impressions, and earning 85× more engagement than their Instagram efforts. Here's how.

"The Karmic team has built a system for ensuring all content is on-brand and adds value. They're extremely collaborative and true experts at what they do. I've been recommending Karmic to every other marketing leader I talk to."

Alex Temple | Director of Marketing

Project Overview

• Best Thread: 63,000 views

• Channel performance: 10× more reach per post, 85× more engagement vs. Instagram organic

• SERP rankings: Top placement for high-intent keywords within a week of the AMA

• Account karma at handoff: 393

• Targeted impressions: 150,000+ across parenting and literacy Subreddits

• Timeline: 3 months of managed Reddit organic

• Client Partner: Alex Temple | Director of Marketing

The Challenge

Sprout Labs sells directly to parents worried their child is falling behind in reading. It's a high-consideration decision with significant competition, brand noise, and emotional stakes.

The team wasn't looking for vanity metrics. They needed targeted visibility among parents actively searching for solutions, faster trust-building with in-market families, and clear data to decide whether Reddit deserved a real place in their channel mix—all within a three-month sprint before refocusing on product.

"We have a lot of competition with significant brand awareness. We needed a creative solution to building brand awareness and trust with parents. The choice to invest in Reddit just made sense."

Alex Temple | Director of Marketing

Why They Chose Reddit

Parents don't just scroll social when they're worried about their kid's reading. They search, ask questions, compare programs, and seek validation. Increasingly, that happens on Reddit.

"Parents turn to Reddit to seek support, advice, and community," Alex explained. "Our strategy is straightforward: add value, not sell. We see Reddit contributing to our funnel in two ways: brand awareness through highly targeted impressions in key subreddits, and mid-to-bottom of funnel trust-building, where in-market parents can see our expertise as they're considering programs."

This is where Reddit's dual advantage emerges: authentic community conversation that also ranks in Google. Unlike Instagram or TikTok, Reddit threads live for months and show up in search results—meaning you reach both the community and the broader audience searching for solutions.

The Karma Ladder

Most Reddit efforts fail because teams try to sell before they've earned trust. Our Karma Ladder flips this: establish authority first, compound your presence over time, then leverage that trust for higher-intent formats that actually rank in search.

Here's how it works:

Phase 1: Build early karma and avoid friction — Warm up the account, map key Subreddits, engrain yourself in target communities, align on guardrails.

Phase 2: Become the most helpful voice — Respond consistently to Threads where your target audience need answers. Authority comes from months of useful, non-promotional participation.

Phase 3: Create Engagement Threads — Now that you have trust, run conversation starters that surface real insights and position your brand as a valuable member.

Phase 4: Run high-intent AMAs — With authority established, run focused Ask Me Anythings in aligned communities. These Threads rank in Google and drive lasting search visibility.

Most teams skip phases 1–3 and jump straight to selling. We compress the timeline as much as you cna without sacrificing long-term brand reach.

Our Strategy

Phase 1: Laying the Foundation

We created and warmed up Sprout's brand-affiliated Reddit account, mapped Subreddits where parents actually discuss reading struggles (notable not only generic parenting communities), and built a keyword map around high-intent phrases: "child struggling to read," "dyslexia concerns," "reading intervention,", and "trouble reading."

We also aligned tight guardrails with Sprout Labs on tone, claims, and when to mention the program versus staying purely educational.

Goal: Earn early karma, avoid moderator issues, and understand what parents actually say when they're worried about reading.

Phase 2: Building Authority—Be Useful First

Instead of posting about Sprout Labs, we prioritized a simple mandate: become the most helpful voice in any Thread where a parent worried about their child's reading.

That meant:

• Clear, non-jargony explanations of reading milestones and red flags

• Practical next steps parents could act on immediately (what to ask teachers, what assessments exist, how to support at home)

• Normalizing parents' fears and steering them toward evidence-based solutions, not quick fixes

By consistently showing up with useful, specific answers, the Sprout Labs account started to accumulate karma steadily, earning recognition from repeat community members, and securing strong positions in sensitive, high-intent Threads.

This is where the Karma Ladder compounds: Comments first, trust first, product mentions later.

Phase 3: Creating Engagement—Threads That Surface Real Parent Insights

Once we had initial trust, we ran conversation-starter Threads designed to surface authentic stories, objections, and needs:

• "What's been the hardest part of helping your child learn to read?"

• "Dyslexia's New Definition"

• "If you could credit one thing for your child's reading progress, what would it be?"

Read the Thread

These Threads served three purposes simultaneously: compounded karma and reach (fueling the Karma Ladder), collected voice-of-parent insights for product and messaging refinement, and positioned Sprout Labs as a listening partner rather than another program pushing a sales angle.

Read the Thread

The top thread hit 63,000 views—significant reach for a brand-new account in a niche topic.

Phase 4: The Payoff—A High-Intent AMA That Ranks in Google

With authority established in the community, we ran a focused Ask Me Anything in r/Dyslexia, a smaller, highly-aligned Subreddit where parents actively discussed reading challenges and moderators were open to transparent brand participation.

Rather than chase size, we chose a community where thoughtful content could live long enough to rank in search.

Sprout Labs' reading specialists prepared plain-language answers on reading science, early intervention, and home support—with clear guardrails on program mentions. We seeded the first hour with thoughtful questions to ensure early momentum.

Read the Thread

The result: Top-of-SERP rankings for high-intent keywords within a week. Parents searching Google for "reading intervention" or "help my child is behind in reading" landed on the Sprout Labs AMA before they even knew they should visit Reddit. The AMA didn't just perform well inside the community—it immediately became a search asset reaching non-Redditor parents.

The Impact: 90 Days to Trust and Search Visibility

Search Visibility: Top-of-SERP rankings for high-intent keywords within a week of the AMA—meaning parents searching outside of Reddit found Sprout Labs first.

Community Authority: 393 karma, 150,000+ targeted impressions, 63,000 views on the top thread, and consistent recognition from repeat community members.

Channel Efficiency: 10× more reach per post and 85× more engagement compared to similar organic Instagram content.

Business Intelligence: Authentic parent language and objections to refine landing pages, email, and product messaging.

"Our AMA delivered top-of-SERP rankings for high-intent keywords within a week. Our Reddit content drives 10× more reach per post and 85× more engagement compared to similar content on Instagram. For a small marketing team, this level of data is crucial in making sure we're doubling down on the most effective channels."

Alex Temple | Director of Marketing

For a lean team managing product, support, and growth simultaneously, this proved the channel wasn't just "worth trying"—it was the highest-ROI channel they'd tested.

The Reddit Playbook: 4 Principles That Made This Work

1. High-Consideration Brands Win on Reddit

If your product requires explanation more than aesthetics, Reddit's Q&A culture and SERP presence are a competitive advantage. Parents don't impulse-buy reading programs—they research, ask questions, and seek peer validation. Reddit is where that happens authentically.

2. Comments are the Foundation

Authority comes from months of helpful, non-promotional participation. Threads and AMAs are the payoff, but you can't start there - you must earn the authority and reputation necessary to keep them from being taken down by moderators and filters. Most brands reverse this order and get banned or ignored.

3. Smaller Subreddits Drive Outsized Outcomes

The AMA win didn't require a million-member community—just the right niche and real expertise. Smaller communities have lower noise, more engaged moderators, and higher likelihood of ranking in search. Aim for alignment over scale.

4. You Don't Need a Year to Prove the Channel

With a focused Karma Ladder approach, three months was enough to demonstrate performance versus another social channel and secure top-of-SERP visibility.

If you're a high-consideration brand wondering whether Reddit should be part of your demand stack, ask yourself: where are buyers already talking when they're nervous, stuck, or comparing options? If Reddit keeps showing up in those paths, there's likely a Karma Ladder waiting to be built.