{"id":4755,"date":"2017-03-20T18:01:01","date_gmt":"2017-03-20T22:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/reddit-managing-the-front-page-of-the-internet\/"},"modified":"2017-03-20T20:52:38","modified_gmt":"2017-03-21T00:52:38","slug":"reddit-managing-the-front-page-of-the-internet","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/reddit-managing-the-front-page-of-the-internet\/","title":{"rendered":"Reddit: Managing the \u201cFront Page of the Internet\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Launched in 2005, Reddit is one of the largest and most active online communities in the world. The website is the 7th<\/sup> largest in the U.S. and boasts approximately 234 million unique users generating 8 billion monthly page views. Reddit is hailed as the \u201cfront page of the internet\u201d, and the site\u2019s digital influence is powered by its informed, passionate, trend-spotting and engaged users. Reddit users contribute to over 10,000 active, user-generated \u201cinterest-based\u201d communities called \u201csubreddits\u201d and cast north of 21 million votes per day. The site largely aggregates social news and provides forums for user discussions and web content rating.<\/p>\n

Value Creation:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reddit\u2019s mission is to \u201chelp people discover places where they can be their true selves, and empower our community to flourish\u201d. Users are attracted to Reddit\u2019s authenticity and commitment to provide a sense of belonging for everyone. Reddit empowers this sense of belonging by allowing users to easily find “subreddits” to follow and share content with. Users can also create their own \u201csubreddits\u201d to discuss virtually any topic of interest with Reddit’s vast online community.<\/p>\n

Reddit\u2019s community forum provides immense value for its internet-savvy users as it enables them to have conversations about shared interests that could not happen anywhere else online. In addition, the site\u2019s \u201cupvote\u201d and \u201cdownvote\u201d mechanisms give the wider Reddit community a voice in determining what content is important (or popular, funny, interesting, etc.) and should be prominently displayed to other users.<\/p>\n

User\u00a0participation:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reddit encourages user engagement via online mechanisms and offline channels. Users interact with the Reddit community by sharing, voting, and commenting. Reddit users can post content (e.g., images, links, stories, videos, etc.) in subreddit forums comprised of users with similar interests. Reddit users can comment on any post on the website, which contributes to the strong engagement and network effects users experience on the platform. User volunteers independently moderate subreddit communities to ensure that content and discussions stay on-topic for that particular subreddit. Users can \u201cupvote\u201d or \u201cdownvote\u201d shared content or subreddit discussions so that they are displayed more prominently within their communities and on the Reddit homepage.<\/p>\n

Offline participation includes Reddit \u201cmeetups\u201d, where users meet in person based on their geographies and interests. Users also engage with each other offline by participating in Reddit \u201cgift exchanges\u201d where users are assigned to each other (similar to a Secret Santa gift exchange) and mail each other gifts.<\/p>\n

Managing the crowd:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reddit has taken an organic approach to managing its active online community. The platform has mostly grown via word of mouth from it\u2019s initial audience largely comprised of programmers. Reddit focused on this set of early adopters and gained popularity as users migrated to Reddit after the missteps of competing online communities (i.e., Digg.com).<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s core values reinforce the strength of its community and allows the site to grow without departing from its mission. These values (along with information about \u201chow Reddit works\u201d) are shared with users immediately upon signing up to join the service.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Value Capture:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reddit monetizes its community by working with brands and agencies to target audiences based on user data and engagement with the website\u2019s 10,000 interest-based communities. Reddit collaborates with advertisers to develop authentic and engaging marketing campaigns called \u201credditads\u201d that use content to generate conversation among users.<\/p>\n

Reddit\u2019s current advertising products feature \u201cnative\u201d formats that have the look and feel of typical user-generated Reddit posts.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Sponsored headlines are marked as \u201cpromoted\u201d so users can differentiate between paid and organic content. In addition to native ad formats, Reddit also sells traditional display ads on desktop and in-feed \u201cnative\u201d display units on its mobile app.<\/p>\n

Reddit further monetizes its loyal user base by offering a \u201cReddit Gold\u201d subscription premium membership program for $3.99\/month (or $29.99\/year). The subscription service offers access exclusive features that allow for increased personalization and usability on the site and also enables users to turn off ads.<\/p>\n

Challenges:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reddit has experienced some challenges in terms of managing the topics that its community discusses. While the site aims to uphold the values of free speech, the Reddit community experienced some damages\u00a0to its reputation after privacy scandals and the rise of some offensive subreddits that encouraged racism, misogyny, and other inappropriate beliefs or topics. \u00a0The company continues to manage the tension between moderating user\u00a0activity while maintaining Reddit\u2019s strong sense of user voice and authenticity.<\/p>\n

In addition, the site\u2019s vocal community has fundamentally influenced Reddit\u2019s strategy and leadership. Ranging from backlash against actions from Reddit\u2019s former interim CEO, Ellen Pao, to criticizing the monetization strategy of the website, Reddit is in a lot of ways at the mercy of its users \u2013 who ironically serve as the company\u2019s most critical asset.<\/p>\n

References:<\/strong><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/advertising<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/3051641\/steve-huffman-reddit-has-been-home-to-some-of-the-most-authentic-conv<\/a><\/p>\n

http:\/\/cmxhub.com\/erik-martin-reddit-community-interview\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A deep dive into the most engaged online community in the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1065,"featured_media":4761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[491],"class_list":["post-4755","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reddit"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-digit\/assignment\/managing-digital-crowds\/","yoast_head":"\nReddit: Managing the \u201cFront Page of the Internet\u201d - Digital Innovation and Transformation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/reddit-managing-the-front-page-of-the-internet\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reddit: Managing the \u201cFront Page of the Internet\u201d - 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