This article is part of our comprehensive Reddit Marketing Guide.

The Starting Point

When we launched OneUp, we had zero marketing budget and zero existing audience. We knew our target users were active on Reddit - indie hackers, SaaS founders, and solopreneurs trying to grow their businesses.

Here's exactly how we went from 0 to our first 10 paying users using only Reddit.

Week 1: Building Credibility

The Setup

Before any promotion, we spent a week just being helpful:

• Answered 15+ questions in r/SaaS, r/startups, r/Entrepreneur
• Never mentioned our product once
• Focused on topics we genuinely knew well (social media automation)
• Built up to 200+ karma

Key Insight

The first comment that would eventually lead to a user wasn't promotional at all. It was a detailed answer about scheduling content across platforms. The person later checked our profile, found our product, and signed up.

Lesson: Your profile is your landing page. Make your activity interesting enough that people investigate.

Week 2: The First Direct Outreach

Finding Opportunities

We searched for high-intent posts using keywords:

• "looking for social media tool"
• "alternative to Buffer"
• "automate posting"

Found 8 relevant posts from the past week.

The Message That Worked

Here's an actual DM that converted (with some details changed):

"Hey, saw your post about struggling to maintain consistent posting across 5 platforms. That's brutal - I remember being in the same spot.

A few things that helped me:

1. Batch content creation on Sundays
2. Using a tool that lets you write once, customize per platform
3. Setting up recurring posts for evergreen content

I actually built a tool that does #2 and #3 because I couldn't find anything that didn't cost $100+/month. Happy to let you try it free if you want - no pitch, just curious if it'd help your specific situation.

Either way, the batching strategy alone saved me 5+ hours/week."

Results from Week 2

• 8 posts identified
• 6 DMs sent (2 posts were too old)
• 4 responses (67% response rate)
• 2 signups
• 1 converted to paid within a week

Week 3: Scaling What Worked

Pattern Recognition

We noticed the best conversions came from:

• Posts less than 48 hours old
• Users who mentioned specific pain points, not just general questions
• Questions about alternatives to expensive tools

Increased Volume

Using our learnings:

• 15 relevant posts found
• 12 DMs sent
• 7 responses (58% response rate)
• 4 signups
• 2 converted to paid

Week 4: Public Comments

The Shift

We started combining DMs with public comments. The strategy:

1. Leave a genuinely helpful public comment (no product mention)
2. If OP responds positively, follow up with a DM
3. Or let them find us through profile

Example Public Comment

"Scheduling across multiple platforms is a pain - each has different optimal posting times and formats.

What's worked for me:
- Create content in a master format
- Adapt headlines/hashtags per platform
- Schedule at platform-specific peak times

There are tools that automate this, but even manually this system saves hours."

This comment got 12 upvotes. Three people DM'd us asking what tool we used.

Week 4 Results

• 5 public comments
• 8 DMs (including inbound)
• 5 signups
• 2 converted to paid

The Complete Numbers

Total Month 1 Activity

• Helpful comments: 30+
• Outbound DMs: 26
• Inbound DMs: 5
• Total responses: 18 (58% rate)
• Signups: 13
• Paid conversions: 6 (46% of signups)
• Additional referrals: 4

Cost Analysis

• Tools used: Reddit (free) + basic keyword tracking ($0)
• Time invested: ~15 hours total over 4 weeks
• Cost per paid user: 2.5 hours of time

What Didn't Work

Posting Our Own Content

We tried posting a "Show HN" style post about our product. It got removed within an hour. Self-promotional posts are heavily moderated in most subreddits.

Generic Messages

Early DMs that didn't reference specific details from posts had <20% response rates. Personalization wasn't optional.

Old Posts

Posts older than 3 days rarely converted. Users had either solved their problem or moved on.

Key Takeaways

1. Credibility comes first. Week 1 of just being helpful made everything else work better.
2. Personalization is everything. Generic outreach fails. Specific references to their situation succeed.
3. Speed matters. Responding to posts within 24-48 hours dramatically increased conversion.
4. Public + private works best. Helpful public comments build credibility that makes DMs more effective.
5. Profile matters. Many conversions came from people checking our profile after seeing helpful comments.

Scaling This Approach

Doing this manually worked for the first 10 users, but it's time-intensive. To scale beyond that, we built automation into OneUp:

• AI-powered keyword monitoring across multiple subreddits
• Automatic high-intent post detection
• Personalized message drafts based on post content
• Response tracking and follow-up reminders

What took 15 hours in month 1 now takes 3 hours with the right tools.

Ready to find your first Reddit users? Start your first campaign and let AI do the heavy lifting while you focus on building relationships.