The golden rule
Answer the question first. Mention your product only if it fits.
A useful comment that mentions your product naturally is the best ad you'll ever buy. A salesy comment in a thread that doesn't need one is the fastest way to get your account flagged.
The structure of a high-upvote comment
Opening: address the post directly
One sentence that shows you actually read the post. Not "Great question!" — something that proves you understood it. Even a one-line restatement is fine.
Middle: be genuinely useful
The bulk of the comment. Answer the question. Share what's worked for you. Mention alternatives. Be honest about trade-offs. This is what gets upvotes.
End (optional): your product, if it fits
One short sentence, framed as "we built X for exactly this" or "I work on something adjacent — happy to chat if useful." That's it. No pitch, no link dump.
If your product genuinely doesn't fit the question — leave it out entirely. The upvotes are worth more than the placement.
What gets a comment removed
- Pure self-promotion. A comment that exists only to plug your product.
- Affiliate-style. Multiple links, codes, "DM me for a discount."
- Identical comments across threads. Mods notice. So does Reddit.
- Posting in subreddits where you have no history. Comment first, sell later.
- Wall of text. Reddit users skim. Use line breaks.
When to skip a thread
Skipping is a feature, not a failure. The AI surfaces matches; you decide if they're worth replying to. Skip when:
- The post is old and the conversation has moved on.
- The OP already got great answers and you'd just be piling on.
- The subreddit's rules ban your kind of product or all promotion.
- Your product genuinely doesn't help with their problem.
- The thread feels combative — you won't win that one.
Build karma in subreddits before you sell in them
If a Monitor surfaces a great thread in a subreddit you've never commented in, your first comment there shouldn't mention your product. Drop a few genuinely helpful comments first — even unrelated to your space — so you're not "that account that only shows up to plug things."
This takes longer but pays for itself many times over.
Editing the AI suggestion
- Read it as a stranger would. If it sounds like marketing, rewrite it.
- If the suggested product mention feels forced, delete it entirely.
- Match the post's energy — terse posts get terse replies, detailed posts get detailed replies.
- Add one personal detail if you can. "We hit this exact problem at X" is gold.