4/17/2025

How to Use Reddit & Other Platforms to Gain Insights While Building in Public

Building in public has become a buzzword in the STARTUP world. It means sharing your journey, experiences, and learning in real-time with your audience. This approach not only helps you gain valuable feedback from potential users, but it also creates engagement and builds community around your product. Platforms like Reddit can become powerful allies in this journey. In this blog post, we'll explore how you can effectively leverage Reddit and other platforms to gain insights while building in public.

What Does Building in Public Mean?

Building in public is about transparency and sharing every part of your product development journey. It allows your audience to witness your STARTUP process — from the ideation phase to execution. This not only helps you get early feedback but also nurtures relationships with your potential users, who feel more involved in your product creation.

Benefits of Building in Public

Community Engagement: Involving your audience helps build a dedicated community that supports your product.
Real-time Feedback: Gaining insights on features, UI designs, and overall user experience can guide your product development.
Accountability: Sharing your progress publicly can motivate you to stay on track.
Marketing: Documenting the journey on social media can generate interest and stories surrounding your product, getting people excited before its launch.

Platforms to Use

While there are numerous platforms you can use to build in public, Reddit stands out as a premier choice due to its unique structure and communities. Here are a few platforms to consider:

Reddit: With its various subreddits, Reddit is a treasure trove for finding niche communities interested in your product. You can post your progress in subreddits like r/startups or r/buildinpublic, where users share their journeys and provide feedback.
Twitter: With the growing trend of #buildinpublic, sharing updates on Twitter can engage your followers and gather quick insights. Twitter facilitates real-time conversations and can broaden your reach.
Discord: Discord is great for creating a community. You can use it to engage directly with users, host discussions, and receive feedback precisely when you need it.
Instagram: Visually-driven updates on your progress can be showcased on Instagram Stories or Reels, engaging a broader audience simply by showcasing the behind-the-scenes of your work.

Reddit: The Goldmine for Insights

Reddit provides an unmatched platform to tap into genuine discussions and feedback from users interested in certain niches. Here's how you can make the most of it:

1. Choose the Right Subreddit

Before you post, find the right subreddit that aligns with your product. Popular choices include:

r/startups: Discuss startup ideas, challenges, and success stories.
r/buildinpublic: Share your journey openly, post updates, and gather feedback.
r/entrepreneur: Share and seek advice from fellow entrepreneurs.

2. Engage with Your Audience

When you post on Reddit, it’s essential to engage with your readers. Respond to their comments, thank them for feedback, and ask follow-up questions to gain deeper insights.

Threads: Create engaging threads by asking open-ended questions about your product experiences. This encourages responses from users who might've had similar experiences.
Ask for Advice: Don’t shy away from directly asking the community for suggestions and insights. Your request could spark interesting discussions that may lead to invaluable insights.

Instead of just posting success stories, share your challenges as it fosters community support. Many Reddit users appreciate authenticity and will provide advice or solutions to the hurdles you face. By discussing topics like "Building a Mobile Fitness App: Where Do I Start?" on r/startups, you may find others who faced similar situations and can offer their experiences.

4. Use Reddit for A/B Testing Ideas

If you're torn between two features or names, consider posting both options and asking Reddit users for their preferences. This not only provides immediate feedback but can help guide your decisions with validated data points from potential users.

5. Track the Feedback Over Time

As you gather insights, maintain a log of the top feedback and suggestions. This will help you see patterns and larger themes in community feedback. Use this data to refine your product effectively before launching it to the general public. Tools like Arsturn can help in managing incoming data and structuring feedback into actionable insights.

Other Platforms for Building in Public

Besides Reddit, there are several other platforms where you can build in public effectively.

1. Twitter

Use hashtags like #buildinpublic to connect with others sharing their journeys.
Tweet short updates, screenshots, or polls to engage your audience.
Follow relevant Twitter accounts and engage in topics related to your niche.

2. Discord

Create a special channel for your project where people can ask questions, provide feedback, and discuss updates.
Organize virtual meetups or community calls to spark engagement and discussion about your product and its development.

3. Instagram & TikTok

Create engaging content that gives an inside look into the product creation process.
Utilize stories for polls, quick updates, and interactions that can drive immediate feedback.
Engage with your followers through behind-the-scenes looks at challenges and successes.

Setting Up a Feedback Loop

Once you have started building in public and gathered insights from different platforms, ensure you have a feedback loop:

Iterate: Use the feedback to iteratively improve your product.
Acknowledge: Recognize contributors and thank them for their insights, which encourages further engagement.
Notify: Update your supporters on changes or new features based on their feedback.

This will help in creating a positive relationship with your audience.

Conclusion

Using Reddit and other digital platforms for insights while building in public can significantly enhance your product development process. Embrace feedback, engage with your audience, and most importantly, stay true to your journey. It's a powerful way to gather insights while nurturing an engaged community around your product.

To maximize your public-building efforts, consider using tools like Arsturn. With Arsturn, you can create custom AI chatbots for your website, helping boost engagement & conversions. Join thousands who are using Conversational AI to enhance their audience's experience. It's easy, effective, and doesn’t require any coding skills!

Happy building! 🚀