What they are
Plenty of subreddits solve the self-promotion problem by containing it: one recurring thread where anyone can post what they are building, and a strict ban on doing it anywhere else. Moderators like it because the sub stays readable. You should like it because it is zero-risk distribution — you cannot break a rule by doing the thing the thread is for.
They come in a few recognisable shapes:
- Weekly self-promotion or "share your project" threads.
- "What are you working on this week?" threads, which are the most-read of the lot.
- Feedback threads — Feedback Friday, roast-my-landing-page, and their equivalents.
- Showcase days: Screenshot Saturday in game development subs, Showoff Saturday in r/webdev.
- Looking-for-beta-testers subs, where the whole subreddit is effectively one long promo thread.
Where to look
Start with the pinned posts of any subreddit already on your list — that is where the recurring thread lives, and it is the fastest check there is. Beyond that, the reliable places for software and SaaS are subs built around building things: r/SideProject, r/SaaS, r/Entrepreneur, r/EntrepreneurRideAlong, r/alphaandbetausers, r/roastmystartup, r/IndieDev and r/gamedev for games, r/webdev for anything on the web.
The exact schedules and titles change — moderators rotate them, rename them, and occasionally drop them for a month. Check the pinned posts rather than trusting a list, including this one. ReplyHey keeps a live feed of the current ones so you are not maintaining that by hand.
How to write the entry
These threads have dozens of entries and readers skim all of them, so the entry that gets clicked is the one that is legible in two seconds. What works:
- One line saying exactly what it does and for whom. No tagline, no mission.
- The specific, unusual thing about it — the reason it exists rather than the category it is in.
- What you want: users, feedback on a particular thing, or a first paying customer. Asking for something specific gets more replies than asking for nothing.
- The link, plainly. No tracker, no shortener — both look like spam and some subs filter them.
- A number if you have one. "Forty users, eleven paying" beats every adjective available.
Reply to other people’s entries
This is where the actual return is, and it is not obvious. The thread is full of founders in your rough vicinity, most of whom get zero replies. Leaving three genuinely useful comments on other people’s projects gets you profile clicks, reciprocal looks, and often the first users — from people who are predisposed to try things.
It also builds exactly the participation history that lets you comment safely in the rest of the subreddit later. Ten minutes in a promo thread is the cheapest onboarding into a community there is.
What to expect
Be honest about the ceiling: a promo thread entry is worth tens of visits, not thousands, and the traffic is other founders rather than your ideal customer unless your product is for founders. It will not replace the leads you get from answering real questions.
What it is good for: launch week momentum, the first ten users, feedback from people who will actually reply, and a foothold in a subreddit you want to be part of. It is the safest starting move on Reddit and the only one with no ban risk attached, which makes it the right first thing to do rather than the main thing to do.