Reddit tests ads in search results as traffic declines and growth concerns mount

Just days after warning investors about declining search traffic and a weaker-than-expected revenue forecast, Reddit is looking for more ways to make money from its existing users. On Tuesday, the company announced that it’s beginning to test ad placements in its search results pages, allowing advertisers to reach users as they search for products, recommendations, and other information on its platform.

在向投资者发出关于搜索流量下降和营收预期低于预期的警告几天后，Reddit 正在寻求更多从现有用户身上获利的方法。周二，该公司宣布开始在其搜索结果页面测试广告投放，允许广告商在用户搜索产品、推荐及其他信息时触达他们。

“Ads in search may appear based on a range of factors, including contextual relevance to a user’s search query,” Reddit shared in its announcement about the new ad placements. “This is an initial test with a select group of eligible advertisers. During this test, we will evaluate and understand how users respond to these ads so we can refine the experience for users and advertisers over time.”

Reddit 在关于新广告投放的公告中表示：“搜索广告的出现可能基于多种因素，包括与用户搜索查询的上下文相关性。这是一项针对部分符合条件的广告商进行的初步测试。在此期间，我们将评估并了解用户对这些广告的反应，以便随着时间的推移优化用户和广告商的体验。”

The company offered examples of what sort of ads might appear, suggesting that a search for “espresso station” might display ads for espresso machines, coffee, or mugs, while a search for “home office setup” could surface ads for things like monitors, desks, and office chairs.

该公司提供了可能出现的广告类型示例，暗示搜索“浓缩咖啡站”可能会显示浓缩咖啡机、咖啡或马克杯的广告，而搜索“家庭办公设置”则可能出现显示器、书桌和办公椅等产品的广告。

The ad test comes at a time when Reddit is reckoning with how AI has been changing the web’s landscape, and subsequently its reach. Despite beating Wall Street’s estimates for revenue and earnings per share, the company’s stock dropped after it reported its third-quarter results last week, with fourth-quarter guidance that predicted sales of $1 billion to $1.03 billion, below expectations of $1.05 billion.

此次广告测试正值 Reddit 应对人工智能如何改变网络格局及其影响范围之际。尽管其营收和每股收益均超过了华尔街的预期，但该公司在上周公布第三季度财报后股价下跌，其第四季度销售额预期为 10 亿至 10.3 亿美元，低于 10.5 亿美元的市场预期。

This was tied to Reddit’s declining search traffic referrals resulting from Google’s move to an AI-powered search experience. AI search now sends less traffic to publishers’ websites, as features like AI Mode provide answers directly on Google’s Search Result pages, reducing clicks to other websites.

这与谷歌转向人工智能驱动的搜索体验导致 Reddit 的搜索引流下降有关。人工智能搜索现在向发布商网站发送的流量减少了，因为“人工智能模式”等功能直接在谷歌搜索结果页面提供答案，从而减少了对其他网站的点击。

Reddit also said that its global daily active users were flat quarter-over-quarter in Q3, reaching 130.3 million, while U.S. daily active users dropped from 53.2 million in Q2 to 50.7 million in the quarter, and were down 2% year-over-year. The company noted that if the trend continues, daily active users could decline to a low double-digit percentage by the fourth quarter.

Reddit 还表示，其第三季度全球日活跃用户数环比持平，达到 1.303 亿，而美国日活跃用户数则从第二季度的 5320 万降至本季度的 5070 万，同比下降 2%。该公司指出，如果这一趋势持续下去，到第四季度，日活跃用户数可能会出现低两位数的百分比下降。

This leaves the company needing to earn more revenue from its existing users, which is where these new ads come in. The ads could prove to be more valuable to Reddit after it makes its planned shift to a logged-in experience, which was also announced during earnings.

这使得该公司需要从现有用户身上赚取更多收入，而这些新广告正是为此而生。在 Reddit 实施其计划中的“登录体验”转型（也在财报会议期间宣布）后，这些广告对 Reddit 来说可能更具价值。

The company said it will make the transition gradually, initially in markets outside the U.S. The decision to limit its content to logged-in users serves multiple purposes — it protects Reddit’s site from unauthorized AI scraping, and it increases its value to advertisers. Logged-in users are worth more to advertisers because they provide additional signals about their interests and behavior, allowing for better-targeted, more profitable ads.

该公司表示将逐步进行这一转型，首先从美国以外的市场开始。将内容限制为仅限登录用户访问的决定有多种目的——既能保护 Reddit 网站免受未经授权的人工智能抓取，又能增加其对广告商的价值。登录用户对广告商而言更有价值，因为他们提供了关于其兴趣和行为的额外信号，从而能够实现更精准、更具盈利能力的广告投放。