HowTheyGotUsersHowTheyGotUsers

Build Karma First, Then Drop a Casual No-Link Mention

Build Karma First, Then Drop a Casual No-Link Mention is a reddit & forums tactic for getting your first users: Earn credibility by helping with no agenda, then mention your product only as a low-key aside ('built a thing for myself, nothing fancy') with no link or feature list, letting people DM you for it.

It's a strong fit for teams of almost any kind, and works especially well for founders active on Reddit. As a reddit & forums play, plan for medium effort and expect results to build gradually over time, all grounded in 1 linked primary source.

Reddit & forumsMedium effortSlow

Why does reddit & forums work for this?

Reddit punishes anything that smells like selling; soft, link-free mentions dodge the shill backlash and instead trigger inbound DMs.

The exact steps (4)

The full step-by-step this founder ran, what they posted, where, and in what order, plus the watch-outs, is part of the library.

Unlock the steps · $29 oncePlus all 3,000+ tactics and the new ones we add weekly.

Sources

Works for
Any / universal

Frequently asked

How is the "Build Karma First, Then Drop a Casual No-Link Mention" tactic verified?
It is drawn from 1 primary source — a real founder write-up or interview, not generic advice. It is linked in the Sources section above so you can read the original account yourself.
How much effort is it and how fast are results?
It is medium effort, and results tend to be slow.
Where can I see the exact step-by-step?
The full step-by-step a founder ran, documented via Source — IndieHackers, is in the paid library.

Related tactics

Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Write Fast and Off-the-Cuff to Dodge the Salesman Smell

Deliberately drafting the launch post quickly in one pass so it reads as a genuine off-the-cuff share rather than polished marketing.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsMedium effort· Medium

Lead With Fun-Fact News, Not How-Tos, to Trigger Comment Reach

The maker found that fun-fact or news content beat educational posts on Reddit because it sparked comments, and he signed off with this-was-from-[Product] plus a link to a custom page matching the news.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsMedium effort· Medium

Keep a Pre-Warmed Backup Account for the Inevitable Ban

The automated account behind the stunt got banned within about a day, so they immediately switched to a second account they had created in advance and kept the campaign running.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Reverse-Engineer Customers From Top Subreddit Threads

Use a niche subreddit as free customer research: read the highest-voted threads and their comments to learn what your target audience actually cares about, then turn recurring complaints into product or feature ideas.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Mine the Comments for Validation, Not Just Vanity Metrics

There's no fixed upvote benchmark for "success," so the most valuable output of a Reddit post is the qualitative read you get from comments: how people react, what tone they take, and whether the idea resonates.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Medium

Treat Reddit Bans as Your Promotion Speed Limit

A commenter who burned through four banned accounts learned that Reddit punishes spammy distribution even when the content is genuinely useful; the ban itself is feedback that you over-promoted.

Read the steps →

Get all 3,000+ tactics in one place

Filter by your product and channel, follow the exact steps, and get the new tactics we add every week. One payment, yours for good.

Unlock for $29 onceBrowse by channel