HowTheyGotUsersHowTheyGotUsers

Dogfood Your Anti-Ban Tool to Promote Itself

Dogfood Your Anti-Ban Tool to Promote Itself is a reddit & forums tactic for getting your first users: The founder built a tool that helps SaaS founders self-promote on Reddit without getting banned, then ran that exact motion on his own launch and reported 100 paying users overnight.

It's a strong fit for B2B SaaS teams, and works especially well for marketing and growth tools. As a reddit & forums play, plan for medium effort and expect results to show up quickly, all grounded in 1 linked primary source.

Reddit & forumsMedium effortFast

Why does reddit & forums work for this?

Running the product on itself is instant, credible proof that converts skeptics faster than any pitch.

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
B2B SaaS

Frequently asked

What kind of products does the "Dogfood Your Anti-Ban Tool to Promote Itself" tactic work for?
It is a good fit for B2B SaaS — pick it when your product looks like that, since the play is shaped around how those users find new tools.
How is the "Dogfood Your Anti-Ban Tool to Promote Itself" 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 fast.
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 & forumsMedium effort· Slow

Four Post Shapes That Earn Attention

A rotation of four proven post structures that win upvotes by giving the community something to relate to, learn from, or discuss, with your product as a footnote at most.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsMedium effort· Fast

The Case-Study Value Post

A standalone breakdown of someone else's success story that delivers real value first, then connects your product as the natural next step.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsMedium effort· Medium

Post in Small Subreddits to Stay Under the Mod Radar

Spread launch posts across many smaller subreddits instead of the huge ones, because big 100k+ communities are where you get noticed and removed.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Set Up Keyword Radar for Your Niche

Instead of manually scrolling subreddits, you let automated alerts notify you the moment someone mentions your topic, competitors, or brand name so you can reply while the thread is still warm.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Pick the Communities That Actually Welcome Promotion

Choosing where to post based on each community's tolerance for self-promotion, since a handful of subreddits explicitly invite founders to share.

Read the steps →
Reddit & forumsLow effort· Fast

Turn a Viral Spike Into a List You Own

A single post that takes off can send thousands of one-time visitors, so the real win is converting that fleeting traffic into an email list and first customers before the spike fades.

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