When someone on Reddit asks for a recommendation and you sell the thing, the honest way to answer is to say you own it, answer for the poster's actual situation, name other options fairly, and let them decide. You have a conflict of interest, and the thread will treat you as having one. Say so first and most of the problem goes away.
This is for owners who see a thread like "What do you use to send invoices as a contractor?" and know their own product fits. The example is Wren, who built TallyBench, a small invoicing app for contractors (a made-up product, like the people in it). The same logic applies to a cleaning company, a coaching practice or a candle shop.
Why disclosure matters
Three reasons, in descending order of how much they should weigh on you. It is honest: the reader is making a decision partly on your word, and they should know who gave it. It is often required, because many subreddits require owners to disclose a connection to anything they recommend, and the Federal Trade Commission's endorsement guidance expects a clear disclosure of a material connection. And it is practical: Redditors read profiles, and a recommendation that turns out to come from the owner, with no mention of it, gets dismantled in public.
Reddit's site-wide rules also prohibit spam and vote manipulation, which includes using extra accounts to recommend yourself. If you are tempted to ask a friend or a second account to say "I use TallyBench and love it", don't. That's the one move that can end an account, and it is dishonest on top of it.
Say you are the owner
One plain sentence near the start or the end of the reply: "Full disclosure, I make TallyBench, so take this with salt." No cleverness. Don't say "we", as if you were a user. Don't say "a friend of mine built". Wren's reply could begin with the answer to the question and carry the disclosure in the second line, before the first mention of the product.
If the subreddit's rules say owners must flag the connection in a particular way, such as in the comment or with a flair, do exactly that. And if the rules ban any recommendation of your own product, then don't make one. Answer the general question and leave your product out. Reddit self-promotion rules for business owners goes through how to read those rules and where to ask.
Answer for the poster's situation
Read the post closely. A poster who says they are a solo electrician sending about fifteen invoices a month and want to get paid by card has different needs from a ten-person remodeling crew that needs job costing. Answer the first one differently from the second.
Start with what they need, in their terms: how many invoices, whether they need card payments, whether they already use accounting software, what they want to spend. Then say what fits. Wren might write: "For fifteen invoices a month and card payments, you probably don't need much. Any tool that sends a clean invoice with a pay link and reminds clients automatically will do. The things I'd check: what the card fee is, whether it exports to your accountant's software, and whether you can cancel without a call. I make TallyBench, which does that, but those three questions apply to whatever you pick."
Notice that the reply is useful if you remove the product. That is the test for whether you are helping or advertising. How to write a Reddit reply that does not read like an ad covers the structure in more detail.
Name other options fairly
If the poster asks for recommendations, a list that includes only your product is an ad. Mention the kinds of alternatives that exist, state what they are good for in neutral terms, and say when yours is not the right fit. That might include a spreadsheet template for someone sending five invoices a month, an accounting package for someone who also needs bookkeeping, or a competitor that serves a job you don't.
Be accurate. Describe other products by what they do and how they're priced, by their own published information, and don't guess or exaggerate. Don't run them down, and don't pad your own with claims you can't back up. If you aren't sure how a competitor works, say "I haven't used it, so check their site" rather than inventing a flaw. Naming others fairly is what makes the disclosure believable, and it is how buyers' guides that say who a product is not for earn trust, as in reasons not to buy an AI receptionist.
Let the thread decide
After you've answered, stop. Don't reply to every follow-up with a nudge toward your product. Don't upvote yourself from another account. If other commenters recommend something else, let them. If the poster asks a direct question about your product, answer it plainly, including the parts that are not flattering, such as "it doesn't do payroll".
If the poster messages you, reply, and keep it straightforward. If they don't, nothing is lost. Many of the best customers come from a poster who reads the thread, checks your profile and your history, and signs up a week later without writing at all. A good reply keeps working after you post it.
Do not answer every thread
Answering every recommendation thread in your category is the pattern that gets business accounts removed. Limit yourself to threads where your product is a plausible fit, the thread is recent, and the rules allow it. Skip threads where yours is a poor match. Wren might answer three of every ten invoicing questions he sees and let the rest pass. When the best answer to a poster is "you don't need a product, use a spreadsheet", give it, even if it costs you a sale. Posters remember who told them the truth.
Spread your answers over time and across different questions, and spend plenty of your time in the same communities answering things that have nothing to do with your product. An account that only shows up when the topic is its own product reads as an ad, however honest each reply is.
What to do if someone calls you out
Someone will eventually write "this is just an ad" or "you own this, right?". Respond calmly. If you disclosed, point to it: "Yes, I said that at the top. The three questions apply to any tool, and I'm happy to be corrected." If you didn't, apologize briefly and add the disclosure by editing your comment. Don't argue, don't delete the thread to hide it, and don't pretend you aren't the owner. A short, honest answer usually ends the argument, and onlookers tend to side with the person who stayed polite.
If a moderator removes your comment, read the reason, do not repost it, and ask in modmail if you think it was a mistake. Never use another account to get around a removal or ban. That breaks site rules and can cost you the accounts you actually need.
Finding these threads without living on Reddit
The hard part for most owners isn't writing the reply. It's finding the right threads before they're a week old. Conversations, inside Rocketship, searches Reddit for threads where people ask for what you sell, and for each one drafts a reply and a message in your voice, with the ownership disclosure included. You read it, make it yours and post it from your own Reddit account. It never posts, messages or votes for you, and it does not create accounts. The decision about whether a thread deserves an answer remains yours, which matters most in threads where your product is a poor fit.
Reddit is one way to meet buyers while they are asking. The rest of Rocketship works on the ones who never post: it finds the buyers, emails them from your own Gmail, follows up, and books the meeting on its own. Plans that get you customers start at $24.99 a month (Launch), and every monthly plan starts with a 7-day free trial, card required. Rocketship also works inside Claude, via the connector on the Claude page. If you're comparing vendors in your own category, the questions in three questions to ask AI receptionist vendors show the kind of straight questions a buyer should ask you, too. For wording on a reply that avoids sounding like a pitch, return to looking bigger without lying about it.