This latest feed is reminiscent of Pinterest, TikTok and Instagram. The addition of the "Discover" feed marks Reddit's first sizeable feature launch in two years. Reddit announced that they intend for the new "Discover" feed to replace the former Communities feed. Throughout the remainder of this article, we will highlight how to best access this new "Discover" feed and how using it can benefit you.
Why Did Reddit Launch the "Discover Feed?
When asked about what motivated Reddit to create this latest tool, its Director of Product for Content and Communities pointed to the company's goal in getting users to explore additional realms within the app, other than the Popular and home feeds. Also, the social media company apparently commissioned a few different user and market research studies over the past few years. The company reports that they have long listened for user preferences and recommendations. Many described wanting Reddit to offer an easier option for exploring their current interests and new ones.
Market research studies allowed users to try out a beta version of Reddit's "Discover" tab during the past year. Data compiled as part of that research captured how 20% of users joined at least one additional community after using the "Discover" app compared to the previous "Communities" one.
How Will Reddit's "Discover" Feed Differ from Instagram's "Explore"?
Reddit's Director of Product for Content and Communities emphasized that the goal isn't for his company to move away from the text-based platform that its users know and love. He instead noted that the newly launched feed aims to attract others with different browsing or search preferences, such as scroller. When asked about how the Instagram "Explore" and Reddit "Discover" ones compare, the product's manager noted that unregistered or non-signed-in users will see more generic. The tool is built to keep track of the type of content that registered users consume, and, thus, will continue sharing that information and new subreddits with potentially appealing related information. This approach is akin to how Instagram runs its feeds.
Where Can I Find the New Discover Tab?
There are three steps you will want to take to access Reddit's new "Discover" feed, including: Accessing the Reddit app on your mobile device, looking for the "Home" tab (designated by an image of a house), and locating the "Discover" tab to the right of "Home" (identifiable by looking for the compass image) and clicking on it.
How Should You Use Reddit's New "Discovery" Feed?
You will notice a search bar that allows you to find communities using keywords at the top of the screen. However, Reddit recommends perusing the many different topics of potential interest below the search bar and tapping on them. The topics are ever-evolving since this new feed is a dynamic feed.
How Can I Manage Subscriptions Made Through the "Discovery" Feed?
Reddit completely reconfigured app navigation when building the "Discovery" feed. The social media company created what it refers to as a "Community Drawer" to keep track of your subscriptions. You can access that tool by swiping right or going to the app's "Home" screen and clicking on the drop-down menu along the upper lefthand corner of that screen. Following this second step will take you to the feed and communities.
Once in the Community drawer, you'll notice where you can: Access your personalized home feed, see a listing of communities that you subscribe to, view other Reddit user accounts that you follow, and see a listing of any subreddits you moderate, including the queue and feed. This latest feature promises to shake things up in the social media space. It's likely that users of similar platforms like Instagram may give Reddit a shot now that they offer more than a text-based option.
Fortunately, the company is keeping some of the features that made it the go-to platform for its longtime users. It will be interesting to what changes other social media programs roll out to respond to this latest Reddit launch.
