Create a Reddit content idea bot with Zapier Agents

Coming up with content ideas from Reddit is one of my favorite ways to tap into genuine conversations. But the process gets messy fast. Too many open tabs. Too much scrolling. And somehow, I still end up with half-baked ideas scattered across sticky notes and Notion pages.

So I built a better content creation workflow using Apify and Zapier Agents. It automatically pulls trending Reddit posts, finds common themes, sorts ideas by tone and platform, and neatly organizes everything into a Google Doc. This system plays a major role in helping me stay focused, cut down decision fatigue, and keep high-quality ideas flowing.

In this post, I’ll walk you through how the setup works, what it gives you, and how to customize it based on your audience and voice.

Skip ahead

Export Reddit data from Apify (5-minute setup)

You’ll need Reddit data ready from Apify in JSON or CSV format. Here’s how to set that up.

First, if you don’t already have one, create an account at Apify. Navigate to the Reddit Scraper Lite actor. In the Start URLs field, add your target subreddits using this structure:

https://www.reddit.com/r/[SUBREDDIT]/top/?t=week

This URL pulls the top posts from the past week. Just replace [SUBREDDIT] with the one you want (like, r/marketing).

You can modify the time parameter: t=day for daily posts, t=month for monthly, or t=all for all-time top posts.

Keep the default filter settings shown in the screenshot if you’re using the free account. With $5 in credits, each search costs roughly $0.08, giving you about 60 searches. Set Limit of comments scraped inside a single page to 0 to focus only on post titles and content, which saves credits and keeps your data clean for content ideation.

When you’re ready to run the scraper, click Start in the top-right corner.

Once your Reddit scraper run is complete, you’ll see a green Succeeded status at the top.

To get your results:

1. Click the Export button in the top right corner.

2. In the pop-up window, select your preferred format. (JSON works best if you’re connecting to a Zapier agent.) Keep all fields included, and click Download to save the file locally.

You can also preview or copy a link if you want to send it to a collaborator or load it directly into another app. You’ll get structured data with post titles, URLs, timestamps, and subreddit details.

Set up your Reddit content agent

Now it’s time to create your agent in Zapier Agents. To simplify setup, we’ve got a template you can use. Just click the button below, then select Use Template in the top-right corner of the landing page.

You’ll see a summary of the agent’s functions. Give it a quick once-over, then scroll down to the bottom and click Use this template.

Your AI agent uses Google Docs to generate and save your output. If it’s your first time performing that action inside an agent, Zapier will prompt you to connect and authorize your Google account. Connect your account, then click Create to enter the Agents dashboard.

Here’s what you’ll see.

In case it’s your first time using Agents, here’s some context on what lives on this screen. Every Zapier agent has these three components:

• Trigger: What kicks off the workflow—this could be a scheduled time or an action in another app, or (like this agent) it could be manual.

• Instructions: A description of what you want the agent to do.

• Tools: The apps, functions (like web search), and data sources the agent will use to complete the task.

The template has already set up the trigger and instructions. And the default setup works great, especially if you’re uploading Reddit JSON manually. But if you want to adapt the workflow to your own content system, you can:

Change the trigger

If you eventually want to automate this workflow—for example, run it on a schedule or from a Google Sheet—you can switch the trigger to:

• Schedule by Zapier – run weekly or monthly

• Google Sheets – run when a new row with a subreddit is added

• Trigger via Zap – run it from another app or custom workflow

For manual uploads, stick with On demand.

Tweak the output format

If you want the output in a different format, like LinkedIn-ready headlines, TikTok scripts, or bullets instead of paragraphs, you can edit the instructions in your agent.

For example, you might change:

Idea: [Rewritten topic for content use]

Summary: [1–2 sentence insight or overview]

Suggested Hook: [Punchy or curiosity-based hook]

To something like:

Headline: [Formatted for LinkedIn carousel]

Insight: [Key takeaway from Reddit]

Why it resonates: [Audience-specific insight]

Customizing the output helps you eliminate the need for rewriting and tailors the ideas to your format from the start.

If you’re keeping the template as is, all you have to do now is test the agent. Click Agent preview to pull up the preview screen, then click Test agent.

Test and turn on your agent

To test your agent, you’ll start by providing it context, uploading your Reddit file, and reviewing the results.

Feed your agent the right context

In the preview window, you’ll notice the agent needs more information about your target audience, primary content platform, voice or tone preferences, and user positioning.

Providing context here ensures the agent tailors ideas to your audience and content style.

For example, here the context I gave mine:

• Target Audience: B2B SaaS content managers and marketers looking for strategic content inspiration

• Primary Content Platform: LinkedIn

• Voice/Tone Preference: Punchy, confident, and slightly contrarian

• User Positioning: AI-forward freelance strategist for top B2B SaaS brands like HubSpot, Zapier, and Sprout Social. Known for product-led thought leadership and writer-led content.

These inputs tell the agent:

That context directly shapes the angle, format, and hooks of the final output.

Upload your Reddit data and approve the output

Next, upload or paste your exported Reddit JSON from Apify.

The agent will begin analyzing it and look for high engagement threads, recurring pain points, and keywords and trends. During the test, the agent will show you a preview of the generated content concepts and ask for your approval. If everything looks good, click Approve. If you want changes, indicate that in the chat.

Once approved, the agent will create a Google Doc, title it with the current date, and add all your formatted content ideas. You’ll see the doc linked inside the agent. Just click the button to open the doc.

Here’s what the output looks like.

In the Google Doc, each idea includes:

• Targeting context (audience, platform, tone, positioning) at the top for quick reference

• A clear headline-style idea rewritten for your content use

• Reddit source link so you can explore the original thread

• Subreddit name for context

• A short summary (1–2 lines) of what the original Reddit thread discussed

• Angle, tag, suggested format, and a hook—so it’s plug-and-play for your carousel, post, or newsletter

This lets you go from Reddit data to a publish-ready idea in one go. The structure is designed so you (or your writer or designer) can immediately get to work.

Tips to get better ideas from your Reddit content agent

Even with automation, the quality of your ideas still depends on how you guide the agent. Here are some ways to get more relevant content output.

• Choose the right subreddits: Pick active subreddits where your audience hangs out or where relevant discussions happen. Smaller communities often have more specific pain points and less filtered conversations. Avoid meme-heavy or spammy subs unless you’re aiming for viral-style content.

• Use specific voice/tone instructions: Instead of just saying “professional,” say “confident but informal” or “inspired by creators like Erica Schneider.” The more specific, the better the output.

• Keep your JSON clean: Set the Apify comment scrape limit to 0 so you’re only analyzing post titles and summaries—not walls of back-and-forth replies. This keeps your dataset focused.

• Refresh your data weekly: Reddit trends shift quickly. Run a new scrape every week or two to make sure you’re pulling fresh, relevant insights.

• Customize the output to match your workflow: If you mostly create carousels, include “carousel headline” and “slide outline” in your format instructions. If you make videos, request a “hook and script opening.”

• Refine your context prompts: The more specific you are about your audience and positioning, the better your output. Instead of “B2B marketers,” try “SaaS growth marketers at 50–500 person companies struggling with attribution.” The agent will generate much more targeted hooks.

• Pair it with Notion, Trello, or Slack for quick workflows: You can create a follow-up Zap that sends the Google Doc link to your Notion database, Trello board, or Slack channel—so your whole team sees the ideas instantly. To take it a step further, you can even use Formatter and Looping by Zapier to separate each item as line items, then add each one to a database.

Build your automated content idea pipeline with Zapier Agents

With this Reddit content agent, you can delegate the daily grind of hunting for ideas, scanning threads, and organizing scattered inspiration. Your content pipeline will stay full, your Google Docs will remain organized, and no one will be left staring at a blank page wondering what to write next.

And because it’s built with Zapier Agents, it runs quietly in the background whenever you need fresh ideas. It’s one less manual task to worry about—so you can spend more time creating content rather than coming up with ideas for it.

Get started with agents today and see what automated workflows you can build.