What You Need To Know About Bluesky for PPC

Bluesky, a decentralized social media platform, has seen rapid growth, reaching 33 million users by March 2025, making it a potential new frontier for PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertisers.

While it currently lacks advertising options, its focus on privacy, moderation, and user control is attracting attention, especially as X faces controversies.

This guide explores what PPC marketers need to know, including 2025 updates and actionable steps to prepare for future opportunities.

Bluesky’s Growth and Unique Features

Started as an X research project in 2019, launched publicly in 2024, and by March 2025, hit 33 million users, nearly doubling from 13 million in late 2024. This growth, adding about 1 user per second, is driven by users frustrated with X’s changes, like AI data training and blocking issues.

It’s decentralized model lets users host data and curate feeds, reducing breach risks and appealing to those prioritizing privacy and moderation. In 2025, it added features like trending topics, boosting engagement, and saw a 17x increase in moderation reports, reflecting scaling challenges.

Advertising Prospects and Challenges

Currently, with no ads, but CEO Jay Graber hinted in early 2025 at non-intrusive options, like ads in search results, inspired by Reddit’s advertising model, which focuses on intent-based ads. This could appeal to PPC advertisers, especially with Bluesky’s brand safety focus, unlike recent Google Ads issues on illegal sites reported by AdAge in January 2025.

However, its decentralized nature might limit targeting, and users, many ex-X migrants, may resist ads, impacting performance. Early adopters like Duolingo and Netflix are posting organically, securing handles early, which could give them an edge.

Actionable Steps for PPC Advertisers

PPC advertisers can’t jump in yet, but here’s how to prepare:

While direct advertising opportunities on Bluesky are still evolving, here’s how you can proactively prepare:

1. Claim Your Handle: Secure your brand’s unique username promptly to prevent impersonation risks as user base expands. Early adoption can safeguard your brand identity in this decentralized environment.​
2. Explore the Platform: Familiarize yourself by the interface, content dynamics, and moderation tools. Analyze case studies of early adopters who have successfully built a following, gaining insights into effective engagement strategies.​
3. Build an Organic Presence: Engage authentically by posting valuable content and interacting with the community. Establishing trust through organic engagement is crucial, especially if users exhibit resistance to traditional advertising methods. Utilize analytics tools to monitor and enhance your engagement strategies.​
4. Monitor Trends: Stay informed about developments in decentralized advertising models. Observing platforms like Mastodon and their approaches can provide valuable insights into potential PPC opportunities within decentralized networks.​

By implementing these steps, PPC advertisers can position themselves strategically for future opportunities on Bluesky.​

Detailed Analysis and 2025 Context

Rise in 2025 reflects broader trends in social media, particularly the shift to decentralized platforms. By March 2025, its user base crossed 33 million, up from 25 million in December 2024, driven by a 25% increase in user migration to federated networks, as noted in a March 2025 eMarketer report.

This growth, adding 1 user per second, is fueled by X’s controversies, like ads next to extremist content in January 2025, prompting advertisers to seek safer options. Bluesky’s decentralized model, using the AT protocol, lets users host data and curate feeds, reducing breach risks, a key factor for brand safety.

In early 2025, added features like trending topics in December 2024, boosting engagement to 154 million website visits that month, per Semrush analytics. A January 2025 TechCrunch report highlighted a 17x increase in moderation reports, reflecting scaling challenges as it added over 23 million users in 2024, becoming a destination for ex-X users. This focus on privacy and moderation, with over 62% of users under 35, aligns with PPC advertisers’ needs for engaged, brand-safe audiences.

Advertising Outlook and Comparisons

Bluesky currently lacks ads, but CEO Jay Graber’s December 2024 comments suggest non-intrusive options, like search result ads, to avoid disrupting user experience, unlike X’s intrusive model. This aligns with Reddit’s advertising model, which saw a 15% rise in intent-based ad spend in Q1 2025, per eMarketer, potentially a blueprint.

However, its decentralized nature could complicate targeting, as seen with Mastodon’s federated challenges in 2025 Forrester reports. User resistance is a risk, with many ex-X users prioritizing privacy, impacting ad performance, especially given promise not to train AI on posts, per a January 2025 Hootsuite guide.

Early adopters like Duolingo, Netflix, and Red Bull are building organic presence, securing handles by January 2025, a strategy PPC advertisers can emulate. With X losing advertisers due to content moderation issues, Bluesky’s brand safety focus—unlike recent Google Ads scandals on illegal sites, reported by AdAge in January 2025—offers a compelling alternative.

2025 Trends and Implications for PPC

Decentralized platforms are reshaping social media in 2025, with eMarketer noting a 25% migration to federated networks. This fragmentation, based on political beliefs, per a December 2024 Adweek article, means PPC advertisers must prepare for niche, custom feed targeting.

Bluesky’s youth-driven momentum, with 62% under 35, per Backlinko’s January 2025 stats, aligns with high engagement, hitting 1 billion posts by March 2025, per Hootsuite. However, early adopters face risks like bugs and unclear metrics, as seen in Mastodon’s 2025 scaling reports by Forrester.

PPC advertisers should monitor these trends, especially as X’s ad revenue drops 10% in Q1 2025, per eMarketer, pushing budgets to safer platforms. It’s potential subscription model, priced at $8/month like X Premium, could fund operations while maintaining user trust, a key for brand safety.

Detailed Action Steps and Case Studies

To prepare, claim handles now, like at this example, to avoid 2025 impersonation risks, per a December 2024 VMA Group blog. Explore the interface, analyzing organic content, with Red Bull’s January 2025 following growth as a case study.

Build trust through posting, using Hootsuite analytics to track engagement, which hit 1 billion posts by March 2025. Monitor decentralized advertising trends, like Mastodon’s federated model, studied for PPC in February 2025 Forrester reports, to adapt strategies.