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The title of this post is the name of a great free service. Help a Reporter Out (HARO) is the brain-child of East Coast PR pro Peter Shankman. (I did a podcast with Peter that I will publish shortly, but I wanted you to know about this resource right away.)
HARO started out as a Facebook group as a way to keep track of journalist’s looking for a particular expert for a story. The free service, that essentially hooks journalists up with credible sources to interview, grew rapidly and needed a home off Facebook to manage the size. As of this writing HARO is approaching 20,000 members. Hey, it’s free and its works, no surprise it grew.
Journalists go online fill out a form and their request gets added to the three time daily email distribution to members. As a member, If you see a story that you could contribute to, your simply reply directly to the query. A word to the wise, replying off topic may get you kicked off the list. Quality over quantity is what works here.
So, If your looking to promote your business sign up here. Get in the habit of scanning the daily emails quickly and see if any stories jump out at you. Keep your replies brief and to the point. Journalists love trends and ideas backed up with data, so add that as well as a pre-written paragraph of what makes you an exert.
If you’re a journalist and want to start putting your story ideas out for comment, experts or even research, sign up here. Keep in mind this includes podcasters looking for guests, bloggers doing research for a post, authors needing experts and case studies for a book, as well as journalists writing a story for a major daily.
Many people may be familiar with a similar service from industry giant PRNewswire called ProfNet. ProfNet offers a good service, but is simply too expensive for the typical small business to justify.
This may end up with a little David vs. Goliath story line as I’ve been told some folks at ProNet aren’t too happy with HARO.
Comments
This entry was posted on Monday, July 28th, 2008 at Jul 28, 08 | 6:15 am and is filed under Public Relations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
I joined HARO a few weeks ago and it has a great variety of topics and media. This service is great at levelling the playing field for small/solo businesses that cannot afford to subscribe to ProfNet.
HARO is amazing. My 2nd info request just went out this morning (~6AM EST) and in less than 5 hours later, I have 20 responses. Phew! I’d say that Peter has stumbled onto a REAL NEED and potential goldmine!
I joined a few weeks ago too. I haven’t responded to a query yet, but I have found a few that were appropriate for clients and contacts (so I sent them on, with a note about the source and the rules). I figure it’s a good way to keep in touch and provide an extra “service”.
@Jody - yes, thanks for that tip, that’s a great way to use this - getting your client featured in a story is a great loyalty builder and Peter really encourages passing it along.
I joined HARO a few weeks ago and have got in the habit of scanning the daily emails. I just replied to a particularly relevant one today: a reporter looking for fit women living with arthritis. Since I’ve had arthritis for 25 years and teach water aerobics, I definitely fit into that category! I don’t usually publicize that fact too much, though, so I doubt I would have found this reporter otherwise.
For me, it’s a nice way to give back a bit. Sure, I can use it to promote my business, but I also just enjoy participating whenever I can.
Hi John,
I agree – HARO is amazing.
As someone who has pitched many clients for opportunities, both through ProfNet and HARO, may I offer a few pitching tips?
Here goes:
1. Always follow the media contact’s specific requests. So, if you are told to put “Jane Doe Story” in the Subject Line, do that. Why? Because the reporter might have a filter that sends all of those queries to a specific e-mail folder. Otherwise, those replies might get lost.
2. Don’t pitch unless you are truly a good candidate for the story. If you make fat-free dog biscuits, and that’s what the reporter is looking for, then by all means reply. But if you make great-tasting ones and want to prove that yours are just as great as the fat-free ones, don’t bother. You’ll just annoy the reporter, making it unlikely that that person will consider you for a future piece that would be a perfect fit for you.
3. Include all of your contact information in your e-mail pitch. That includes your full name, business name, title, day, night and weekend telephone numbers, location (for time zone purposes and in case the reporter is looking for a specific geography) and e-mail address. Including your Web site is also good – it shows credibility and can provide additional info that the reporter might use.
4. Do not send attachments, unless they are specifically asked for. E-mail filters sometimes delete e-mails with attachments automatically. If a picture if requested, send a link to a .jpg on your Web site.
5. Put the title of the query in the Subject Line, if no specific title is given by the reporter. Something like “Source and Information for Credit Crunch – John Doe” should work.
6. Give ‘em some information. If a reporter is looking for ways employers are helping employees with high gas prices, don’t just say that you have the answers, and can be contacted any time. Give a couple of bullet points with your ideas. Enough to whet a reporter’s appetite, without writing the entire piece.
Hope this helps. Good pitching!
Margie Zable Fisher
Zable Fisher Public Relations
http://www.zfpr.com
@Margie - brilliant set of guidelines - thanks so much for adding this to the conversation - everyone, please read the comment above!
Thanks for the tip on HARO. As a small business entrepreneur, we don’t have the $$$s to hire a publicist. HARO looks like a tool to let the little guy get into the game of promoting yourself / business via news outlets.
Peter makes all of his emails so personable even if I don’t find a topic in a related category, I still really enjoy reading what he is doing.
I have been participating in this network for about a month. As a PR professional, I love it. I have been able to hook up several of my clients to writers who needed their expertise.
It is a win, win, win.
I have been hooked up with HARO for about a month, and have already connected several clients with writers across the nation.
I’ve been “following” Peter since he was gracious enough to come to little old Utica, NY to be the speaker at our Ad Club meeting… this is such a cool resource - as Margie and Jodi said: keep on topic and forward to your clients - mine think I’m a “networking queen” and all I do is forward the pertinent info to them!
The only thing I wish we could do is track when the stories get published - so many of them are fascinating sounding - I’d love to read several of them!
Peter Rocks!
V-
I was an early HARO subscriber after Peter visited us in Dayton, Ohio. I even sent him soup when he was sick one time. I have NEVER been tempted to send soup to anyone at PR Newswire.
I have been doing some freelance work lately, so HARO has been a valuable tool. And a great opportunity to impress clients.
I LOVE HARO!
I read your article on (HARO) Help A Reporter Out. I created a video on the subject and I thought I would send it. Here is a blip.tv rendition http://www.creativeendeavors.blip.tv/#1123448 or a You Tube version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23biQbZjWBk that you can share with your readers and even embed in your blog. Each give you code to do just that.
GO HARO!