If you're already using Connectively, or HARO as it was previously called, skip to here. If you're new to the service and want to understand the benefits, how to pitch, and learn some tips on best practices, read on.
Building links to a website is a top priority for business owners, content marketers, and website managers to improve SEO and drive relevant clicks from Google. It’s no revelation that backlinks and Public Relations (PR) are important for helping grow a website’s organic traffic. But building quality backlinks and doing PR outreach can be expensive and time-consuming. Fortunately, there is an increasingly popular and free service called Connectively (formerly Help A Reporter Out) that can help small businesses compete with the big players.
Once the secret weapon of PR professionals, Connectively Featuring HARO has now become a hunting ground for free PR and links. You can make this free service work for you if you put in the effort.
It’s true that many business owners fail to produce results from Connectively Featuring HARO and dismiss it as too difficult. But they fail because they approach the service incorrectly. There are proven methods for pitching journalists and positioning yourself or your business as a reliable source of information.
If you follow the simple advice in the following HARO tips, you will make progress.
How does Help A Reporter Out work?
Connectively is a new platform designed for collaboration among journalists, influencers, experts, and PR professionals. It has replaced the HARO (Help A Reporter Out) service, which was discontinued on April 2nd, 2024. The core functionality of connecting journalists with experts remains the same, but now it’s all managed through Connectively.
Journalists can post queries seeking expert insights for their stories, and experts can pitch their knowledge directly through the platform. Connectively offers both free and paid plans, with additional features like email alerts for saved searches available in the paid versions.
To start using Connectively, you need to create an account by signing up on their website. After signing up, you’ll receive an email to set up your password and complete your profile, where you can showcase your expertise.
The platform has a streamlined process for sending and tracking pitches. Experts can browse live queries, filter them by keywords, and save searches for quick access. Currently, users can only have one type of account (either as a journalist or an expert) per email, but the platform plans to introduce dual account options in the future.
For detailed guidelines on writing queries or pitches, Connectively provides specific rules for both journalists and experts.
Connectively works like this: journalists seeking quotes and input from experts (and non-experts) for articles add requests to the Connectively platform. Previously, HARO would send daily emails with journalist requests. Subscribers would scan the emails for topics in their fields of expertise and pitch the reporters. The expert could get credit with a mention and a backlink if a reporter uses their pitch. This has changed to a dashboard-based approach. To be honest, the new way is much clearer and much easier to manage.
As a business owner, Help A Reporter Out is a great service for getting free press and links to your website.
Reporters get free content, research, and quotes from expert sources in their articles. Sources (bloggers, SaaS companies, and small business owners) get valuable SEO backlinks and industry exposure. It’s a win-win for everyone.
Here's the simple version:
- 1. Create a profile and sign up.
- 2. Search for relevant queries in your industry.
- 3. Send pitches using the in-app form, including required answers and details. Journalists will contact you if interested.
How to pitch your answer
A perfect pitch should be no more than two or three paragraphs long. A journalist doesn’t want to read through an entire blog post’s worth of content unless they specifically ask for more details.
- Include quotable text snippets. Think like a copywriter! Provide engaging, bite-sized statements that a journalist can copy and paste into their article or project. By making the process easier for the journalist and by providing higher quality content, you will have a higher probability of being featured (and, as a result, get more traffic).
- Don’t write an article. Use short, snappy sentences. Imagine writing a headline or title for social channels. Use short sentences or short paragraphs.
- Differentiate your response from what everyone else would write. If the reporter is looking for the best abs exercises, don’t suggest the plank or crunches. Instead, think outside the box. Stand out!
- Give a brief overview of your qualifications, why you are an expert, and why you are qualified to answer the query. Here’s an example: “I’m a personal trainer with 10 years experience – BA in exercise science – My specialty is [query subject]”
- You should explain the concept as though you were explaining it to a complete novice or a child. Avoid jargon and assume the journalist and their audience are not at your level of expertise.
- Think about why your answer is the best and briefly explain this to the journalist with examples. If you’re talking about personal training, show how your advice helped someone lose weight. If you’re answering a relevant queries on business books, explain how a particular book helped you double your income/revenue.
Best Practices – How to use HARO effectively
Quick tips on using the service for maximum effect
- Include anecdotes, stories, facts, or experiences from your own life.
- Do not include attachments.
- If the reporter requests a headshot, add a link to an image on your website.
- Keep it on point. If you can’t write a response without going off topic, it’s best not to send anything.
- The sooner you respond, the better.
- Check your spelling and grammar. Proof read our work. Use US English if the journalist is in the U.S.
- Add your name, full title, and link to your business website – paste the naked URL into the email, e.g. https://websitename.com/expert-bio-link-page/
- Include social media links only if the journalist requests them.
- Briefly detail the website’s readership and social media follower count (if they are worth bragging about). Offer to share the article on social media once it’s published.
- If the journalist uses your content, share the article on social media and your newsletter. Share a screenshot, PDF, or link on your website’s media page. Reply to the journalist with a quick thank you note. Try to connect with the journalist and build a relationship. This could lead to the journalist contacting you first for future articles).
- Don't be vague with the subject line. Use a reference from the request.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some Connectively alternatives?
ProfNet, MuckRack, and KITI are three popular alternatives. But Source of Sources is a new platform created by the original developer of HARO. The Twitter hashtag #journorequests is also worth following for new opportunities.
Is HARO by Connectively free?
Connectively offers four pricing plans:
- Lite (Free): 10 pitches/month, 1 saved search, limited profile views.
- Core ($19/month): 25 pitches/month, 2 saved searches, full profile views.
- Pro ($49/month): 50 pitches/month, 6 saved searches, 3 profiles.
- Premier ($149/month): 150 pitches/month, 20 saved searches, 10 profiles.
Additional pitches can be purchased separately.
How do I get backlinks?
If your pitch is accepted, you will generally get a link from the published article to your website or channel. You will often be notified but sometimes the only way to find out is to monitor backlinks to your site.
How can I tell if Connectively is worth my time?
There's a free plan with a limited number of pitches. But it won't cost you anything. So for many businesses, the cost is in time. Most pitches will not generate results. However, the ones that do can be very valuable. Consider the cost of each link in your niche and weigh the benefits against the time spent. Don’t forget the other benefits, like relationship building and idea generation.
