How to Build Your Brand Through "HARO" Outreach

Hey everyone, this is Neo.

If you run an independent site — especially in B2B or with a serious focus on SEO — you’ve almost certainly heard of HARO (Help a Reporter Out). It used to be my daily “backlink goldmine”: reply to reporters with expert insights, and in exchange get brand mentions and backlinks from high-authority outlets like Forbes and Business Insider. A classic case of small effort, huge payoff.

But lately, everyone’s shouting that “HARO is dead.” That got my heart racing a little — is this road really a dead end?

Coincidentally, I recently went deep on this topic, including studying a talk by Greg Heilers, co-founder of Jolly SEO, and found things are more nuanced than that. Today I want to combine his core points with my own thinking and dig into: what’s actually going on with HARO, and how we should use “media relations” in 2025 to keep earning those hard-to-get, high-quality backlinks for our independent sites.

1. Why Should We Keep Doing “HARO”-Style Outreach?

Before we talk about how, we need to be clear on why. The answer is simple: the payoff is huge.

  • Earn top-tier backlinks: This is the most direct goal. You can get brand mentions and backlinks from authoritative sites like Business Insider and Forbes. Not every attempt succeeds and not every link is dofollow — but one success alone can massively boost your site’s authority.
  • Win favor with AI search engines: Brand mentions and backlinks aren’t just core ranking signals for Google SEO — they matter just as much for emerging AI search engines (like ChatGPT with search built in). AI uses these signals to judge how authoritative your brand is in its industry.
  • Real-world proof: Fast-growing companies like beehiiv have publicly said they rely heavily on services provided by Greg Heilers’ team (Jolly SEO), and consider backlinks an indispensable part of their SEO strategy.

So the verdict is: this path isn’t outdated — it’s actually become more important thanks to the rise of AI.

2. Platform Choice: HARO Is “Dead” — So Where Do We Go?

The claim that “HARO is dead” isn’t quite accurate. More precisely, the old, wild-west HARO ecosystem is dead.

Today’s HARO (renamed Connectively and then switched back) is flooded with low-quality AI-generated pitches that reporters find exhausting. But that’s exactly our opportunity — when everyone’s looking for a shortcut, the people who actually deliver value will stand out.

Of course, we don’t have to put all our eggs in one basket. Plenty of great alternatives have emerged. Here’s my quick selection guide:

  • If you focus on business/B2B: start with the free Help A B2B Writer. Its opportunities are highly vertical and B2B-specific.
  • If your industry is very niche: try the free HARO and Source of Sources first, and filter for opportunities that are highly relevant to you. If you have budget, paid Qwoted is the better choice — its reporters and opportunities are higher quality.
  • If you want fast, simple wins: the paid platform Featured is worth the money. It makes it easier to earn links, whatever the media topic.

Remember, the tools are just the starting line — the real game happens beyond them.

3. Polish Your “Expert Persona” and Double Your Success Rate

Imagine being a reporter going through dozens or hundreds of emails — why would they pick you? Because they believe you’re an expert. So every pitch we send isn’t just a “submission” — it’s carefully crafting and projecting our “expert persona.”

These four areas matter most and decide your first impression:

  1. Optimize your website: this is your online business card.

    • Homepage: don’t let it look like a pure sales site — emphasize professionalism.
    • “About Us” page: must have real photos and bios of actual people — ideally the person you’re pitching as.
    • Social links: at least one entry point linking to the company’s LinkedIn page.
    • Contact info: provide a real company address and contact details to build trust.

  2. Choose the right outreach representative:

    • Pitching as the company CEO or founder carries far more authority than an “outreach specialist” or “marketing manager.” It speaks for the company.

  3. Use a professional email address:

    • Drop your @hotmail.com or @gmail.com. Using a company domain email (like [email protected]) is the baseline of professionalism and noticeably improves conversion rates.

  4. Guarantee writing quality:

    • Your submission must be concise, professional, and error-free. The goal is to let reporters “copy-paste” it straight into their article without spending time editing.

4. How to Write Pitches Reporters “Adopt in One Click”

A high-quality pitch is the heart of success. There’s one core principle: make it as easy as possible for the reporter to quote your expert take. Your content should be “ready to use out of the box.”

  • The email subject line is your “prime advertising slot”:

    • On email-based platforms, the subject line decides whether your email gets opened.
    • Formula: [your credentials] + on + [opportunity topic]. E.g., “Expert with 17 years of ecommerce experience on [topic]”.
    • Important: don’t reuse the same subject line — it gets flagged as spam.

  • Content format:

    • Use bullet points or subheadings to organize 2-3 core points.
    • Keep sentences complete and points self-contained — skip filler and unnecessary transitions.

  • Writing style:

    • Embrace internet writing: short sentences (10-15 words), short paragraphs (1-3 sentences).
    • Picture a reporter skimming your email on their phone — your content has to be instantly scannable. Nobody has time for walls of text.

5. How to Use ChatGPT: Be Its Master, Not Its Slave

Directly using ChatGPT or other LLMs to generate content and submit it as-is is extremely dangerous. Inaccurate content, touching taboo topics, or getting caught with AI traces can get your account banned.

The right way to use it is as your “research assistant” and “inspiration source.”

  • Fast research & ideation: when you’re stuck on a topic, paste the reporter’s request into ChatGPT and let it help you brainstorm angles.
    • Sample prompt: “I’m a [job title] in the [industry]. I need to provide expert insight on ‘[reporter’s question]’. Please help me brainstorm from 3 different angles, and suggest some supporting data or case directions.”
  • Important notes:
    • Fact-check everything! AI “hallucinations” can fabricate plausible-sounding but completely wrong information that will seriously damage your brand’s reputation.
    • Never copy-paste AI-generated content directly. Treat it as a draft, then rewrite and elevate it with your own language, experience, and insight.

6. Scaling Up: How to Hire and Manage Writers

Once your process works and you want to scale, consider hiring freelance writers.

  • Where to find them?: Upwork, Fiverr, and LinkedIn are all solid platforms. Search terms: HARO, Featured, Qwoted, Digital PR.
  • Recommended regions:
    • Philippines: best balance of affordability, quality, and reliability.
    • Canada: higher hourly rates, but usually top-tier results.
  • How to pay? (key part):
    • Pay-per-link: my top recommendation. Set tiered rates based on the media outlet’s authority (e.g., Ahrefs DR or the site’s organic traffic). For example: $150 for DR 50-60 links, $300 for DR 70+ links.
    • Pay-per-pitch + per-link: give writers a base guarantee (e.g., a fixed monthly or weekly pitching fee), plus bonuses for links actually secured.
    • Hourly pay: highest risk for you, because it’s hard to monitor a writer’s productivity. Not recommended.
  • Management tips:
    • Watch for red flags: if a writer constantly makes spelling errors or lacks basic knowledge of your industry, cut your losses early.
    • Be patient: a single link can take 30 days or longer from pitch to publication. Don’t drop a good writer just because you haven’t seen results in the short term.

7. Final Thought: Where Are My Results?

If you’ve sent tons of pitches and heard nothing back, first ask yourself: “Have I actively looked for links that may already be published?”

A lot of the time, reporters won’t specifically notify you that your piece went live. You need to regularly Google your brand name, your founder’s name, or a unique sentence from your quote to find published results.

Remember, link building is a long game. It tests not just your writing skills, but your professional depth and strategic patience.

I hope today’s share helps you re-examine and re-plan your link strategy. In today’s flood of AI-generated content, real, professional, valuable voices have never been more precious. For us independent site sellers who put real effort into our products and brands, this is a huge tailwind.

Go build your expert network, and keep delivering real value!

References:

  1. 6 Best HARO Alternatives in 2025 (Expert Review)
  2. Top HARO Alternatives for PR Pros in 2025
  3. 15 Connectively (HARO) Alternatives for 2025
  4. 12+ Connectively (Haro) Alternatives (For 2025)
  5. HARO Alternatives for 2025 - Press Hook