Getting featured in top publications such as Forbes and the New York Times is a milestone that you want to achieve. Isn’t it? To achieve this milestone, you have to master your pitch and be consistent with your approach. The benefits that you can get from HARO cannot be overstated.

In today’s post, I’m here to show you how to write a successful HARO pitch that gets you a mention in top publications.

Let’s jump in.

Tips to Write a Successful HARO Pitch

1. Stick to The Pitch Instruction

Sometimes journalists include specific instructions in their HARO queries. These are 3 specific HARO query instructions that you can expect.

• Journalist normally require sources to provide data or statistics
• Journalist often seek expert commentaries from sources in their respective industries
• They sometimes demand headshot from experts so if you’re responding to a HARO query on behalf of a client, make sure you have his or her headshot with you.

2. Make Your Pitch Readable

Reporters don’t have the time to read blocks of text that are difficult to digest. In fact,  they won’t hesitate to ignore your pitch and move on. To write a successful HARO pitch, use short paragraphs and bullet points. Using short paragraphs and bullet points also works great for these tried-and-tested HARO alternatives.

This way, your pitch becomes easy to read and skim.

3. Setup Google Alert 

It’s obvious that some journalists won’t give you a heads up when your pitch is accepted. To receive an instant notification, set up a Google Alert. With Google Alert, when your brand is mentioned in any publication, you’ll instantly receive a notification in your email.

Discover how to setup a Google Alert here.

4. Focus on the Story, not Your Brand

If you want to write a HARO pitch to be considered thoughtful and insightful by journalists, it’s simple. avoid being salesy. Nothing turns off a journalist more than reading a pitch full of service or product promotion.

Look, it’s very important to highlight your credentials in your pitch but promoting your service or your product is not allowed. You’re supposed to be giving value to help a reporter out.

5. Don’t Demand for a Backlink

HARO has it’s own rule for sources and journalists. As part of their rule for sources, they are not allowed to demand for backlinks from journalists, irrespective of the value they bring onboard.

As a source, you risk being thrown off the platform if you fail to comply. To have a chance of writing a successful HARO pitch, never demend a backlink.

To acquire high quality backlinks using HARO, follow these tips.

6. Don’t Submit AI Generated Contents

I agree that Generative AI is growing at a fast pace but it falls behind when it comes to original ideas, adding personal touches to stories and the ability to express emotions as expected. 

When you submit an AI generated pitch, it doesn’t make your pitch authentic. I’ll advise you to avoid AI-generated content when writing a HARO pitch.

7. Add Your Contact Information

Hey, don’t make it difficult for journalists to reach you after submitting your HARO pitch. Simply include your contact information, such as, email, phone number, and any relevant social media handle, at the end of your pitch.  This makes your pitch authentic and relevant to reporters.

It also makes it easy for reporters to reach you at their convenience.

8. Personalize Your HARO Pitch

Personalize your pitch to meet the specific requirements of each journalist. This shows that you’ve taken your time to read and understand their respective demands. Also, add personal touches to your pitch by showing any personal connection that you have with their story.

9. Follow Up Respectfully

Even though respecting the reporters time is important, you have to follow up a week or so if you haven’t heard from them. In addition, you have to express gratitude by thanking the reporter, even if they have decided not to include your pitch in their story.

This gives you future opportunity to collaborate with them.

10. Embrace Persistence 

This is one of the best practices when it comes to writing a successful HARO pitch. Like any other PR and link building approach, being successful with HARO takes time. You might not get a response for your first to tenth pitch but don’t feel rejected because things will get better if you’re consistent and value-oriented. 

Just offer genuine value and the rest will follow.

11. Hire a HARO Link Building Agency

Building links, especially with HARO, can be a daunting task. For this reason, a lot of folks like you turn to HARO link building agencies.

HARO link building agencies have the resources and expertise to build links for you, optimize your entire website to rank for competitive keywords and setup a perfect content marketing strategy for you.

HARO Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can I Follow Up on My Pitch?

If a journalist informs you that your pitch has been selected and their story will be published on a specific day and the post has been published without your pitch, you can follow-up

Will my Pitch be Noticed if I don’t upgrade my Account on HARO?

Yes, your pitch will be noticed without upgrading to premium on HARO. In fact, I landed quality backlinks when I was on a free plan but I’ll advise you to go premium. It comes with its own benefits.

What are the Best Alternatives to HARO?

The best HARO alternatives are Qwoted, PitchResponse, JustResponse etc.

Final Thought

Congratulations for coming this far. In writing a successful HARO pitch, remember to stay positive and persistent in your execution. It’s very important for you to be value-oriented when approaching journalists, because that is exactly what they demand from you.

Writing a successful HARO pitch demands a lot of consistency on your end.

Over to you now.

How successful has your HARO` pitch been? Comment below