In recent years, HARO link-building has become one of the most popular link-building strategies among SEO professionals. 

Why?

HARO Link Building is a way that journalists and reporters connect with expert sources for their stories. How would it be if you could get backlinks for your site from such a website with a DR of 90+ and traffic of 10-20-30 million? Consider how powerful these backlinks could be. Do you think these links will perform well? 

Are these links more powerful and safe compared to backlinks from Web 2.0, comment links, and paid links?

Such links typically range in price from $200 to $2000. Let's explore how you can acquire these powerful backlinks for your website completely free of charge.

Usually, attempts are made to obtain these types of links by using platforms like Haro. Haro, which stands for Help A Reporter Out, is a system where reporters and authors from major media sites, as well as intermediate sites, seek sources or expert opinions for their articles. We'll try to leverage this opportunity to acquire backlinks.

What Is HARO?

Help a Reporter Out (HARO) is a platform that connects journalists with sources who can give expert sagacity on relevant industry topics.

Journalists and reporters submit queries that require expert sources. It's just like a bridge between journalists and sources.

It allows entrepreneurs and business owners to gain disclosure and establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry. It helps to obtain it without spending thousands on a PR agency. 

Why Would I Want to Secure HARO Backlinks for My Website?

HARO is a great tool because it benefits both parties; reporters get their source, and responders get a quality link.

It helps to increase website traffic. If you get one big link from HARO, believe me, or not, it's equal to getting 10 links from different sites.

Many popular link-building strategies are available at this moment, but HARO link building occupies 46.3% of the market. That's huge, isn't it?

We have already explained various link building strategies, so you can review them - What is Digital PR and Why It’s Important for SEO and Link Building Strategy

Unfortunately, the HARO system has become over-saturated over the years, which means receiving a reply for an answer to a search is much more difficult than it once was.

But when used correctly, HARO offers a valuable system for achieving links and building valuable business relationships, even if the competition has increased.

I know this platform from both sides, as a link/brand-building tool for clients and personal businesses – and as a journalist seeking info for articles I have worked on for multiple departments.

So I want to share my story about HARO. I obtained my first link after one year of struggle. Throughout that year, I researched and revised my plan day by day and tried to find my mistakes. It took a lot of time, and I received a lot of rejections from the journalist.

So, gaining experience is more important than expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T) by being cited as an expert on authoritative websites.

• Acquire links your competitors can’t effortlessly replicate (they may use HARO, but they can’t guarantee to land the same opportunities)
• Experience is so important so build Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T) by being cited as an expert on authoritative websites
• Try  to get high-quality backlinks that actually get referral traffic
• Build  your brand awareness 
• Be recognized as a thought leader in your industry.

HARO is a great tool because it benefits both parties: reporters find their sources, and responders obtain quality links.

Unfortunately, the HARO system has become oversaturated over the years, making it much more difficult to receive a reply for an answer to a search than it once was.

However, when used correctly, HARO offers a valuable system for achieving links and building valuable business relationships, even amidst increased competition.

I am familiar with this platform from both sides, using it as a link/brand-building tool for clients and personal businesses, as well as being a journalist seeking information for articles across multiple departments.

So, I want to share my story about HARO. I obtained my first link after a year of struggle. Throughout that year, I researched and revised my plan day by day, diligently trying to identify and rectify my mistakes. It took a lot of time, and I received numerous rejections from journalists.

Therefore, gaining experience is more important than merely possessing expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T) through being cited as an expert on authoritative websites.

Journalists are bombarded with thousands of pitches for each query. 

Often—especially when working under a tight deadline—a journalist will use the first worthy pitch they come across.

Meaning?

Your pitches may not even get looked at if you’re not quick to respond. 

The good news: 

We’ll give you some tried-and-tested pitching consultations to help you stand out from the crowd and land killer links. 

HARO for SEO and Google

Within the realm of SEO standards, HARO is like a secret ingredient everyone likes but not all people can repeat it. It can significantly boost your website’s ranking on Google. Haro link building has lots of benefits.

Here’s why:

• TOP Quality Links: Links from powerful authoritative news sites are like  SEO gold. They tell Google that your website is trustworthy and relevant so it helps to boost your traffic. No other link is more beneficial and effective than these.
• Enhanced Visibility: These links can boost more traffic to your site. More eyes on your article means more potential business. The additional bonus for most of the good quality backlinks.
• Reputation Boost: Being featured in honorable publications enhances your brand’s credibility. But remember one thing, it’s not just about quantity. The relevance and quality of the links you get are what matters. With HARO, you’re not just chasing any link; you’re building a portfolio of high-quality, relevant backlinks for your website that make Google sit up and take notice. 

You can have only several links of this type and be the top-known player in your niche.

HARO plans

One of the best things about this website is that it has four different plans including one free plan where you don’t have to pay even a single penny. 

However, most businesses propose the Standard plan ($19/month) over a free plan as it offers many extra features giving you a competitive advantage.

Advantages of a paid plan

The first and foremost  convenience that you get from a paid plan is that it allows you to add alert messages for keywords.

Meaning, you can select a keyword that you want to set an alert for and then you’ll get an email alert whenever there is a request that contains your  appointed keyword.

For example, if we set an alert for “Digital marketing“, we will get an alert email whenever there is a request from a journalist that takes on this keyword.

This way, we can be the first one to respond to relevant queries and get a competitive advantage over other free users easily.

Next, it also helps you make your pitches even more impactful by automatically adding your bio and other links, giving you more benefits to showcase your credibility.

Another amazing feature is that you can even search for specific queries right away from the online interface.

How to Successfully Utilize HARO for Link Building

Now that we've covered what HARO is and how HARO backlinks can benefit your website, we will provide you with some additional pro tips in the section below. 

Now, it’s time to get a proper understanding of how to use HARO to build strong backlinks to your website. 

At this moment We'll give you a step-by-step guide on how to get the most out of HARO.

Step-by-step process to follow 

Step 1. Sign up as a source

The first step to your successful HARO link-building campaign is visiting the HARO website and signing up as a source. 

The process is simple, all you have to do is click the sign-up button and then fill out the next form for login.

After filling out the form, you’ll get a verification email to confirm your account setup.

Once you click the verification link, you will be redirected to a welcome page, completing your first step.

Step 2. Set up your profile

Now that you’ve successfully created your account, it’s time to set up your profile in a professional way.

First, please confirm all your general information.

Next, you’ll also be bestowed the option to select your preferred industry to receive more queries related to it.

Step 3: Start responding to queries

After you've set up your preferences, you'll start getting queries related to your selected topic.

Now, it’s your job to carefully read all the queries and answer the ones that fall under your area of expertise. 

One thing to understand here is that you are not the only one responding to those queries alone. The journalists may be receiving thousands of responses from different sources. It’s very important to stand out from the crowd to make sure that the journalist selects you as their source.

Here are some important things to remember when responding to queries:

• Keep it short and informative 

The first thing to keep in mind here is to always keep your response as short as possible. Please refrain from adding unnecessary information in your response and focus only on what is relevant. Doing otherwise would be unprofessional. In a general way, it’s a good rule to always restrict your length to 2 to 3 paragraphs unless the journalist is asking for more information. 

• Show them why they should choose you

Along with keeping your response short, you must also focus on displaying the journalist the reason why they need to pick you as their source. 

• Show expertise

Because journalists will be looking for someone who is an expert on the topic, you need to show your expertise in your response.

Step 4. Set up alerts to monitor your responses

Once you’re done with responding to the queries, it’s now time to monitor them all the time.

The most effective method for monitoring the results is by setting up alerts to confirm your inclusion.

The most effective method is by using Google Alerts. You can set Google alerts for your name so that you’ll be notified whenever an article is published bearing your name. 

This way you can stay updated with your HARO efforts. 

Tips To Write a Successful HARO Pitch

Try to avoid HARO's common  mistakes

Now that you know what to do when using HARO for link-building, let me highlight some things you shouldn't do when incorporating HARO into your link-building strategy.

In other words, here are some general HARO mistakes to avoid.

1. Ignoring the journalist’s guidelines

Every journalist comes with their own set of guidelines when posting a request on the HARO website. 

As an expert, it’s your job to understand those guidelines and follow them to get accepted by the journalist. It is so important.

HARO is not just about showing your expertise to the journalist but also showing the journalist that you favor their guidelines to build strong connections with them.

2. Providing generic responses lacking uniqueness.

Now that you know that a journalist posting a request on HARO generally gets more than100  answers to their requests, you must also have understood that being generic with responses won’t work. 

If you want to present yourself as an expert and stand out from the crowd, it’s extremely important for you to tailor your response to each query.

Next, you must also add some personalization to your pitch that automatically grabs the attention of the journalist easily.

3. Over-promotion

Now this is the kind of HARO mistake that, on the surface, would look like a smart move but is a big fault that can lead you to lose your spot.

Showing your knowledge and experience is good, but writing an entire pitch all about them is not a smart move. Over-promotion can make your pitch more of an advertisement than a valuable response to the query.

You must only include those things in your pitch that are really needed to get accepted and not focus much on promoting yourself.

4. Way too long pitch

Now we have investigated this point many times and I think it’s important to discuss it one more time. This is because even though most experts are aware of this point they still make this mistake while trying to prove their knowledge to the journalist.

Even if you have a lot to talk about, never make your pitch too long for Journalist queries. Journalists don’t want to read a response that is long and covers too many points because they don't have enough time for a long conversation so make it short and informative. 

Try to restrict your pitch to 2 to 3 paragraphs or try to complete it under 300 words.

5. Being impatient

Now this is one of the most important points to keep in mind if you want to perform your HARO opportunities effectively. 

Oftentimes, journalists come from big publisher websites like - Forbes, who look for sources to add to their articles.

Big publisher websites often have a long waiting time since they have a big method to go through before accepting any response.

Results from your HARO pitches may not manifest for months. But because these requests are coming from high authority websites and they have lots of traffic and DA or DR, they are often worth the wait.

6. Not being consistent

Yes. Even HARO link building requires you to be compatible with your strategy to show you any good results. 

You can’t just answer 2 to 3 responses and then sit and wonder why you are not getting any results from your HARO strategy.

Try to be consistent with your responses before waiting for any good results from your strategy.

7. Ignoring your metrics

The last and final HARO mistake that you must avoid is disregarding your metrics. 

Your HARO strategy shouldn’t be just about discovering the most topical request, crafting your pitch, and then moving on to another request. 

Once you’re done with providing your pitches to different requests, it’s important for you to take a look at your metrics and start analyzing what works for you and what doesn’t. 

This helps you get an idea of how you should tailor your HARO strategy and craft your pitch to get the best results easily.

8. Avoid Anonymous Media Outlet:

An anonymous source is someone known to the journalist and likely the editor, but not identified by name or tagged with information that would reveal their identity. Is this helpful for sourcing? Most of the time, it doesn't come from reputable sites or they may require payment for publishing your link. Therefore, it's better to avoid them as it's not easy to track your link on those websites.

Conclusion

Okay, so this was the complete guide on the HARO link-building strategy.

In this post, we’ve learned everything about HARO including what it is, its benefits, how it works, how to achieve success in it, and common mistakes to eliminate. 

Now, it’s your turn to go for it and start your HARO link-building strategy the correct way. Just remember all the steps and points mentioned and you’ll be on your way to your advancement.