What if there was a place where bloggers, reporters and various other media eagerly gathered, looking for your type of products, brand, and even your handmade business advice? A dream? Thanks to HARO, this opportunity is real and it’s helping so many small handmade shop owners get valuable press coverage! Read on to learn how to get your Etsy shop in the press!
What is HARO?
HARO is the acronym for “Help A Reporter Out.” It’s one of the most popular sourcing services that connects journalists and bloggers with relevant sources (such as yourself!). It helps meet journalists’ demanding deadlines and in turn, enables brands (even small handmade brands) to tell their stories. HARO distributes more than 50,000 journalist queries from highly respected media outlets each year.
Why You Need to be Using HARO
This powerful platform allows you (the source) to search and find topics related to your area of expertise, industry, or experience. It also allows journalists and bloggers to spend more time writing and less time sourcing. It’s a win-win for both of you and the journalist. As a handmade seller, this outside exposure is vital for not only building brand awareness and increasing sales, but also for establishing yourself as an expert in your craft.
How to Use HARO
Step 1: Sign up for a free account and register as a “source” at www.helpareporter.com
Step 2: Log into your account and select which industry-specific queries you’d like to get.
Step 3: You will receive daily emails specifically around the industry you choose. When you see a query that matches your business or expertise, simply reply to the email listed above the query to reach the reporter with your pitch. HARO has a list of suggestions and best practices on how most effectively to pitch your business or product. It’s vital you follow their suggestions in order to be successful.
Here’s a real-life HARO success story.
As an Etsy business coach and social media manager, I use HARO extensively as a source for getting my Etsy clients into the press. Kristy, from Industrial Farm Co, is one of many Etsy shop owners who received some great press for her Etsy shop by responding to a HARO query. What I love about this type of press is that it featured her expertise in her craft and her story as an entrepreneur. The byproduct of that press was an increase of brand awareness and product sales for her shop – giving her brand a vital boost ( you can listen to her interview on that podcast HERE).
Here are the steps to get featured.
1. Build HARO into your daily routine.
HARO sends out three or more emails a day depending on the editions you’ve signed up to receive. The editions are sent at 5:35 am, 12:35 pm, and 5:35 pm ET, Monday through Friday. Most queries have short or next day deadlines. Set aside 10-15 mins, 3 times per day (as close to the release times as possible) to go over the queries and pitch to any of the queries you feel you or your shop are a good fit for.
2. Be consistent.
Just like social media, pitching consistently and regularly will get you the best results.
3. Think outside the box.
Don’t limit yourself to only pitching to queries that are looking for products! As an entrepreneur and handmade business owner, you have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share. If the query chooses to feature you, they will credit you and link back to your business or shop, which is a great SEO boost for your business.
**Bonus tip: You can also follow HARO on Twitter (@helpareporter). They tweet HARO requests with same-day deadlines (#URGHARO) throughout the day that aren’t always mentioned in the regular emails.
Want to learn more about how to use a sample strategy for free press? Click here.
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