Free media coverage is one of the best deals going. If you want to see your company’s name in print, scan the daily emails from Help a Reporter Out (HARO). It will only take you 5-10 minutes each day to scan dozens of inquiries from reporters looking for information on stories they are writing. Our efforts in responding to HARO posts recently landed us a nice mention in Oregon Business Magazine.
Here’s some advice when pitching editors through HARO:
- Make sure your response is relevant to the editor’s inquiry. For example, don’t send information on electric vehicle sales if the writer is doing a story on low-cost auto repair.
- Think before you write. The information you provide should be descriptive yet to the point. Don’t send paragraphs of information on a first reply. The writer will contact you if he needs more info.
- Be patient. We get action on only about 10% of the responses we provide. However, the ROI is still there.
Responding to editor and freelance writer inquiries can be a great addition to your public relations strategy. Combined with press releases, media outreach can get your company great press which often garners new leads and establishes your management team as experts.
