What you will learn: HARO is a free service that can connect you with journalists from around the country. Learn my tips for success with HARO.

Transcript:

Welcome to the Get Media Smart podcast. Never struggle to get attention again.

I’m your host, Cheryl Tan

Want to learn how to get noticed by the media?

What if the media came to you, and right behind them….clients and customers?

How do you leverage that publicity to grow your company?

This is the Get Media Smart podcast, where you will hear real-life stories of publicity gone right. You will learn actionable steps to get your name in front of the people who matter.

Hi, everyone! I’m Cheryl Tan. Welcome to the Get Media Smart podcast. Episode #11.

It is Day 11 of the 2-week Become a Media Magnet Challenge. Thank you for taking part in this. Today’s challenge is something I have started to do every day for myself, and my clients. And it pays off.

By the way, you can still join us by signing up for this free email challenge at CherylTanMedia.com/podcast and for two full weeks, you will get action items straight to your inbox - action items that will help you attract attention for you and your business.

I will outline the challenges in the first 14 episodes of this podcast. They are short, to the point, and you can always join us in our Facebook community to talk about your results.

At this point in the challenge, if you have been following through with the lessons and homework, you are well on your way to success. Your name is searchable in Google, your business is, too (if not, go back and listen to Episode #1). You have created a social media posting plan (Episode #7) and a set time each week to create content (Episode #10). You have made some relationships with reporters in your town (Learn how to do that in Episode #6).

Now, you are going outside of your community to find reporters who might be interested in your story. These reporters can take your expertise to a national level.

Have you heard of HARO? It stands for Help a Reporter Out. Since Peter Shankman created this service in 2007, countless entrepreneurs and experts have been able to connect with journalists. Many times, these journalists work for national publications and media outlets. They also work for association journals, community publications and media outlets you wouldn’t think to pitch because you didn’t know they existed. And those readers could be perfect potential customers.

You can sign up for free daily emails from HARO. The reporters who submit their story ideas are on a deadline and they're looking for real people to talk with on a particular subject ranging from business to health to parenting.

The competition is pretty stiff, though, as HARO is well known in the business and marketing worlds. Many people feel like their pitches go into a wasteland.

But it doesn't have to be this way.

Here are my tips for success on HARO:

1) Sign up for the HARO list and check it first thing in the morning. These reporters are on a deadline and they needed to get the interview yesterday. Once they find an appropriate interviewee or story subject, they are likely not going to keep looking, at least not that day. So be prompt with your pitch. The other pitches, even if they are a good fit, are probably going to get ignored.

2) You have to fit the bill. You need to be an expert in the topic you are pitching. If you're a financial planner, you shouldn't weigh in on medical issues. But there are plenty of reporters looking for financial experts, so focus on the queries that suit your exact expertise. It's a good idea to have a description of your specialties in a Word document on your computer or in Evernote so you can c...