Link building is one of the most important tools for SEO because it builds domain authority as well as increases referral traffic to websites.

If you want to increase your website’s ranking in search results, then you need to work on link building, and this usually means making connections within your niche.

As there is a lot of work involved in link building, many website owners outsource to a link building service like HARO. HARO backlinks are high authority backlinks that can increase your ranking in search results, bringing more traffic to your website and increasing business revenue.

To appear on some of the top websites from leading media outlets, you should work with the HARO link building service.

In this guide, we are sharing everything you need to know about HARO link building.

What Is The HARO Link Building Service?

HARO link building, which stands for Help A Reporter Out, is one of the best ways to get high-quality links.

PR and Major Publications

Using the HARO link building agency is a way to earn quality backlinks from media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, and other leading websites.

HARO operates as an online public relations platform for many businesses, as it allows you to put your own story out there and find reporters who are interested in publishing it.

Why Use HARO?

While there are many other link building methods you can try, HARO link building services are perhaps one of the best because they can guarantee links as journalists are actively looking for stories and sources.

The links provided are often high authority links, which offers a lot of link juice to your SEO campaigns for a better ranking.

How Does HARO Link Building Work?

Help A Reporter Out is a great resource for journalists and businesses alike because it offers a constant supply of sources.

As a website owner or business leader, using the HARO link building services can generate links with high authority publications, which offers not only an increased domain authority for your website but also high levels of referral traffic.

It is important to note that using the HARO service to build links can take as much time as other link building strategies because you need to perfect HARO pitches to ensure you stand out.

Perfecting HARO Pitches

Journalists using Help A Reporter Out get hundreds, if not thousands, of requests from SEO agencies, businesses, and other sources every day for links.

With so many HARO requests, it is difficult for reporters to find anything of value, and this is why if you do not work on creating a relevant HARO query, you can easily be ignored, along with many others.

Every day, there are new requests from the HARO outreach team requiring quotes or information from insider sources. This means there are many opportunities for you to take advantage of this free service and gain HARO backlinks from some of the top publications or business sites.

Reporters are always going to be looking for relevant link opportunities, but you need to do more than just show your relevancy in your pitch. 

HARO pitches should also be engaging, informative, and unique to show the reporters using the HARO service that you offer more than anyone else in their inbox.

How To Pitch Perfectly

Hundreds of businesses and website owners use HARO link building as a way to increase domain authority and rank higher in search results.

Appearing on websites with incredible domain authority, such as publications and media outlet sites, can increase your ranking in search engines significantly, which in turn will draw in traffic. With a HARO link, you can also expect a good level of referrals, which can do wonders for your business.

There is a lot of work that goes into building links, even when using a service such as HARO, which may be something your business will struggle with.

Hire SEO Experts

This is why many website owners hire a link building agency or SEO professionals to work on their HARO campaign.

With their experience and skills, it is more likely that you will get HARO responses because they know the best way to create a HARO pitch for your website and ensure you stand out from all other responses.

Benefits Of HARO Link Building

HARO can be a great link building method for websites and offers a range of benefits, such as:

High Authority Links

As Help A Reporter Out is used by professional reporters, you can get links to a range of top publications and business websites, which in turn will increase your own website’s domain authority.

More Traffic

Many users have built links with outlets that have thousands of viewers every day, bringing in a lot of traffic to their websites.

Natural Backlinks

For the best results in terms of SEO, having a natural embedded link is ideal, and this is what can be provided with HARO, as it improves the readability of the final article. All links are dofollow links.

Using HARO can also avoid duplicate links, as each new article that uses your quotes offers new links to your site.

Safe And White Hat Links

All HARO links are compliant with Google’s quality guidelines to ensure they are safe and effective.

How To Develop A HARO SEO Campaign

Every day, you will be sent HARO emails for the latest requests, so you will have numerous opportunities for link placements on some of the top websites.

As with all link building tactics, there is some skill required when it comes to generating HARO links.

If you do want to use HARO to build high-quality backlinks to your website, there are some practices you should use to ensure success, such as:

Understanding The Rules

As you may expect, there are rules to follow as a HARO user, and you need to understand these before registering and trying to get links.

There is a specific section called Rules For Resources, which you should familiarize yourself with before responding to anything, as this outlines the best practices and how to avoid issues when using this service.

HARO is quite strict when it comes to its user guidelines, and you will only be given one warning before your account is banned. Warnings can come from a range of things, such as pitching products or link swaps for high-authority backlinks.

Likewise, users cannot demand links from journalists, but they can request them.

Respond Fast

Time is one of the most important factors to consider when you try to build HARO links.

Users will get emails three times a day, every day, from the HARO outreach team requesting sources and quotes on a range of topics. If you can provide good insight, the journalist will provide HARO links from their platform, which can help increase traffic to your website.

To ensure that you get HARO links, you need to be able to provide a fast response to ensure you are the best source for the journalist.

Reporters usually work with strict deadlines, many of which can occur the same day, so they are looking for the best first option they get for sources.

With this in mind, most HARO requests that have been present for more than 24 hours are usually old news and, therefore, will not grant a link building opportunity for you.

To ensure you are getting the best links from HARO, you need to respond as soon as possible to the most relevant requests and get there before your competitors.

Stay Relevant

While time is an important factor when it comes to HARO links, relevancy is the primary focus for all users.

It may be tempting to try to get as many links as possible to increase your search engine ranking, but this has never been a good SEO strategy, and it certainly does not work with HARO.

Journalists are actively looking for relevant sources, which means you should only offer HARO responses for articles within your niche and market.

After all, you will be offered HARO links for providing insight or more information regarding the topic of the piece, so you need to be able to do this to be used. Being relevant to the subject allows for natural links in the article, which offers better HARO SEO for both you and the reporter.

But Also Consider All Options

Of course, you need to ensure your website and the information you can provide to the reporter is relevant to their subject, but this does not mean you have to sell yourself short.

There may be more relevant queries for your work than you realize simply because you are too focused on the main subject at hand.

One of the most common HARO link building examples comes from any request regarding entrepreneurship, marketing, or even modern consumers. These are all subjects that a digital marketing agency, for example, can provide insight into, even if it is not specifically referencing online advertising.

While you need to stay relevant to ensure you can get links from the HARO service, do not sell yourself short when it comes to accessing the daily opportunities, and consider what insight you can provide with your experience on various subjects.

Be Concise

HARO responses should not be more than 200 words, nor should they contain several links to all of your content or social media platforms.

To ensure that you get the attention of the reporter and to showcase the value you can provide to their article, ensure all responses are concise so they can fit into their word count.

Include your main website URL as the resource, but do not add multiple links as this not only looks messy but also impacts the readability of your information, which is likely to lead to a rejection from the reporter.

It is common for even the best responses, which offer a lot of insight and information, to be rejected simply because they were not succinct, and this can be easily avoided. 

This is not like creating guest posts for link building but rather a short paragraph that can provide more authority to the article.

Be Insightful and Useful

Journalists get hundreds of responses to all requests, and many of these do not offer any value at all.

There is no shortage of self-proclaimed experts online, and journalists get many responses from these kinds of people every day. Offering a generic insight or ‘pro tips’ that have no backing will not get you high-quality backlinks.

Instead, make sure your response is genuinely informative, showcasing your understanding and education on the subject.

If advice or tips are required, make sure your content is actionable to provide the most value to the journalist and their readers.

Avoid Filler

Similarly, to ensure you are going to get links from HARO reporters, you need to avoid adding filler content to your response.

Short responses are also valuable for reporters, so do not feel the need to add more fluff around your actual advice or information to make up a word count. Instead, you need to get right to the point to showcase your knowledge and ensure you are providing value to the reporter.

As we have mentioned, responses should be no more than 200 words (unless specified otherwise).

Remember that you are not writing a blog post when getting links from HARO but rather offering a short insight to support an article.

Include Your URL

To ensure you get the benefits of link building when using HARO, ensure you include your main website domain in your pitch.

Do not add multiple links in your pitch or have long, complicated domains, but adding your main URL is a great way to save time for the journalist and get the benefits of link building if they use your quote.

What To Avoid When Using HARO Link Building

HARO SEO can be highly effective for websites, increasing their search engine ranking for increased traffic.

With most of the links developed through HARO being high quality, this may not always be the case, and there are some things you should avoid when using this link building service for best results.

This includes:

Anonymous Requests

You may find anonymous requests in your HARO emails, but these should be avoided at all costs.

Usually, a respected journalist will include who they work for, so if the request is anonymous, this usually means it comes from a low-authority website.

Responding to this may result in links, but these are going to be low-quality links which may negatively impact your SEO.

When using HARO or any other link building opportunity, you want to ensure you are connecting with websites with an authority rating of more than 40.

Late Replies

As we have mentioned, timely responses are highly valuable when using HARO.

To ensure you can get links from this service, you want to make sure you are responding as soon as possible. Any request that has been on the site for more than 24 hours is already too old and, therefore, should be avoided.

Instead, wait for a new request rather than replying to older ones, as this shows you are organized and reliable, which can lead to getting more links from the reporter.

Typos and Grammar Mistakes

While you want to send your responses off as soon as possible, do not fail to proofread your work first.

As you are replying as an expert or a professional in a particular field, you want to make sure your pitch reads well to showcase your knowledge.

Errors are common in many forms of writing, but obvious mistakes that you have overlooked in your rush to reply do not bode well when using HARO.

Failing To Back Up Your Work

Adding too many links to your pitch does not read well and can lead to your response getting rejected, but this does not mean you should not include anything.

Responses should include a short bio that can outline your work, qualifications, and social numbers to show your relevancy as well as value to the journalist.

Failing to provide this kind of proof can lead to your response being rejected because there is no trust between yourself and the reporter, so make sure to show your website’s credibility in your pitch.

Summary

The HARO link building service can be a great tool for website owners who want to improve their search engine ranking for increased traffic.

Using HARO link building service can get your high authority relevant links on top websites when done correctly.