The Surprising Way I Use HARO/Connectively
Sure, it's great for finding sources, but how else can I leverage it as a writing tool?
Happy Monday, Substackers!
I’m back from a whirlwind trip to Oaxaca with Chef Richard Sandoval—it was an incredible week of eating, market tours, cooking classes, historic architecture, learning about small-batch mezcal production, and being with friends old and new. It will stay with me forever—I can’t wait to return! I hope you are following along on my Instagram!
Now it’s back to reality and sending out story ideas that I gathered while traveling!
Lots of great stuff in this newsletter—so check it all out! Please leave me a comment with your questions and the things you’d like to see in upcoming newsletters!
Have a great week!
Rebecca
Have an idea for a pitch but feel like it needs a little oomph? Send it to me—the PITCH WITCH!
Paid subscribers can send me up to three pitches they’re working on that they think would benefit from my feedback. I’ll work my magic on it, give constructive edits and make the pitch better—and more likely to get accepted.
To read all the details of how to send me your ideas for PITCH WITCH, read this post.
Recently Published Work:
Things I’m Working on:
A round-up of free and affordable entertainment for Mile High on the Cheap
Chronicling how Chef Richard Sandoval gets ideas for his menus through his travels for DiningOut
A Knoxville weekend getaway itinerary for The Tennessean
An itinerary for exploring the Utah Wine Trail for Carpe Travel
The Surprising Way I Use HARO/Connectively
You might be familiar with HARO (Help A Reporter Out) which is becoming Connectively within a few months—its a resource that is free (with paid options available, natch) that connects writers to sources they need for their stories. Essentially, as a writer, you create a query, stating your editorial needs and the outlet you’re writing for, and invite sources to contribute expert quotes or ideas.
A query will show who the author is making the request, the title/topic of the article being written, the deadline, the general category, such as travel, and the outlet.
From a writer’s perspective, it’s a great tool when you need quotes and expert input—it can potentially save you a lot of time trying to hunt down sources when you’re on a tight deadline. From a publicist’s POV, it’s a great way to get your client in front of writers when there’s a relevant connection and potentially get coverage!
Note: Using HARO, I could identify myself as both a journalist and as a source and get daily emails with source requests, but with Connectively, I had to create two separate profiles to be able to either see the queries (as a source) or to create them (as a writer).
One of the most challenging things when you’re starting out in your writing career is finding outlets to send your ideas to—that’s where my alternative use of HARO comes in. Sometimes it feels like you’re pitching the same half dozen magazines over and over and getting crickets. Or you know your idea is good, it just needs to get in front of the right person. Or you just need to widen your net to get more work coming in. While it would be great if every story idea landed in a top-tier publication, for me anyway, a majority of my work comes from those “sandwich meat” publications—the ones that may not elicit oohs and aahs, but are still paying publications—not top-tier, but not content mills, either.
It always surprises me to learn just how many paying publications there are out there—many times, these are publications I’ve never heard of or they’re publications I’m familiar with but never considered pitching.
In Connectively, if you’re registered as a source, you can see a list of all of the queries and requests out there on a list. You can narrow it down by topic, too. As an example, one of today’s travel requests is for international luxury hotels and resorts reviews for a publication called IX magazine (International Excellence). A quick dig through their archives shows that they do accept freelance pitches from contributors who aren’t on staff.
Another is looking for content about St. Maarten for Cacique—naturally, I thought this was a blog for the Mexican foods brand, Cacique., which led me to discover they actually DO have a blog that’s dedicated to Mexican traditions and holidays and the recipes that go with it. This might be a great opportunity to reach out to them about content creation needs. The Cacique in question in the Connectively query, though, is actually for the onboard magazine of InterCaribbean Airways. They are open to freelancer pitches.
While I love the idea of using HARO/Connectively to get sources, I love the idea of using it to find new to me publications or reconsider those I never thought about pitching before even more! For me it’s another way to maximize the benefits of the platform as a resource. I can then make a list of any new to me publications or publications I want to pitch on my Trello board with a little note about the publication and some potential ideas.
Happy HARO hunting and pitching! Have a great week!
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