What is HARO?
HARO (currently Connectively) is an acronym for the term "Help A Reporter Out." It relates to a platform connecting reporters and journalists with expert sources. Although HARO in itself isn't considered technically an SEO tool, SEO agencies often use HARO as part of their link-building strategy.
Here are the possible scenarios where HARO SEO is incorporated by SEO professionals.
Journalism - Through the field of responsible news reporting, HARO can be utilized by researchers and connects journalists to gain access to high-authority resources which they would then use in outlining the information they require for their news output.
These can also lead them to super-authoritative websites and high-authority publications to further strengthen their research. They can submit HARO queries to help them hasten their research.
Experts and resources - Professionals and business entities that are considered an authority in a particular field or industry. These groups or individuals can sign up for HARO to be notified of HARO requests from professional writers and journalists. Since they have referral traffic, they can immediately respond to relevant queries, especially if these are under their field of expertise or jurisdiction.
Link-building opportunity - As part of a good SEO strategy, the opportunity to build backlinks is great using HARO as a journalist can include your expertise or valuable input in their article and provide a backlink to your website, and can even mention your name and business information.
This is highly valuable for search engine optimization as backlinks from highly reputable sources provide a positive signal to search engines.
HARO works on SEO positively by monitoring relevant topics and queries and responding quickly to important data. This may help you position yourself as an industry expert by acquiring links from equally authoritative websites.