HARO Launches Self-Serve Text Ads for PR Pros, Marketers

HARO (Help a Reporter Out), the journalist-request newsletter owned by Featured, has launched Advertise in HARO, a self-serve platform for purchasing text advertising in its three weekday editions. The system allows advertisers to select a placement, choose editions and dates via a calendar displaying live prices, write ad copy in the browser, and pay through Stripe. All ads undergo review by HARO staff before publication. Booking is available at helpareporter.com/advertise.

HARO remains free for PR professionals to pitch journalists and for sources to respond, with advertising serving as the revenue model. Brett Farmiloe, founder and CEO of Featured, emphasized this approach: “Some platforms in this category charge PR people a monthly subscription for the right to pitch more often. We took the other route. HARO stays free for journalists and for the experts who answer them. The companies that pay are the ones that want to reach this audience, and now they can book that reach in a few minutes without a sales call.” Over the past year, HARO sent more than 100 million emails to subscribers, who include PR professionals, publicists, marketers, founders, and subject matter experts across categories like business, technology, health, travel, lifestyle, and entertainment. The new advertising option targets companies selling to this audience, such as PR and marketing software providers, agencies, media databases, research publishers, event organizers, course creators, and other newsletters.

Advertisers can book ads in three steps: choose a placement and date, write the ad copy and link text, and pay via Stripe. HARO reviews each ad during business hours and confirms the scheduled edition by email. At least one business day is required between booking and publication for review, and up to two revisions can be requested before the deadline. Ads that don’t meet HARO’s guidelines are declined and refunded in full. Placement types include Presenting Sponsor (top of the edition, up to 350 characters and 30-character link text), Spotlight (below the query index, same character limits), and Classified (in the closing block, up to 140 characters and 24-character link text). HARO publishes three editions each weekday: Morning at 5:35 a.m. ET, Afternoon at 12:35 p.m. ET, and Evening at 5:35 p.m. ET. Ads run only in weekday editions. Rates are published on the booking calendar and vary by placement, edition, and weekday. Thursday base rates are $795 for Presenting Sponsor (Morning), $625 (Afternoon), and $525 (Evening); Spotlight ranges from $395 to $265; Classified from $195 to $125. Monday through Wednesday run above Thursday rates, while Friday is the lowest-priced day. Volume discounts apply automatically: 10% off four or more placements, 15% off eight or more, 22% off 16 or more, and 28% off 30 or more. Fixed-price bundles include Try HARO (four Classified placements, Afternoon, $450), Spotlight Week (five Spotlight placements, Morning, $1,595), Presenting Week (five Presenting Sponsor placements, Morning, $3,195), Classified Month (20 Classified placements, any edition, $2,395), and Full Month Presence (four Presenting Sponsor, eight Spotlight, and 20 Classified placements, $6,450). Bundle prices already include the discount and do not stack with volume discounts.

HARO maintains strict advertising standards: ads may not promise a story or editorial coverage, describe a placement as guaranteed press, sell links, or present a paid placement as news. Violations result in a declined ad and a full refund. Farmiloe added, “We wanted buying an ad in HARO to feel the way submitting a query feels for a journalist. You see the rate and pick the date, and the ad runs once our team has read it. That is the whole system.” Advertise in HARO is available now at helpareporter.com/advertise, with a full guide published at https://blog.helpareporter.com/how-to-advertise-on-haro-a-step-by-step-guide-to-haro-ads/. A launch offer for first-time advertisers is shown on the booking page. HARO, founded in 2008, was shut down by its previous owner in December 2024 and relaunched by Featured in April 2025. Featured, founded in 2022 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, operates as Terkel, Inc. and owns HARO and Connectively.