HARO (Help a Reporter Out), the journalist-request newsletter owned by Featured, has launched Advertise in HARO, a self-serve platform for buying text advertising in its three weekday editions. The system allows advertisers to pick a placement, choose editions and dates on a calendar that displays live pricing for every open slot, write the ad in the browser, and pay through Stripe. HARO staff review every ad before it runs. Booking is open at helpareporter.com/advertise.
The launch highlights a strategic choice: HARO does not charge PR professionals to pitch journalists. The newsletter is free to receive and free to answer, and advertising is what pays for it. "Some platforms in this category charge PR people a monthly subscription for the right to pitch more often. We took the other route," said Brett Farmiloe, founder and CEO of Featured, the company that owns HARO. "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."
HARO sent more than 100 million emails to subscribers over the past year. Its readers are PR professionals, publicists, marketers, founders, and subject matter experts who answer journalist requests in categories including business, technology, health, travel, lifestyle, and entertainment. Advertise in HARO is built for companies that sell to that audience, such as PR and marketing software, agencies, media databases, research publishers, event organizers, course creators, and other newsletters.
The booking process involves three steps and a review: choose a placement, edition, and date; write the ad copy and link text, and add one destination URL; review the order and pay through Stripe. No HARO account is needed. HARO requires at least one business day between booking and publication for review. Advertisers can request up to two revisions before the deadline stated in their review email. Ads that do not meet HARO's advertising guidelines are declined and refunded in full.
HARO offers three placement types: Presenting Sponsor (top of the edition, above the journalist query index, labeled "Sponsored"), Spotlight (directly below the query index, above the first journalist query, labeled "Spotlight"), and Classified (in the closing Classifieds block after the last query). Each ad is plain text with one link; images and HTML are not accepted. 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 in weekday editions only.
Rates are published on the booking calendar and vary by placement, edition, and weekday. Thursday base rates for Presenting Sponsor are $795 (Morning), $625 (Afternoon), and $525 (Evening); Spotlight is $395, $315, and $265; Classified is $195, $155, and $125. Monday through Wednesday run above the Thursday rate, and Friday runs below it. Volume discounts apply automatically to à la carte orders: 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 are also available, such as Try HARO (four Classified placements, Afternoon edition) for $450 and Full Month Presence (four Presenting Sponsor, eight Spotlight, and 20 Classified placements) for $6,450. Bundle prices include the discount and do not stack with volume discounts.
HARO reviews every advertisement before it runs. Ads may not promise a story or editorial coverage, describe a placement as guaranteed press, sell links, or present a paid placement as news. "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," Farmiloe said. "That is the whole system."
Advertise in HARO is available now at helpareporter.com/advertise. A full guide to placements and advertising guidelines is 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 is a free newsletter that connects journalists with expert sources. Founded in 2008, HARO was shut down by its previous owner in December 2024 and relaunched by Featured in April 2025. Featured is the AI co-pilot for PR, founded in 2022 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. It operates as Terkel, Inc. and owns HARO and Connectively. For more information, visit HARO or Featured.
