How Brett Farmiloe Revived HARO—and Why the Golden Era of Digital PR Is Just Beginning

Welcome back to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your backstage pass to building brands through SEO, digital PR, and entrepreneurial creativity. Hosted by Nick Biggs and Chris Panteli of Linkifi.

This episode features Brett Farmiloe, CEO of Featured.com and now the new steward of Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Brett shares the behind-the-scenes story of reviving one of the most iconic tools in digital PR—bringing HARO back to life after its shutdown, and what it means for journalists, SEOs, link builders, and brands today.

Key Talking Points:

📢 The Story Behind Reviving HARO After HARO was shut down and rebranded unsuccessfully, Brett saw the opportunity—and the demand—to bring it back in its purest, original form.

📩 The Power of a Simple Email Newsletter Why the classic HARO email format still works—and how Featured.com is keeping it clean, curated, and free from spam and exploitation.

🛡️ Fighting Spam, Bots, and Link Schemes Brett explains the strict manual vetting processes, community reporting tools, and anti-AI-bot measures they’ve put in place to protect journalists and restore trust.

📰 Why Big Publications Are Already Back Within days of relaunch, major outlets like USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and others are sourcing queries through HARO again.

⚙️ How Featured.com and HARO Work Together Featured.com offers filtered, targeted pitches; HARO remains about connection—direct journalist-to-source opportunities through email.

🚀 What’s Next for HARO Plans to introduce filters, alerts, categories, and smarter personalization—while keeping HARO’s “lightweight, no-login-required” email simplicity.

Quotes from Brett Farmiloe:

“HARO isn’t just a brand—it’s an action. It’s helping a reporter out. And the demand to bring it back was overwhelming.”

“If your pitch doesn’t help a reporter out, it probably shouldn’t be sent.”

“AI might change content creation, but people still trust people. That's why expertise and real credentials matter more than ever.”

“This isn’t just nostalgia—it’s a much-needed tool for connection in a noisy, distracted world.”

“Day by day, email by email, we’re getting better at curating HARO. Quality is everything.”

 

Takeaways & Strategy Highlights:

✅ Craft Real, Verifiable Pitches HARO favors pitches that are authentic, expertise-driven, and easily verifiable via LinkedIn and a strong online presence.

✅ Don't Fear AI Tools—Use Them Wisely Using AI to polish your pitch is fine. Using AI to mass-spam journalists? Instant ban.

✅ The Simple Stuff Still Works An email in your inbox three times a day—with real media opportunities—is still one of the highest ROI activities for building brand visibility.

✅ Brand Mentions Matter, Even Without Links Even unlinked citations now boost authority in the AI-driven search world. Visibility > Obsession over dofollow.

✅ New Opportunities for Small Businesses With HARO back, independent experts, consultants, and small publishers have a real shot again at tier-one media coverage.

About Brett Farmiloe:

Brett Farmiloe is the CEO of Featured.com and the new CEO of Help a Reporter Out (HARO). He’s a former marketing agency owner who ranked top of Google for “digital marketing company,” a data nerd, and an advocate for helping small businesses share their expertise through meaningful media connections. Brett’s mission is simple: make it easier for real experts to help real reporters, rebuilding trust in the media ecosystem.

🔗 HelpAReporter.com 🔗 Featured.com 📧 Email Brett directly: [e-mail]

Or connect with him via LinkedIn

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