Featured Acquires HARO: What This Means For Content in 2025

When it comes to producing the very best content, it’s nearly impossible to do so without including the insights of subject matter experts.

But without a useful platform to connect with them, it can be incredibly time-consuming (if not impossible) to get in contact with the right people.

Fortunately, Featured announced in April 2025 that they had acquired the HARO (Help A Reporter Out) platform and were bringing it back bigger and better than ever.

Here, we will discuss what that means for content creation in 2025.

Short on Time? Here are The Key Takeaways

• HARO (Help A Reporter Out) will keep many of the features the original service provided, such as three email digests a day (morning, afternoon, and evening) and a free-to-use platform for journalists and sources.
• Adding expert insights into your content is an excellent way to ensure it resonates with readers and aligns with the Google requirements for quality content.
• With Google constantly updating systems to prioritize content with unique value (such as expert insights) as part of their E-E-A-T people-first content strategy, tools like HARO are becoming increasingly important.

What Is HARO?

But first, let’s quickly get up to speed with what HARO is for those that aren’t already aware. 

HARO stands for Help A Reporter Out, and is a platform designed to connect journalists with professionals or subject matter experts in specific industries.

The platform was initially set up specifically for journalists, but recently, it has also become a go-to tool for other industries.

In PR, for example, professionals may use HARO to gain publicity or media coverage for their clients. For entrepreneurs, HARO allows them to build their thought leadership by being included in the conversation about important subjects.

But perhaps one of the biggest audiences for HARO is marketers. The reason for this is that using HARO to get quotes and insights from subject matter experts is a great way to take a piece of content from ‘good’ to ‘great’.

Not only does it help add value for readers, but it also sends important signals to help improve potential SERP rankings.

Who Is Featured?

Despite its popularity and importance, Cision (the former owner of HARO) announced on December 9th, 2024, that “the Connectively (HARO) platform has been permanently discontinued.” 

This was further emphasized in its April 2025 announcement, where Cision confirmed, “it no longer offers the Help A Reporter Out or Connectively services as part of its product suite.”

This left a major gap in many content marketers’ strategies, as there aren’t many competitors to HARO considering its detailed database, making it more difficult to contact a true subject matter expert.

Thankfully, Featured announced that they had acquired HARO on April 15th, 2025.

But who is Featured?

Featured is a platform designed to connect subject-matter experts with top publishers, so it makes sense that they would acquire HARO to help them continue expanding into that industry and become a leader in the space.

What to Expect With the New HARO

How will the new HARO platform differ from the traditional version that users know and love? Well, Featured has noted that they’ll bring it back in a similar manner, while taking steps to modernize it.

• HARO will continue to be free (for journalists and sources), allowing journalists, PR experts, and marketers to connect with sources.
• The new version will also be ad-supported, with newsletter ads. This may have been done to offer Featured the revenue it needs to ensure a profitable relaunch.
• HARO will also send out email digests three times a day (corresponding with the morning, afternoon, and evening). It notes that the first email digests were scheduled to be sent on April 22, 2025.
• The site can continue to be accessed via www.helpareporter.com.

So, users should notice minimal differences from the platform they used to rely on.

The Importance of HARO for High-Quality Content

The importance of an effective HARO ecosystem cannot be understated. For starters, it gives brands the opportunity to connect with real subject matter experts, allowing them to include authentic, insightful, and informed quotes or comments in their content. 

This then elevates the depth and credibility of what they produce, both in the eyes of their readers and Google’s algorithms.

In recent core updates, Google has become more and more focused on rewarding high-quality content, and adding subject matter expertise to your content is one of the best ways to do just that.

It’s also a fantastic way to differentiate your content from the rising volume of AI-generated content, ensuring your brand stands out from the crowd.

Final Thoughts

In summary, HARO should be at the forefront of 2025 content strategies, as it’s one of the best ways to ensure your audience gets the very best insights, advice, and guidance from industry experts.

Not to mention that including these unique insights from experts is an excellent way to create content that meets Google’s EEAT and helpful content requirements, by providing high-value, people-first content. 

Then, to maintain transparency in the content you publish, be sure to use the industry-leading Originality.ai AI Content Detector.

Further Reading:

• OpenAI Partnerships List: Learn about OpenAI’s partners, including publishing and journalism collaborations.
• 4 Key Insights From Slack’s Study Into AI Marketing Trends
• Google Search Quality Rater Guidelines: Key Insights About AI Use