What is a Journo Request?
A Journo Request is a shout out made by a journalist who is seeking expert insight, personal stories, interviewees etc.
Take this scenario. A journalist has been asked to write a story about how a rise in interest rates will affect homeowners.
They don’t have in-depth financial knowledge and want to inject some expert knowledge into their article.
One way to find the information they need is to ask for input on a public forum. This could be a message board, email newsletter, social media etc.
Here’s an example of a journalist making a request on Twitter for exactly our scenario:
I'd like to speak to a housing/financial expert on how much easier/harder it'll be to buy a house after the BoE raised interest rates + the Chancellor's mini-budget. What challenges will first-time/existing homeowners face, and what about renters? #journorequest #journorequests
— James Hockaday (@JamesHockaday_) September 23, 2022
The journalist is inviting experts to give their input, so if you meet the criteria, go ahead and answer.
But why would you want to answer the request?
Why answer a Journo Request?
If you respond to a #JournoRequest and end up getting featured, it can be great for your business:
🔗 A powerful backlink - While not guaranteed, there is an unwritten rule that the 'payment' of your time comes in the form of a backlink from the publication you're featured in.
Backlinks from big publications are strong signals to Google that your website is an authority in the space. As a result, they will move you higher up the organic search results.
💯 Builds credibility - You can now say that you were 'Featured in' and not only talk about your expertise, but show it too.
📈 Increased traffic - Readers of the article will find their way to your website from the article, increasing your referral traffic.
Where can i find Journo Requests?
As previously mentioned, there are many places you can find Journo Requests.
They can be broadly broken down into 3 categories based on delivery method:
Social Media
⭐ Twitter: the majority of social media based journo requests come from Twitter, journalists will use the hashtag #JournoRequest to indicate it’s a request. Read our guide to #JournoRequest for more info.
Other options
- Facebook: Dedicated FB groups exist to match journo with experts. Lightbulb is a great example.
Email Newsletters
⭐ HARO: The main player in the email newsletter space. It’s free to sign up and every weekday you get 3 emails delivered chock full of requests to answer.
Other options
Closed Platforms (normally pay to play)
⭐ Cision (Profnet): The biggest player in the closed plastform market but it comes at a cost. Requests are grouped by category and you will pay atleast $600 a year for just one channel.
Other options:
How does Sourcee help?
Journo Requests are a great way to land a quick PR win, drive traffic and land a authoritative backlink.
The problem is finding relevant ones that you can actually answer, quickly and efficiently.
You could spend your time picking through long emails or constantly refreshing your Twitter feed in the hope of find a relevant request, but its a massive time sink and a tedious job.
That’s where we step in - Think of Sourcee as your Journo Request sourcing Co-pilot.
Give us a few keywords and we’ll always be on the lookout for relevant requests that you can answer. Deliver notifications of matches via email or your favourite comms tool.
All you then have to do, is answer.