In our last article on Help a Reporter out (HARO) we talked about leveraging expertise to create a brand for yourself via expert requests.
This article focuses on leveraging the expertise of others to create an expert platform for yourself.

Expertise isn’t Just About what you Know

Expertise isn’t just about what you know, it’s about proving it and having other experts agree with you, lending their platform to yours. It’s about giving people information that’s believable, and from sources they rely on, so when writing a book, or an article, you might want to consider using HARO to gather anecdotal information to include. In return for a source credit, or byline if their contribution is more than a few quotes or background information, you can gather expertise from others, and show your support and gratitude by helping them to build their platform.

Your Brand, Your Platform, Your Way

Expertise is now being ‘branded’ – Seth Godin and others have a whole subset of expertise areas where they are seen as *the* source, simply because they leveraged their knowledge and the knowledge of others to create a package of information that was readily consumable by mass media. They created a product, in Seth’s case, books and surrounding media that established him as an expert, by using a few carefully selected network contacts and leveraging his expertise and theirs.
If you can share information, even if it’s collaborated by others, you will gain expert status simply by collating it and adding your own spin, so it’s important to ensure that your platform is robust, and fits with your ideals.

Using HARO to Fill the Gaps

Whether you’re in the development stage, and writing a few articles, or looking for more meaty information, HARO and other sites that are populated by experts, you’ll find your answers more easily than using your time researching online. It’s important to note, that like our previous article, there are right ways and wrong ways to go about this. HARO won’t find you a co author, nor will it write the content for you, so in most cases, if you’re using a ghost writer, they may use HARO, with your permission instead. In this instance, you may want to think about writing questions that would support this, and see what is produced.
HARO is a more time intensive way to produce content, and shouldn’t be used lightly on a regular basis.