The Clean and Green Club

What a perfect example of “do what you love, and the money will follow.” Peter Shankman used to run a PR agency called The Geek Factory. In late 2007, he started sending queries form reporters needing story sources, as a favor to the reporters. Originally, he figured that if he was able to stock the reporters with sources, they’d turn to him and he’d get exposure for his clients.

His first attempt to systematize distribution of the queries was through a Facebook group called “If I can help a reporter out, I will.” This worked when it was half a dozen reporters sending queries to a few hundred recipients, but both sides of multiplied rapidly. It wasn’t long before Shankman banged up against Facebook’s limit of 1200 people who can receive a group e-mail.

So in March of 2008, he took it off Facebook, bought the domain www.helpareporter.com, and skyrocketed within the following year to over 60,000 users. A few months later, he began accepting ads, and before long, he had closed his PR agency and was doing HARO as his primary business (he also does speaking and training on Web 2.0). The service is free to both reporters and sources, but brings in enough revenue to allow Shankman not only to support himself but to employ a small staff.

And where do ethics come in? Shankman is rigorous about protecting his reporters from inappropriate behavior from sources–and vice versa. Abuse the list or pitch inappropriately, and you’re gone. Waste sources’ time with long interviews, use their material, and then don’t bother to include their name in the story? You won’t last long. Plus, of course, he’s showing the power of a valued media service that supports itself through advertising–and in our Internet era where ad-supported newspapers are folding their tent every week, that’s also a critical message.

I’ll be interviewing Peter Shankman this Monday, March 23, 4 pm ET/1 pm PT, on the Principled Profit radio show. Listen live in Western Massachusetts at 103.3 FM, or worldwide at www.valleyfreeradio.org