Connectively Alternatives

Connectively Alternatives: Where to Earn Coverage Now

Connectively closed in December 2024, taking the last of the HARO email service with it. Journalists still need expert sources every day. They just find them somewhere else now. Here's a practical, tool-by-tool guide to the platforms that replaced it.

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The short version

Connectively is gone, but the method isn't

Connectively was the platform Cision built when it rebranded Help a Reporter Out in 2024. Same idea, new name: reporters posted requests for expert sources, and experts pitched quotes in reply. It carried the HARO audience for a short stretch before Cision closed it for good on December 9, 2024.

What did not close is the need behind it. Journalists still write stories that call for a credible quote, a statistic, or an expert opinion, and they still go looking for sources to fill them. That demand simply moved onto other platforms, which is the good news here: Connectively-style link building still works, you just do it somewhere else now.

This page is a practical guide to picking a replacement. If you want the full history of the shutdown and the wider context, read our pillar on what replaced HARO. The lineup below overlaps heavily with our HARO alternatives guide, for the simple reason that Connectively and HARO were the same service under two names.

Why it closed

Why Connectively shut down

Cision's own message was that the platform was no longer the best way to connect journalists with sources, and that it would point users toward its paid media-database tools instead. That was the polite framing. The fuller picture is that the free, open request model had been under strain for years.

The core problem was signal versus noise. A single popular request could draw hundreds of replies, many of them thin, off-topic, or barely related to the question. As AI writing tools spread, that pile grew faster and got harder to sort, so reporters spent more time wading through pitches and less time finding the one real expert. When the tool that is meant to save journalists time starts costing them time, its days are numbered.

The lesson for anyone still pitching is not that the model is dead. It is that quality is the whole game now. The platforms that replaced Connectively reward specific, credible, human answers and quietly punish spray-and-pray volume, which is exactly how you should approach every one of them below.

At a glance

The Connectively alternatives, compared

Four real platforms that soak up most of the journalist requests Connectively used to carry. Scan the table to shortlist, then read the detail below to decide.

Platform	What it is	Best for	Cost	How you win
Qwoted	Journalist request platform with a media database, built for experts and PR teams	Business, finance, tech, and B2B founders who can pitch daily	Free tier for experts; paid plans add reach	Log in each morning, answer fresh requests fast with a tight, quotable take
Featured.com	Question-and-answer platform (formerly Terkel) where experts answer editor prompts	Anyone happy to write considered long-form answers, not one-liners	Free to answer; paid plans lift limits	Write genuinely useful, specific answers an editor can publish as-is
Help a B2B Writer	Free source-request service from Superpath, emailed as digests to experts	SaaS, marketing, and B2B service brands with in-house expertise	Free	Watch the twice-daily emails and reply to B2B queries within the hour
SourceBottle	Email-based journalist call-outs, strong in Australia, the UK, and lifestyle beats	Consumer, lifestyle, health, and small-business experts, especially outside the US	Free	Subscribe to your call-out categories and pitch relevant ones the same day

No single one of these matches the reach Connectively had at its peak. The practical answer for most brands is to run two or three in parallel, which is exactly what a digital PR service does on your behalf.

Tool by tool

Each platform, and how to win on it

Qwoted

What it is: Qwoted is the closest thing to a modern HARO, and the most common first stop for anyone leaving Connectively. Journalists and podcast hosts post source requests, and experts pitch a response inside the platform. It skews toward business, finance, technology, and B2B, and it pairs the request feed with a media database so PR teams can also reach reporters directly.
Who it suits: It suits founders, executives, and subject-matter experts in professional niches who can check the feed most days. If your expertise is business-adjacent and you can write a crisp quote on short notice, this is usually the highest-yield place to begin.
How to win: Speed and relevance win. Pitch only the requests you can answer with real authority, open with the quotable line the journalist can lift straight into their piece, and keep it short. Fill out your expert profile properly, because reporters read it before they cite you. If you are weighing it against Featured, our Qwoted vs Featured breakdown compares the two head to head.

Featured.com

What it is: Featured (previously Terkel) runs on questions rather than deadlines. Editors post a question, experts submit written answers, and the strongest ones get published in roundup articles across a network of business and marketing sites, often with a link and a byline.
Who it suits: It fits anyone who would rather write a considered paragraph than race a same-day deadline. Marketers, consultants, and SaaS operators do well here, because the questions lean toward business, growth, and how-to topics.
How to win: Answer the exact question asked, be specific, and add a concrete example or number an editor cannot get from a generic reply. Thin, obviously templated answers get skipped, the same low-effort volume that helped sink Connectively. One sharp, original answer beats ten vague ones.

Help a B2B Writer

What it is: Run by the content community Superpath, Help a B2B Writer is a free service that emails source requests from B2B writers to a list of experts, usually twice a day. It is deliberately narrow: business-to-business topics, not consumer or general news.
Who it suits: It is built for SaaS, martech, agencies, and B2B service companies. If your buyers are other businesses and you have in-house operators who can speak to real workflows, the queries here will feel tailor-made.
How to win: Requests move fast, so replying within the hour matters. Answer from lived experience, name the tools or tactics you actually use, and skip anything that reads like a brochure. B2B writers reward practitioners over marketers.

SourceBottle

What it is: SourceBottle is an email-driven service that sends journalist and blogger call-outs to registered sources. It has always been strongest in Australia and the UK, and it covers a broad set of consumer beats: health, lifestyle, parenting, small business, and travel among them.
Who it suits: It suits consumer and lifestyle experts, and it is one of the better options if you are based outside the US or want coverage in AU and UK outlets specifically. Local relevance is a genuine advantage here.
How to win: Pick your call-out categories carefully so your inbox stays relevant, then pitch the same day a fitting request lands. Match the outlet's tone, offer a human, usable quote, and add a line of credentials so the journalist trusts the source.

How to choose

Which one is right for you

Business, finance, or tech expert: start with Qwoted, add Featured.com for written answers.
SaaS or B2B marketer: Help a B2B Writer plus Qwoted covers most of your relevant requests.
Consumer or lifestyle, or based in AU/UK: SourceBottle is your strongest starting point.
Not sure Qwoted or Featured fits: our Qwoted vs Featured comparison settles it.
Short on time: the honest answer is to hand the daily monitoring and pitching to a service.

Or skip the grind

Let us run all of them for you

Every one of these platforms rewards daily attention, and that is the part most brands can't sustain. We monitor the request feeds across Qwoted, Featured.com, Help a B2B Writer, and SourceBottle, pitch you as an expert source, and win editorial links that clear a DR40+ dofollow bar. You pay only for qualified placements.

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FAQ

Connectively alternative questions, answered

What was Connectively?

Connectively was the platform Cision created when it rebranded Help a Reporter Out (HARO) in 2024. It kept the same core idea: journalists posting requests for expert sources, and experts pitching quotes in reply. It carried the HARO audience for a short while before Cision closed it entirely on December 9, 2024. For the full timeline, see our guide on what replaced HARO.

Why did Connectively shut down?

Cision retired Connectively because it decided the platform was no longer the best way to connect journalists with sources. In practice, the free HARO-style model had been struggling for years with a flood of low-quality and, more recently, AI-generated pitches that made it harder for reporters to find real experts. Rather than keep running it, Cision pointed users to its paid media-database products. The underlying need did not disappear, it simply moved to the platforms on this page.

What is the best Connectively alternative to start with?

For most business and B2B experts, Qwoted has the highest volume of relevant requests and is the closest replacement for the old HARO and Connectively feed. If you prefer writing considered answers over racing deadlines, Featured.com is a strong second. SaaS and marketing brands should also be on Help a B2B Writer, and consumer or AU/UK-focused experts should add SourceBottle. Most people who want steady results run two or three of these in parallel.

Are these Connectively alternatives free?

Several are free to join and pitch, including Help a B2B Writer and SourceBottle. Qwoted and Featured.com offer free tiers for experts and sell paid plans that raise limits and add features. You can earn real placements without paying for any of them; the paid plans mostly buy speed and volume.

Do links from these platforms actually help SEO?

When a journalist cites you and links back, you earn an editorial link on a real publication, which is exactly the kind of link Google's guidelines favor. The links are earned on merit rather than bought or self-placed. Quality varies by outlet, so the value comes from consistently landing credible publications, not from any single pitch.

Can you run all of these platforms for me?

Yes. That is our service. We monitor Qwoted, Featured.com, Help a B2B Writer, and SourceBottle every day, pitch you as an expert source, and win editorial links on publications that meet a DR40+ dofollow standard. You pay only for qualified links, not for the pitching. Monthly packages run from $1,000 to $2,250; see our pricing for what each tier includes.

Want the links without the daily pitching?

Tell us your niche and the topics you can speak to. We'll work every relevant Connectively alternative for you and report each placement with its publication, link, and domain rating.

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