Quick answer: how to build relationships with journalists comes down to contacting them before you need coverage, offering value rather than a sales pitch, and being reliably quick and useful when they reach out.
This guide covers the long game between pitches, as part of media relations for tech companies. For the mechanics of being quoted, see how to become a source for journalists.
Choosing your approach
A relationship with a tech reporter is built from small, low-pressure touchpoints, not one clever pitch. Which touchpoint suits depends on three things.
- Where the journalist is. Someone in your geographic area can be offered a coffee. Someone elsewhere is better reached through their published work and social accounts.
- Whether you have news. With no story to offer, a note of genuine appreciation or a useful resource fits better than a request for coverage.
- How recently you spoke. A contact who has gone quiet needs a periodic check-in, not a pitch that assumes the relationship is still warm.
| Touchpoint | Suits | Planning use |
|---|---|---|
| Following and complimenting stories on social media | Any journalist you want to know better, near or far | Start here before any direct request. It costs the reporter nothing and shows you read their work. |
| Low-pressure coffee offer | Journalists in the same geographic area | Keep it informal and expect that some will decline or not reply. |
| Occasional “great story” note | Reporters whose recent piece you found useful | Send only when the praise is genuine. It works without any ask attached. |
| Thank-you when a story is published | Anyone who covered you or used your input | Say thanks and share the story, which closes the loop on the exchange. |
| Periodic check-in | Contacts you have not connected with in a while | Use it to revive dormant relationships before you have news to share. |
| Press resource web page | Reporters who need quality assets quickly | Keep deliverables in one place so reporters do not need large email attachments. |
Start before you need coverage
The most repeated advice is timing: contact journalists before you need them. Carter, a former journalist, puts it bluntly on LinkedIn: contact them before you need them. A first message that arrives alongside an urgent launch reads as a request, not a relationship.
Its guidance is to start conversations before news breaks and to give the media some form of value first, such as a third-party resource. Early, useful contact is one way to stand out in a crowded inbox.
Research before you reach out
For a tech reporter, that means checking which products, companies and problems they have written about. If your area does not match what they cover, a relationship will not form around it. Look for a better-matched reporter instead.
Open with something in common
Carter advises referencing something you personally have in common with the journalist as part of initial outreach. It could be a shared interest or a point they raised in a story. It signals that a person, not a mailing list, is writing. Her broader advice is to treat journalists like humans and peers rather than contacts.
Networking in person
In-person networking with journalists works best as an informal conversation, not a pitch session. Where you share a geographic area with a reporter, the advice from Carter is to offer a coffee and keep it low-pressure. A conference or similar event puts you and reporters in the same place without an elaborate invitation.
Keep the first conversation about the reporter’s work and interests. A reporter is there to find a good story or report the news, so the aim of a first meeting is to be someone worth talking to again. Pitching can wait for a later, separate message.
Being a source reporters return to
A journalist remembers the contact who made their work easier. Carter says that when reporters know a source is reliable, they will be reaching out more. She also singles out PR people who are helpful and available as a resource whether or not a story is pending.
- Respond quickly. Carter advises responding in a timely manner so reporters can meet their deadlines. A slow answer can cost a source the slot entirely.
- Offer stories, not sales copy. Her advice is to offer angles that sound like a story, not a sales pitch, because a journalist’s job is to tell a good story or report the news, not promote your client.
That second point is also an ethical boundary. A friendly relationship does not entitle you to coverage, and a good source accepts that the reporter’s loyalty is to the story. The deeper walkthrough of earning that trust is in how to become a source for journalists.
Staying in touch between pitches
Contact between pitches should be occasional, genuine and easy to ignore. No source gives a fixed number of days or messages that is safe, and the constraint is the reporter’s time. Carter notes that time is the most valuable commodity for most journalists, so a contact that costs them nothing is better than one that asks for a reply.
Engage with their work
Following reporters on social media and complimenting their stories is the lightest touchpoint. A comment on a piece that was useful to you, or a share with a short note, tells the reporter someone read it. A reply is not required, and none should be expected.
Say thanks and check in
Three habits keep a relationship warm without a pitch:
- Send an occasional note saying “great story”, but only when you mean it, per Carter.
A simple record of the last conversation with each reporter helps you decide who is due a check-in. Formal pitches follow their own rhythm, covered in best time to send a pitch to journalists. One Substack newsletter on the subject frames the whole effort as a replicable, relationship-building system that earns trust and coverage, which is a useful reminder that consistency matters more than any single message.
What damages the relationship
Transactional contact is the main complaint. Carter says the biggest gripe journalists voice is that too many outside relationships feel purely transactional. Contact that appears only when you want something fits that description.
- Impersonal outreach. Spin Sucks makes the same point: impersonal pitches are just as obvious to journalists as researched ones.
- Treating a reporter as a promotion channel. Their job is to tell a good story, not to promote your client, so pressure for coverage erodes goodwill.
The cost of impersonal volume shows in the numbers. Spin Sucks cites a Propel study in which the average journalist response rate to media pitches went from 5.21% to 3.53% during 2021. The figure comes from a single study, but the direction fits the complaints above: personal, researched contact has less competition than volume does.
Frequently asked questions
What if a journalist ignores a coffee offer?
Do not take offence. Carter notes that some journalists will not accept a coffee or reply, and that is not a verdict on you. Keep engaging with their work and try again later with something useful.
Should a first email include photos or other attachments?
Keep attachments small. A link to a press resource page gives reporters the same material without clogging the inbox.
Can a media contact become more than a work relationship?
Yes. Carter describes contacts who engage on more than just their placements and who can become friends. The route there is consistent helpfulness, not pressure to socialise.
