You build relationships in the same way you would build friendships. You email your praise to journalists for any of their work you feel is great: “I really loved your article today on the banking industry. I see very few writers focusing on the explosion of commercial real estate with banks closing down and consolidating in the downtown area.” You also can call them out when you feel they are wrong: “Bob, I love you but you really got it wrong in today’s article about the surplus of local commercial office space. The fact is NOT that too much capacity is being caused by new construction. The fact is consolidation in the banking and real estate arena represents the bulk of that surplus not to mention the city’s loss of two major companies who have relocated their headquarters in the past six months.”

You provide tips and resources that the journalists might not know (where being obvious is not appreciated): “I was thinking of your recent series of articles on the need for oversight in the banking arena. You might not be aware of this but the American Bankers Association has just announced they will be doing a special session on this very same issue at their regional conference next month. If you would be interested in attending or would like me to check with them about getting a transcript of the session, feel free to give me a call.”

The thing you will notice is that you’re not trying to get anything out of the relationship. You’re trying to establish a real connection where you make their life easier, you read and appreciate what they write, and you create goodwill that you can later tap by putting a press release or interview request in front of them.