In today's web world, press releases can and should be an important part of your strategy to get the word out about your business… even if you're a one person start-up working from the kitchen table!

So you should do a press release. Actually, lots of them… figure two per month (or more!) Since that can get expensive fast, we've put together a list of the best 31 press release distribution services that are free and affordable.

This list is based on our editorial review, the number of monthly US visitors (estimated by Quantcast), and Google page rank (a key factor in determining ranking in search results… the higher the number the better).

We also show the minimum cost you'll pay to issue a press release (most will charge extra for additional services).

Remember that everyone's needs are different… so we encourage you to try different press release services to see which ones work best for you!

Keep in mind, the free services tend to only show your press release on their site while paid services will also distribute to news outlets like Google News… plus make it easier to search engine optimize your release. So the extra cost may be worth it to you.

Are you ready to get started? Then pick one of the press release services and go ahead and make some news!

So what exactly is article marketing? It’s simple. You write an article and then submit it to article directories, websites, and blogs that are looking for quality content. They post your article, including your bio and a link to your website… and then good things start to happen!

Start with publishing to the best article directories. It’s easy and free. And we’ve compiled a list of 27 article directories based on our editorial review, the number of monthly US visitors (as estimated by Quantcast), and Google page rank (a key factor in determining ranking in search results… the higher the number the better). Not to mention we’ve used a bunch of them too!

Remember that everyone’s needs are different… so we encourage you to try them all to see which ones work best for you!

Other websites to consider for your articles include: eHow (how to articles), WebProNews (Internet marketing related articles), Article Garden (sustainable living articles), and Work.com (how to for small business). Just keep in mind that some of these sites may require exclusivity (you can’t submit your articles elsewhere).

And keep a look out for blogs and websites in your industry that want guest authors (you can be one!) For example, having your article show up in a popular blog can mean thousands of dollars of exposure for your business.

Happy article writing!