In the offline world, a press release brings you traffic when a news source like a paper, magazine or radio station picks up your story and publishes it. They could publish your release word for word or write their own story based on the information you submitted.

In the online world, a press release brings you traffic when you submit your release to a distribution service. A news source could then pick up your story from that distribution. But even if your story doesn’t get picked up, you gain a live link to your site even after your press release has been archived by the distribution service.

You should submit your press releases at least a week before your event or product launch. This gives editors time to pick up your story and run it before it becomes “old news.” Any story more than a week old probably won’t get published because it’s no longer considered news.

If you have a breaking story that demands immediate coverage, submit it before 3:00 pm central time. That’s the deadline hour for newspapers and media organizations around the world.

When submitting to online press release sites, you don’t need to make your release publication-specific. You just need to make sure you have a great headline and solid lead paragraph to get noticed.

A number of such sites are a Google search away, but here are some to get you started: PRWeb, FreePressRelease, PRNewswire, MassMediaDistribution, and I-Newsire. Submitting to targeted publications in your niche requires a little more effort, but the traffic you can receive as a result of your effort makes it worthwhile.

One way to find specific publications to send your release to is through online searchable databases like GebbieInc or NewspaperLinks. These databases provide contact information for thousands of radio and television stations, newspapers and magazines.

A different approach is to sort through magazine racks at your local bookstore. Note the names and email addresses of relevant journalists, and keep track of all the contact information in a spreadsheet.

Always email the journalist directly as opposed to using the general email address of the publication. Your subject line has to be as good as your press release headline in order to pique interest and get read. Personalize the message by using the journalist’s name, and open with a short note letting the journalist know you’re submitting a press release for her consideration.

Include a statement informing the journalist she can use your release “as-is” to encourage her to print it in her publication without editing it. Then provide your contact information.

Copy and paste your press release (that is tailored to this specific publication) below your contact information in the body of the email. People don’t open attachments from strangers, so don’t attach any documents or your press release will certainly not be read.

Then, on the spreadsheet you started, keep track of which publications you submitted to and which ones actually picked up your story. Those that feature you once are more likely to feature you again, so be sure to submit future releases to those publications first.