Well, sgately, since I don't see anybody responding to this, I'm going to write something about sending and receiving press releases, even though it's not exactly what you're asking about, and even though I may not necessarily be the best one to do it.
However, let me say first off that as far as getting your press release out is concerned, I happen to be a fan of using any one of the major online press release services, even if they charge a small fee. The reason I like them is that these services are guaranteed to hit publications and editors all over, and as long as it's one of the major recognized services, they tend to be respected as quasi-reliable sources of information. Also, in a world of Googling, it makes it so much easier to get picked up (think keywords, keywords, keywords) through any individual's Google Alerts (which I use religiously) since Google relies heavily on the same 4500 or so news sources and websites.
However, there are a few general observations about sending out press releases that I wanted to touch on. I did a search on "press releases" and couldn't find any that covered do's and don'ts (which of course, doesn't mean there aren't any, just that I didn't find them), so I'm going to mention a few of the favorite peeves I have as a magazine editor.
DO at least a little bit of research about who you're sending your press release to before sending it to every editor in the world, just because you can. I lose patience and interest pretty quickly when I see the same company or PR firm continually sending me stuff that isn't even remotely close to my subject.
DO realize that editors are at least as busy as agents and publishers, so make it as quick and easy as possible to understand what the topic or story is about.
DO put a subhead or summary or intro at the beginning so I can see who and what the story is about without reading the whole friggin' thing.
DO send press releases as plain text in email. As an editor, all I want is the text, so I can copy and paste it.
DON'T send emails with a press release as an attached Word, PDF, etc document. I don't have time or inclination to stop and open another application, and if it's in PDF, most editors don't know how to copy and paste it.
DON'T attach pictures, especially big honkin' picture files. I'll just hate you for slowing down my mail download.
DO include a link for pictures on a server. Having a pic available can sometimes make the difference between running a story or not. And if you have more than one image to choose from, even better.
DO start with a "Dear [Firstname]" if you can. It just makes me feel like you might have taken the trouble to find out who you're sending it to, which might make me spend that extra second or two deciding if I want to read it.
DON'T call me and ask me if I got the email you sent yesterday/last week/month/whenever. If it got my attention when you sent it, I've already dealt with it. Otherwise, you're just bothering me.
DON'T call and ask if I think it would be "suitable" "appropriate" "interesting" [or words of that ilk] for my readership. If you don't know, you shouldn't be sending it.
DON'T call and ask when I will be running your astounding announcement. I didn't ask for it in the first place, and I probably don't even know for sure if or when it will get published.
DO put links (that work, obviously) in your email to additional sites of interest. It doesn't cost anything, and I might just be interested enough to find out more about your story if you make it easy enough for me to do so.
DON'T mail me your press release. Editors are as busy/lazy as anybody else, and if I have to retype your press release instead of just copying and pasting it, I'll probably think twice about whether it's worth the effort.
DO make sure I can easily find your contact information (not just your email address). I may want to follow up with you.
DO keep your press releases as short and succinct as possible. There's nothing more aggravating than knowing you have to edit a nine page press release down to four paragraphs.
DON'T send me a sales pitch masquerading as a press release. Even if it turns out you might have something of interest, I may not have the patience to pick it apart and rewrite it.
DON'T write heads that are so cute that I have no clue as to the actual story. Make sure your head and subhead tell me in plain English what you're announcing.
DON'T fill your press release with a whole bunch of made-up BS quotes. Two or three maybe, but after that I'm just going to cut them out. Actually, in my case, I'm going to cut them all...which is why you better not put any important facts in them.
DO summarize all technical info in one place (charts are good). If I'm writing for a technical audience, I want to be able to get at the specs as fast as I can.
I know I have more points, but I just can't remember them all right now. Maybe there's another editor who wants to carry on.
