Do you have any evidence that getting your app reviewed on one of these review sites make any difference ?
If you were a "smaller developer" starting with an app today, how would you ensure that its successful?
However, AppAdvice is one of the biggest review sites out there, and reviews on smaller sites didn't have anywhere near as much impact. Also, getting that review was really lucky, and I haven't been able to recreate that magic since.
That said, as a single-person developer, I've found that I need to spend as much time and energy on hustle and promotion as I do on development and testing - and even with that I've only been moderately successful.
But yes agreed on getting to know press people - although it's a balancing act to not seem too creepy while being friendly.