I never looked for hole punched records to find early pressings- I usually looked for white label promos or went by the matrices in the dead wax.
Right. White label promos were the first off the stamper. These went directly to record exec’s and producers. Hole-punched albums were also early releases, very different from a cut-out.
Sometimes on Ebay you may find a white label promo or a hole-punch album autographed by a recording artist. There are also promo copies with radio station library numbers written on the jackets. Imagine how worn out these copies are, they might be cool as a conversation piece but have little value.
"For promotional use only" branded records had nothing to do with being early stampers. These were sent to radio stations so the music director could preview the tracks. The ultimate goal was to put these albums or singles in the "Hot Box" for Heavy Rotation. Club DJ’s and significant record stores would also receive promos. The promotions reps from the labels had relationships with the various outlets that could influence airplay and sales.