Out-of-the-saddle technique

Absolutely.

Anything that can be ascended at speed without worrying about fatigue I'll attempt out of the saddle. Best to hammer away, confident that the summit will arrive before significant discomfort.

Sitting and spinning is the better approach for anything that requires moderation.

Standing and rocking does indeed help to distribute the strain; though I often find that the energy consumed by getting up and adjusting would have been better spent gritting teeth and digging in. I've never really thought about it until now, but I reckon that dropping a gear or two would be more or less equal to lollopping about, both in terms of pain relief and maintaining speed.

Ultimately, this:-

...it's nice to have options.

...makes sense to me.