I’ve talked to about a dozen recruiters in the last month—tech, creative, corporate, startup environments—and asked them all the same question: when did you last read a cover letter all the way through?

Most of them laughed. One said “maybe 2022?” Another was more blunt: “I’ve got 150 applications for this role. I’m not reading anyone’s cover letter.”

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t submit one if it’s required. But understanding what’s actually influencing hiring decisions is more useful than perfecting three paragraphs nobody will read.

What Recruiters Actually Look at First

Your LinkedIn profile. Specifically, the first three lines of your summary and your current role.

Every recruiter I spoke to said they look at LinkedIn before or immediately after seeing a resume. If your LinkedIn doesn’t align with your resume, that’s a red flag. If your LinkedIn is bare or outdated, you’re signalling you don’t take your professional presence seriously.

One tech recruiter told me she filters out anyone who hasn’t updated their LinkedIn in over a year. “If you can’t be bothered to keep your professional profile current, I assume you won’t be bothered to keep your skills current either.”

That might be unfair, but it’s reality.

Portfolio Links and Work Samples

For any role where you create things—design, writing, development, marketing, analysis—actual work samples matter infinitely more than cover letter prose.

A design recruiter I know said she spends maybe 90 seconds on a resume and 5-10 minutes looking at portfolio work for candidates she’s interested in. “The work tells me if they can do the job. The resume just tells me if they’ve got the basic credentials.”

If you’re applying for creative or technical roles without a portfolio link prominently displayed, you’re at a disadvantage against every candidate who has one.

This applies to more roles than you’d think. Product managers can show product tear-downs or strategy docs. Operations people can show process improvement case studies. Finance professionals can show analytical work (with sensitive data removed, obviously).

Your Last Three Job Tenures

How long you stayed at recent roles and why you left signals a lot to recruiters. They’re looking for patterns.

Short tenures (under 18 months) at multiple consecutive roles raise questions. One short stint is explainable. Three in a row suggests either bad judgment about fit or problems retaining employment.

Job-hopping every 2-3 years is fine in tech and some industries—it’s actually expected. But recruiters will notice if there’s no progression or if you’re moving laterally constantly without growth.

Gaps aren’t automatically disqualifying, but unexplained gaps make recruiters curious. A one-line explanation (“Career break for family reasons” or “Freelance consulting—clients available on request”) prevents speculation.

Referrals and Mutual Connections

Internal referrals get looked at first, always. If someone at the company has vouched for you, your application goes to the top of the pile.

One corporate recruiter told me that about 40% of their hires come from referrals, even though referrals are maybe 10% of total applications. The conversion rate is just dramatically higher.

If you’ve got mutual LinkedIn connections with people at the company, that’s valuable. Recruiters will often check if anyone they know can vouch for you, even informally.

This is why networking actually matters. Not in the gross “collect business cards at events” way, but in the “build genuine professional relationships” way.

GitHub Activity (For Technical Roles)

If you’re applying for development roles and you’ve listed a GitHub profile, recruiters will look. They’re not necessarily reviewing your code deeply, but they’re checking:

• Is there recent activity?
• Are you contributing to projects or just forking repos?
• Do you have any projects with decent documentation?

An active GitHub profile with a few well-documented projects is stronger than any cover letter you could write for technical roles. It’s proof you actually code.

Social Media (Whether You Like It or Not)

About half the recruiters I talked to said they Google candidates and check social media before interviews. They’re not doing deep background checks, but they’ll look at your public Twitter, Instagram, or professional blog if it comes up.

Extremely controversial political takes, unprofessional behaviour, or anything that suggests you might be difficult to work with can kill your chances before you ever get a phone screen.

You don’t need to scrub your entire online presence, but if you’ve got a public Twitter account where you spend a lot of time arguing with strangers, consider whether that’s how you want to be perceived professionally.

The Actual Resume Content That Matters

When recruiters do look at resumes (and they do, just briefly), here’s what catches attention:

Quantified achievements. “Increased sales by 35%” is better than “Responsible for sales growth.” Numbers stand out visually and provide concrete evidence of impact.

Relevant keywords. Applicant tracking systems are real, and they’re looking for specific terms from the job listing. If the role requires “stakeholder management” and you’ve written “client communication,” the ATS might not make the connection.

Clear, scannable formatting. Recruiters spend maybe 20-30 seconds on initial resume review. If yours is dense blocks of text or uses a weird format, it won’t get read carefully.

Progression and growth. They want to see that you’ve taken on more responsibility over time, whether that’s job titles, project scope, or team leadership.

What About Cover Letters for Senior Roles?

At executive levels or very senior positions, cover letters apparently still matter. Several recruiters mentioned that for roles above a certain level, they expect a thoughtful letter that demonstrates strategic thinking and cultural fit.

But for mid-level and entry-level roles? They’re mostly theatre. You include one because it’s expected, but it’s rarely the deciding factor.

What Actually Gets You Interviews

After talking to all these recruiters, the pattern is clear. You get interviews when:

1. Your resume shows you can do the job (skills, experience, credentials)
2. Your online presence reinforces that (LinkedIn, portfolio, GitHub)
3. Someone vouches for you (referral or mutual connection)
4. Nothing in your public presence raises red flags
5. You’ve applied relatively quickly (most recruiters look at the first 50-100 applications most carefully)

Notice what’s not on that list? A beautifully crafted cover letter explaining your passion for the role.

What This Means Practically

Stop spending an hour on cover letters. Spend that time on:

Optimizing your LinkedIn profile. Make sure it’s current, complete, and has a clear summary of what you do and what you’re looking for.

Building a portfolio. Even a simple one-page site with 3-4 case studies or work samples is more valuable than perfect cover letter prose.

Requesting recommendations. LinkedIn recommendations from previous managers or colleagues carry weight.

Networking strategically. Identify companies you want to work for and build relationships with people there before you apply.

Customizing your resume. Don’t send a generic resume. Spend 15 minutes tailoring it to each role, emphasizing relevant experience and including keywords from the job description.

That’s where your time investment actually pays off.

The Honest Truth

The hiring process has changed faster than the traditional advice has updated. Career advisors who graduated in 2005 are still telling people to write compelling cover letters because that’s what worked then.

Recruiters are dealing with hundreds of applications per role and using different filters now. They’re looking at digital presence, work samples, and connections more than formal letters.

Adapt to how decisions are actually being made, not how they were made 15 years ago.

For more on modern job search strategy, Harvard Business Review’s career section has solid research-based articles, and Ask a Manager gives practical, current advice from someone who’s actually hired hundreds of people.