What is a job application anyhow? I search jobs and get likely possibilities...
What is a job application anyhow?
I search jobs and get likely possibilities (1000s! In the limit, all jobs).
Hiring managers search candidates and get likely possibilities (1000s! In the limit, everyone!).
The "application" just means you took advantage of a UI affordance that bumps your profile to the top and added a flag "this candidate said hi!"
Self-replies
If hiring managers are completely passive and don't search, then the application is important, it gets you in the search result (a very large one!). If the hiring manager is active, then they have their search results (possibly full of people with steady work) and the applicant search results (lot of weak matches).
Anyhow the scale makes me think the optimal strategy is different from what worked when applications were a stack of 20 sheets of paper.