[amorphid]

Anything that makes you a strong fit or that makes you really like the position. Even if you don't have much to say, anything that makes your application not look like spam, and spamming out a resume is exactly what the author of this article is doing, is a good start.

"I wrote one of the open source packages you use!"

"You make software used in my toaster!"

"Your office it two blocks from my house!"

[alexashka]

This'd imply your company is so interesting, that it warrants a cover letter. When I job hunt, I email literally every posting, as does everyone I know. When you're looking for 'strong fit' - what you're really selecting for is desparation.

When I was a junior, I wrote cover letters for every job. Now that I'm senior, I haven't written one in years and get more callbacks than ever before.

[amorphid]

And I bet you don't need to write a spam bot to spam your resume out to N * 10^50 job postings. It sounds like you've outgrown the need to seeks answers to questions you might have asked earlier in your career. That is a nice position to be in :)

Still, one could argue that flirting w/ the company a bit at the point you make a first impression, possibly in a cover letter, is in your best interests. If someone needs you, they'll offer to pay what they need to. If someone wants you, they'll pay whatever it takes to retain you. Sometimes those numbers are the same. But if a company would be willing to go the extra mile to make you happy, and you give them no reason to feel that way, you're leaving money on the table.