I hear this all the time. I mean, all the time.  Here are a few reasons: 

Lack of etiquette on the hiring company

Loss of application

Procrastination

Miscommunication at the hiring company about who is responsible

They never do and that’s the way it is

You just wasted someone’s time and they don’t owe you a response 

I’m going to focus on the last one as it’s really the only one as a job seeker you can control, provided the job description is thorough. My advice, if you find a position you are interested in read the requirements first, read them thoroughly and see if you really have what they are looking for.  In this market if you don’t have at least 80%, don’t bother applying.  When a hiring manager receives applications from people who don’t match they really don’t owe you an explanation.  If you didn’t take the time to read the requirements then why should they take the time to respond?  If you did read the requirements, realized you don’t have them and applied anyway, it’s just an insult because you intentionally wasted their time. 

Now there are some exceptions:

“No relocation provided”.  If you are willing to fund your own relocation, state it in the first paragraph of your cover letter and you are good to go.

The term “preferred” is a tough one but you can assume it is not required.Years of experience – if there is no salary info this is your guide, so a Director of Marketing with 4-6 years of experience isn’t paying $150k a year.  It’s the company’s way of giving you an idea of compensation level so save your time if you have 10+ years.  

Applying to  positions that aren’t a match creates frustration and wastes time. The other potential down side is that if you apply for a position that doesn’t match your experience and then 2 weeks later a great job that is a match comes open, you’ll be seen as desperate and that you’ll apply to anything. Not exactly what you want a potential employer thinking. 

Authors note: *So if you’ve read any of my previous blog posts you know I believe in networking not blind applications.  But to run a successful search you have to cast a wide net and may need to apply blindly to a position. *