Things I have done to stand out from the crowd seem weird because I have to guess as to who I should even start with, often through tools such as LinkedIn Pro or finding contact information through GitHub repos. Many of the application processes are similar and use the same provider to serve them (Workday, etc). When an org does acknowledge your submission, it is often from noreply@org.tld, and there is no HR contact information publicly listed.

If you are a hiring manager, what are some things you have seen that you though took some initiative, but also couldn't be seen as crummy?