Yeah this was what I noticed too. I write custom cover letters for jobs that I apply to, and it often takes 30-60 minutes. Sometimes I'll even tailor my resume for the ad. But I also only apply for a job every week or two, and I only apply to ones that I'm actually very interested in.
Not just the cover letter, also the experience. Look at the job description and keywords. Make sure your relevant history is there early and the things less relevant used as filler.
In the US we mostly use resume which is a short summary and you are expected to take off things that are not relevant. In Europe I understand they more use the CV format which allows for more length for experience that we don't care about.
At times, I've had panic mode set in and _feel_ like I need to apply to every little job that looks remotely decent, but I don't know if that's _actually_ helping.
The more remotely decent the job is the more important it is to customize. I have hired people who have never worked in my niche before, but if all I see is irrelevant experience with no indication you want a new field you go in the pin. Convince me that despite not having the right experience you want a new field and you get a chance.
It's hard to say, it's all relative. I've had a couple first-round interviews for places that I care about, but those were also maybe because I had a referral at those places. In reality I'm not a super strong candidate because my entire resume is 1.5 year stints a decade in, and I haven't work anywhere noteworthy or something people recognize.
