Applications

Jubilance tends to go through periods of no applicants, followed by huge numbers of them for a very short period of time. I haven't really noticed that the increase occurs around guild achievements (boss kills, etc.), it just seems to be completely random. We just went through a bit of one of these phases, very welcomed to say the least, as our second ten man is still trying to get off the ground, and the one I am in has been looking for a back-up or two.
First I want to express one of my big "no no's" about applications, and really it's less of an application issue, and more of a tact issue. We recently had a member of another guild apply, which isn't really unusual. He was the Raid Leader for another guild, which again isn't neccessarily unusual in and of itself. What WAS unusual was the fact that he didn't mean it. He put in an application to be completely a joke. Upon commenting on his application I meantioned that I really didn't see this as being an appropriate use of his time, especially when this guy is normally good natured, and his guild tends to get along, more or less, with Jubilance. The spur for this application was that he has apparently been bringing his alt (who he "applied with") to the second 10man, in order to assist them. I made a comment that I would like to see guildies get first opportunity at these spots, which I assumed was already occuring, but I suppose it was my passive agressive way of saying "Listen, we really don't need your joke apps cluttering up our forums, and sapping member's time in reading them, they really aren't funny, and I think it's offensive that you did this," (or something along those lines...). He responded to my comment that maybe I should discuss that with the other raid leader, as such a public place was not the best location for that discussion. This is where I would like to pause, and point out, that a guild's website forums, in a thread that is locked to members, really isn't in ANYWAY public. Yes you can create an account and go and read applications, but this really isn't the front page of the website or anything of that sort. I suppose in a long way, this is my way of saying of don't apply unless you really are considering joining the guild, it will burn bridges with atleast one member, and in the future you may regret damaging relationships over a "joke".
My second "subtopic" that I want to discuss is the proper way to fill out an application, and the improper way.

1. Complete ALL fields, if you don't know how to provide a link to your armory, ask someone, do a google search, something. Not filling it out or saying "I dont' know how to do this" appears to the guild that you can't be bothered to take the time to do ANY research or put in a moderate amount of effort. This translates to: comes to raids unprepared with a lack of knowledge regarding encounter design.
2. Put effort into your answers. The application is the first look a guild usually gets. If you think that a field isn't really important, too bad, it's not your decision, you are not the one judging the application, and despite what you may believe, the members will not spend sleepless nights lamenting turning you down because your application was horrible. 
3. Grammar is more important than you may think. Yes this "iz tha interwebz," however think of this as a job application. Just because guild chat tends to be cluttered with "ur" and " i " does not mean that your application needs to reflect how you will type in that environment. Poor grammar, and mispelled words, run on sentences, and difficult to understand phrasing, is often looked at by guilds as (see above in point 1) you can't put in the 2 minutes of effort, why would we expect you to put in the hours of effort to learn a boss fight.
4. Make an account, and watch your application. This is one of the most missed steps in an application, and honestly is one of those that I most forgive. If you don't make an account on the website and watch your application, you have no way of responding to questions, or following up on comments to clarify for people who are weighing in on your application. One of the fastest ways I know to judge a Priest applying is to ask them a question about why they took a specific talent. Normally I don't care much about the specifics of the answer, I just want to see something besides "because that is what elitestjerks told me to take."
5. Follow up, but not 5 minutes later. It is not overly unusual for people to be anxious about an application, however hitting "submit" followed by "/w 'RandomPersonInTheGuild' I applied can I get an invite" will actually harm your application. By the same measure, not checking up within a few days if you haven't heard anything back, and have no comments on your application, can make it look like you don't care. Sometimes it just happens that officers never see you on, and wispering them after a few days to check on your application could be the reminder they need to ask you a few questions they have, or just get a feel for the type of person you are. This goes for if you are transfering servers as well. Make a level 1 toon and check in from time to time to see if officers are on (again, not five minutes later, a few days).
6. Ask for alternatives if you don't think this application will properly represent you. We have had people apply before that have had horrible typing skills, their grammar was so bad we couldn't understand half the sentences, and they were offended when I made comment of this on their application, saying that "typing isn't their strong point, and this is a game, not a Job Application". If this person had taken the time to put on the bottom of their application that they were not the best typist, or not very good at written language (seriously, I am not being sarcastic, if you know it, admit it) , we could have taken this into account and an officer could have wispered him for a "verbal application" over voice software.

Remember that an application is required for almost any guild that is looking for anything more than a completely social experience. This doesn't mean they take the game too seriously, or that they will make it a job for you, it means they are a little careful about who they spend 10+ hours a week sociallizing with, just as I'm sure you are in real life.
As a final note. One of the latest applicants we received was from off realm, he did everything expected of an applicant, and his application was so strong we literally did everything we could to get a hold of him quickly, and get him into the guild before someone else sniped him. That's how almost every guild is if you do a good enough job on your application. He also go into our ten man the first raid night that he was on, and had a very fast chance to prove himself. We are VERY happy with him, and I am sure that anyone following my advice will get a similar experience from most guilds.