The Resilient Recruiter

Dandan Zhu and Grace Marlin, co-founders of DG Recruitment, share tactical insights to help recruiters achieve top biller status in today's competitive landscape. 

Their rec-to-rec agency has given them unique visibility into what separates elite performers from the rest.

"To succeed in sales, you need to understand that everyone is extremely focused on their own needs," explains Dandan. "And hiring managers' primary need is that they suffer when it comes to hiring."

This episode dives into three game-changing strategies: maintaining robust client pipelines beyond just a few accounts, making strategic relationship investments with measurable long-term ROI, and perfecting the MPC approach to immediately capture hiring managers' attention.

With Dandan’s background as a top-performing recruiter who achieved financial independence by 28 and Grace's 6.5 years helping launch and elevate recruitment careers, they offer a powerful perspective on building sustainable success in agency recruitment.

Episode Outline and Highlights

[01:28] How Dandan and Grace started working together.

[04:00] Insights on what is currently happening in the recruitment space.

[06:40] What do top billers do consistently?

[15:06] The ROI of thinking big and going the extra mile.

[20:37] The concept of the “Golden Loop.”

[27:26] What an MPC strategy blueprint should look like.

[33:30] The value of adapting to rapid changes in market and technology.

[37:22] How to learn more from Dandan and Grace’s online platforms.

Top Billers Never Stop Building Client Pipelines

While many recruiters became comfortable with just a few accounts during good times, Dandan Zhu observes these recruiters were "scrambling" when markets changed. To maintain a robust pipeline, top billers consistently build relationships through webinars, panels, and content creation.

Dandan questions why more recruiters don't implement proven strategies: "Go out and set up a webinar for your network, for your niche. Go and set up a panel and invite your clients to be part of that as a BD tool." He notes that "all the playbook is there" but few recruiters convert theory into practice.

Grace adds that success comes from "who is willing to go one to two steps deeper than everyone else" with investments that might take "six to eight months to really start getting there." These consistent efforts ensure you'll never be left claiming "nobody's paying fees" during downturns while competitors continue closing deals.

The Long-Term ROI of Strategic Relationship Investment

DG Recruitment hosts rooftop events and specialized gatherings like pottery painting sessions targeted to client demographics. Though measuring immediate return is challenging, Grace notes these investments create "much higher odds of placing candidates" and develop "closer relationships with more trust."

"That year I met that person, two years later, that became a placement." Dandan explains their events were specifically designed for their target audience - "middle-aged women with kids in the Jersey pharma belt" for pottery painting, and New York recruiters for rooftop gatherings.

These strategic relationship investments help recruiters stand out in an industry with reputation challenges. Grace observes it's "very easy to do better" than competitors by "just doing a couple things differently." While others focus on transactions, this approach builds a foundation of trust leading to higher placement odds, client loyalty, and valuable referrals.

MPC Strategy: Skip the Intro and Sell Your Talent

Most recruiters waste time on company introductions when contacting hiring managers. Dandan recommends a more effective approach: "Sell the NPC right away. Boom, boom." This direct method recognizes that hiring managers prioritize solving their problems over hearing about your firm.

Hiring managers focus primarily on addressing their own challenges. A refined approach that immediately demonstrates candidate value shows respect for their time while positioning you as a solutions provider. Dandan emphasizes creating compelling candidate profiles with a confident, engaging tone instead of a nervous or disinterested delivery.

In today's competitive landscape, the first few seconds determine client engagement. Leading with immediate value helps bypass typical screening filters, significantly increasing your chances of meaningful engagement and placement success.

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Dandan Zhu Bio and Contact Info

Dandan Zhu launched her agency recruitment career at the age of 23, quickly excelling as a full-desk headhunter specializing in a technical niche and eventually executive search for the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry. 

Through high commissions, obsessive saving, and aggressive investing, a method she calls “The Millionaire Trifecta”, Dandan achieved financial independence by 28, transitioning into full-time entrepreneurship.

She is the founder of DG Recruit (est. 2018), a leading R2R (recruiter-to-recruiter) firm serving top billers and recruitment agencies, and Agency Recruitment Academy (est. 2024), where she provides training and guidance to senior producers and recruitment leaders.

Dandan is also the author of Agency Recruitment 101, a comprehensive guide offering insights into the recruitment business model, commission structures, and industry best practices. She hosts the DG Recruit Podcast featuring top voices in the recruitment industry and showcasing top sales and recruitment strategies and tactics.

An active speaker and trainer, Dandan collaborates with go-getters and leaders in the recruitment industry to elevate their skills and results. Her mission is to share the knowledge she gained as a headhunter, sales leader, and entrepreneur, empowering others to achieve financial, career, and life success.

Dandan on LinkedIn

Dandan on Instagram

Dandan on Twitter @dandanzhudg

Grace Marlin Bio and Contact Info

Grace has been servicing the agency recruitment industry for the past 6.5 years as the Co-Founder of DG Recruit, a US-based agency-to-agency rec2rec firm.

Throughout Grace's time in the industry, she has helped launch, elevate, and track the careers of top performing recruitment and staffing sales professionals which has provided her a keen vantage point to understand what it takes to be a successful agency recruitment professional. She is passionate about the unique earning potential and autonomy that comes from a successful career in the industry, so she solely focuses on the agency side, NOT HR/internal recruiting/TA roles.

Grace routinely shares industry-related content on LinkedIn and is a champion for leveraging social media marketing as a cornerstone of your recruitment practice since it's still an underutilized tool for current and aspiring top billers.

In addition to her work at DG Recruit, she co-founded Recruiter Prep which offers an "Intro to Agency Recruitment Course" that teaches aspiring agency recruiters everything they know to break into the industry with the highest probability of having a successful first year.

Grace on LinkedIn

DG Recruit website link

DG Recruit Podcast link 

DG Recruit on Facebook

DG Recruit on YouTube

People and Resources Mentioned

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini

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