I was approached by an engineer because i had a specific expertise. we talked on skype (i was living in a different continent then) Then he vouched for me as a applied to one job for which i interviewed a couple of times over skype. the outcome was that I was passed on to another recruiter and another department. that second leg of the process took months because while they liked my skillset there wasn't really a position that could match it. eventually while I was in California for another reason I visited them and we had proper interviews (6 back to back interviews for 5 hours) after which I got the job. Now that I am on the other side what I can attest is that once you enter the pipeline the recruiter is your friend, they are on your side and want you to succeed and they are happy to assist the applicant with anything.