Pullis of Fidelity National Title tackles strategies for boom times, lean times

Isabelle Pullis is the vice president sale at Fidelity National Title and is affiliated with NYCREW, AREW and the National Realty Club. Back in 1981, when I started out in title insurance, I knew I was joining a cyclical industry, although I did not anticipate just how steep the peaks and valleys would be. In boom times I have strived to service my small transaction customers as well as the big pension funds so that I could maintain a diversified customer base. In the lean times I try to stay connected to my customers. Networking organizations such as NYCREW are particularly valuable now - both for staying connected and for meeting new people and garnering new ideas. The security restrictions imposed after 9/11 have made cold calling nearly impossible and also limit face to face interactions with existing customers. I believe this limitation is a loose-loose situation for business relationships in general. The silver lining to the financial crisis has been to focus customers on the importance of the financial strength of industry players. I am fortunate to work directly for Fidelity National Title, one of the largest and most financially secure title insurers in the country. Customers can be confident of our claims paying ability and the safety of escrow funds entrusted to us. I am confident that the creative minds in our industry will find a way out of this current downturn and that new opportunities will surface. I look forward to servicing those transactions.