Ben Feldman was one of the most prolific insurance agents in the world. From 1942 to his death in 1993 he sold $1,800,000,000 of Life Insurance for New York Life. During his life he held the world record for the most products sold by a salesman in a career, a year ($100,000,000), and in a single day ($20,000,000). Near the end of his career, his annual commission totals were over $1,000,000 per year. Here are the ‘Sales Secrets’ for Mr. Feldman’s success:"

1. Be More Creative

Use your intelligence and your imagination to continually develop and execute your attitude, image, enthusiasm, potential, discipline, plan, thinking, ideas, call, problem defining and solutions, belief in the products you sell, advance your product knowledge, relationships, confidence, and persistence.

2. Develop Your Positive Mental Attitude

The biggest asset you have is your earning capacity, and that depends entirely on your attitude. Attitude is your first and most important factor!

You know that you must sell! You’re not waiting for people to buy!

A positive mental attitude --more than anything else, -- determines your earnings. If you decide you are going to lead and feel wonderful, strong, excited -- then you have the power to move mountains!

3. Stick With It

Who says there is no sale pending? All is not lost. Follow-up! Follow-up! Follow-up! The sale may be next month or next season or next year, or in 17-months, so stay with it.

4. Stay Enthusiastic

The most important person to get excited and enthused in the sales interview is the financial professional. Enthusiasm is nothing more than the excitement conveyed by your voice and convictions.

5. Be Dissatisfied

People who are perfectly satisfied with the way they are living, and the way they are doing their job, are in a rut. If they have no driving urge to be a better person, or to accomplish a better job, then they are standing still.

And, as any successful financial advisor will tell you, this means the same thing as going backwards. One of the greatest human traits is the total inability to be completely satisfied with our own work. The feeling of having completed a job well is rewarding. The feeling of having done it perfectly is fatal!

6. Prepare With Care

Organize your ideas into a simple sales presentation. Spend more time in preparation than in presentation. Never call on a person unless you’re prepared. The sale of financial products is a procedure, not a problem. This becomes a problem when it stops being a procedure.

7. Make Your Calls

One of the keys to selling is simply to make the calls. Don’t try to make the sales before you visit, just make the calls, and your sales will follow.

8. Pay Attention To Your Image

Your image does not take care of itself! If you don’t take care to promote your image, then your competition will take care of your image and your competition will also take care of your sales!

9. Find The Problem

Simply look for the problem! When you find the problem, make sure that you have identified it! That you recognize it and you understand it so well you know the price of doing something about it, and the price of doing nothing about it. Pinpoint the problem! Problems have price tags!

10 Fit The Right Solution To The Problem

Your work is to make the financial product fit. You know, when you buy a pair of pants, or a pair of shoes, you don’t just buy any pair. You make sure the fit is precise. Like a tailor with a bolt of cloth, you must make the product fit.

11. Keep Your Solution Simple

Sell a package – a very simple package designed to do a special job.

Sell a policy designed to make sure a spouse will never be dependent on the children, a policy designed to convert bricks and steel back into dollars, so a family ends-up with cash instead of frozen assets. I repeat, sell very simple packages! Merchandise – simple clean-cut packages. Regardless of size!

12. Sell Softly

Don’t back your prospects into a corner and force them to make decisions. Don’t push. Lead. Be a leader! "Let me put this together and you take a look."

13. Ethics And Honesty

Always remember that ethics and honesty are proven to pay best! The best interest of the client always comes first.