Asking good sales questions is vital to your success. But, that's not what I'm here to talk about today. Instead, we're going to focus on what happens after you ask those questions. It's no secret that you need to be a good listener—to most salespeople, that's a big duh!

But here's the deal: After asking a sales question, if the prospect hasn't responded within 2-3 seconds, the average seller will simply jump in to fill the silence. That's right—2-3 seconds is the most people can stand before they start blathering just to make some noise. They might talk about their company, product or service. Or, they'll ask another question, hoping that will get the prospect talking.

But when you do this, you end up sounding like every other self-serving salesperson, and your credibility goes spiraling down the drain.