Some companies don’t even share customer data with the VP of sales, according to Miles Austin, the “Web Tools Guy” and Sales and Marketing Technologist at Fill the Funnel, Inc. Austin helps companies look at data they collect with a different perspective. Looking at frequency, for example, instead of forcing site visitors to pony up their email addresses to access content, is a better way to understand customer behavior and build a positive interaction. Sales go south when customers feel forced into uncomfortable engagement. The key, Austin said, is to start a conversation where potential customers feel they’re speaking with an equal. The way to accomplish this, though, is different for each company. As companies collect unstructured data, like social data, they need to “understand where [their] customers are — where they’re hanging out,” Austin stressed. Customers are sharing what they need, and the key piece is figuring out how to deliver what they’re looking for in a format that’s easily digestible for them. Once companies understand “what the streams are,” they should invest in the tools needed to interact with customers on that platform, he added. When it comes to deciding on the right tools, Austin posited that companies should take a goal-oriented approach. Once companies understand the direction in which they should move, the next step is turning to a trusted advisor — or even looking to competitors — to figure out the right tool for the job and the best way to implement it. IBM ‘s business intelligence Watson tools, for example, might make a big difference to sales departments because they enable salespeople to get the information they need, not what leadership thinks they need. Access from the salesperson level will bubble up the management team in the form of results, Austin concluded.