Data is undervalued right now. It is out of favor. The internet has made it so easy to gather data (publicly available facts and figures) about our customers and prospects on a just-in-time basis that fewer and fewer sales professionals seem to take it seriously.

One objection appears to be, "If it is so available, it must not be very powerful". The irony of this perspective is striking. Yes, more and more data is available. New sources which didn't exist a year ago, much less a decade ago, can be tapped to better understand the company's current situation and business direction. With little time or effort we can be: reading real time insight to a company's business and industry in the form of an analyst review; learning about how customers are feeling about the company and its products; and seeing what types of people the company is trying to hire and how their current employees feel about the company. With this volume of data comes tremendous insight, which is more valuable than ever.

Not only that, but getting the data is so easy and convenient. Read it just before a meeting, download a podcast and listen on your drive time, watch a video between calls...

One last thing to consider - it seems that very few people read their own company's data. People who are so busy taking care of their own responsibilities are inundated with newsletters, news releases, presentations and announcements. They can't possibly keep up with it all. If people don't read their own data, imagine the impression that a sales professional that does read the data can make. By accessing the right data at the right time, our research efforts will be more effective and our presentations will be more impressive.