Before making an integration recommendation, what should you do first?

In the HubSpot Data Integration certification, you should clarify the integration use case and data requirements before making any recommendations because this discovery phase is essential for determining the technical feasibility and strategic alignment of a solution. Jumping directly into a recommendation without understanding the specific business goals—such as which objects need to sync, the direction of data flow (one-way vs. bidirectional), and the frequency of updates—often leads to "brittle" integrations that fail to solve the client's actual pain points. By first defining the requirements, you can accurately map out the necessary data points, identify potential API rate limit issues, and ensure that the chosen integration will provide a reliable, long-term "single source of truth" for the organization.