Linked cells returning 0s vs empty cells

I have a client who has a “data” sheet and a “results” sheet. He links (refers to) cells in the data sheet to selectively pull data into the results sheet. In the results sheet, he does some COUNT and COUNTIF calculations.
Problem: When a cell in the data sheet is blank, he wants to “pull” a blank into the results sheet, but he’s getting zeroes. Tried suppressing display of zeroes in both sheets, didn’t help. Any suggestions?