Trade shows, done right, can be the crown jewel of your marketing mix. Here's how to make trade shows pay off for your company.

• Set quantitative goals for each show at which you exhibit: There’s an old saying that goes, “We don’t know where we’re headed, but we’re getting there fast.” If you don’t have established goals for your trade show—how many customers you want to prospect, how many deals you want to close and with whom, and a dance card filled with appointments in advance of the show—you aren’t maximizing your staff’s time. This extra preparation can mean the difference between an uncertain return on your investment and a healthy one.

• Use trade shows to test market new products: Sometimes, instead of putting together an expensive market research study, consider bringing product prototypes and demonstrations to show in a private space of your booth, or in a hotel suite. This can save time and money and give you qualitative data you might otherwise miss.

• Gather competitive intelligence: You don’t even need a booth to gather tremendous competitive intelligence at a show. Give yourself and your staff time to walk the floor and attend the product demos of all of your competitors, then put together a report for management after the show encapsulating your findings.

• Don’t choose a show for its location: Sure, we’d all like to attend the convention in Hawaii. But sometimes the show in the less desirable location is the one that will produce the most serious buyers. Make sure the trade show organizer shows you the demographic data from past events to get a feel for the type of attendee.

• First-time events are risky: It can be costly to exhibit at a show that has no track record. If a new show is in or near your hometown or a major office, the costs can be mitigated to a degree. But sometimes it pays to wait until the show has a track record before jumping in.