It's trade show and conference season, and we all love to go and see what's new and innovative in our industry and profession. Our communciations guru Nina Spencer says there's a process to prepare, and she has 6 Tips for Getting the most out of the conference.

Springtime is annual conference time, and conferences are a big investment of your professional time and money. If you're going to attend, get your money's worth.

Here are 6 tips for doing just that! Before the conference...

1. Establish a singular focus or goal for attending–what do you want to learn more about? Identify your objectives.

2. Get a good night's sleep the night before; conference schedules can be hectic and make you feel overwhelmed with information coming at you too fast. It's easier to absorb the bombardment of data if you're well rested.

3. Bring lots of business cards and have them immediately available.

4. If your conference includes breakout sessions, review the agenda in advance to strategically choose sessions that align with your objectives (so you don't spend time scrambling to pick a session minutes beforehand, only to discover that it's full).

5. If two interesting sessions are scheduled simultaneously, see if there's a recording or a book that will summarize the one missed.

6. Learn who's attending the conference (if possible), so you'll know whom you wish to meet, e.g. intimate conferences often include a roster of attendees in the welcoming "goodie bag".

Setting yourself up right, ahead of time, will go a long way to maximizing the value you get out of the investment of your time and money.