The power of the poster

Terry O’Sullivan

28th March 2012

Overview• what is a poster?• design decisions• poster sessions• lessons from advertising research• the P factor

What is a poster?• Wittich and Schuller (1973) define a poster as a ‘visual

combination of bold design, colour and message intended to catch and hold the attention of the passer-by long enough to implant or reinforce a significant idea in his or her mind’ (cited in Hand, 2010, p. 56)

But what can a poster befor a researcher?

Posters can be…• a visual aid • a focus for a discussion

and feedback• a networking opportunity • an interaction occasion

– viewer - content– viewer - you

• a foot in the door• a rehearsal• an overview of your

project• ‘selected highlights’• a form of self promotion• a fashion statement

Design decisions• one piece design or an assemblage of pages?

– what are the guidelines?– what do you want it to do?

• looking good counts:– ‘It is clear that the perceived scientific merit and

originality of posters correlates with visual appeal.’ (Goodhand, et al., 2011)

• lots of templates on the web. Powerpoint or Publisher?• landscape or portrait?

Posters are an interactive medium

• audiences interact with the poster, but more importantly with you

• do you have an ‘elevator pitch’?– see http://www.alumni.hbs.edu/careers/pitch/

• can you prepare answers in advance to questions which the poster might spark?

• do you have handouts?• do you have freebies?

Lessons from Outdoor AdvertisingDo’s• Clear branding and ‘new!’

information • Short headlines and a

product shot• Minimise clutter• Logo in upper half• Photographs (but be

careful with people)• Blue dominant colour

Don’ts• Too much text• Confusing pictures• Humour• Images of women• Price information• Red dominant colour

(van Meurs and Aristoff, 2009)

The P factor• The following posters were the top three in the 2011 OU

Postgraduate Research Poster Competition (online voting)

• Rank them in the correct order and win a prize!

http://www.open.ac.uk/research/research-career-development/news/poster-competition-2011.php

1st placeAuthor: Shafiul AlamTitle: Cognitive Radio - a Sustainable Technologyfor Green Wireless Communications?30 votes

2nd placeAuthor: Sally HartleyTitle: Co-operatives as a learning space for youth27 votes

3rd placeAuthor: Rose JohnsonTitle: Learn as you play: How can real-time feedback enhance learning the violin?25 votes

And the winner is…

Conclusions• Be clear what you want the poster to do• Allow plenty of time for planning and production• Make it look good• Put yourself in the picture

References• Goodhand, J.R., Giles, C.L., Wahed, M., Irving, P.M., and

Rampton, D.S. (2011) ‘Poster presentations at medical conferences: an effective way of disseminating research?’, Clinical Medicine, 11 (2), pp. 138 – 41

• Hand, H. (2010) ‘Reflections on preparing a poster for an RCN conference’, Nurse Researcher, 17 (2), pp. 52 – 59.

• van Meurs, L. & Aristoff, M. (2009) ‘Split-Second Recognition: What Makes Outdoor Advertising Work?’, Journal of Advertising Research, 49 (1), March, pp. 82 - 91