November brings with it the big annual neuroscience conference, and that can mean only one thing: poster time! Yet, whether it's SFN in the fall, ARVO in the spring, or just a university mini-symposium or high-school science fair, it's always poster time somewhere. Occasionally you'll have the option to show your work as a slide presentation, but the poster remains the primary conference workhorse. A poster gives you more opportunity for one-on-one interaction with the crowd. The give and take of scientific exchange. A chance for face time with others working in your field. And a poster gives you something to bring home and hang up outside your office, which helps people understand what the heck you've been doing with all the grant money the government's been giving you.
That being said, a poster barn is not exactly the ideal venue for information exchange. It's noisy. It's crowded. The attendees have issues. There's much to see in little time and, especially at the big conferences, posters can easily begin to blur together. Your audience brings a range of backgrounds, from doe-eyed newbies struggling with the material to jaded Nobel laureates who have seen it all. Many visitors might have jet lag, or a splitting headache, or a gut full of conference dogs.
Hence, good poster design is vital. My advisor use to tell us stand behind your data, not in front of it! Still, what you're standing behind needs intelligent organization. That doesn't happen by accident, and if you do it right people won't know you did it at all. There's more to it than simply taking what you did in your last paper and bigifying it.
Well, LabKitty is here to help. I have put together a collection of tips for good poster design, gleaned from my years of working the aisle at various nerdfests. Tips that apply at every level, from a tape-and-construction-paper summary of your term project to a professionally-printed laminated synopsis of cutting-edge research. As with all things, you will only become truly skilled at postercraft through experience. However, there are also mistakes everyone makes -- even people who should know better -- and you can learn from their experience. Steer away from the rocks and get a superior product right out of the gate.
There are, of course, as many opinions on good poster design as there are posters. If you don't like my advice, that's okay: I still like you. In fact, feel free to add your tips in the comments. (Anyone can leave a comment, but your comment might not appear until I go in and shake the Google filter.) Questions, criticisms -- anything that will help the would-be poster presenter -- are welcome. There is always more to learn.
Read on and make a better poster. LabKitty gives you: Tips for a Good Conference Poster! Before getting started, you should check out any guidelines provided by the conference sponsors (usually found in the back of the preliminary program or on the organization's website). They will at minimum specify the poster dimensions. However, they may also include restrictions and requirements on anything from font size to a conflict of interest disclosure. It will save you work if you discover these sooner rather than later. I've never run into poster police at a conference flagging violations, but flaunting the rules is bad form.
Beyond any mandates specifying what you can and can't do are the larger set of guidelines suggesting what you should and shouldn't do. They aren't decided by any conference organizer, but by the principles of good presentation. I present these below, divided into tips related to general layout and tips related to specific content. Some you may have come across before, or applied in a different context such as preparing a talk or writing a paper. Some are common sense, but it doesn't hurt to point them out. I also include a few comments on poster printers, and finish with a simple example.
If there is a single guiding principle to remember, a Golden Rule of poster design, it's this: before including anything on your poster, ask: is this deserving of poster real estate? Less is generally more. A poster isn't just a jumbo version of a research article. It has its own gestalt. Neither is it mute. You are presenting the poster. If there are gaps or questions, you are there to fill in the answer. A good poster doesn't only help the visitor, it also helps the presenter.
General Layout
1. Let's get this out of the way right off: no silly fonts or creative color schemes. You can't go wrong with a nice sturdy sans serif. If color isn't necessary to convey a point, don't use it. Whatever you do, do it consistently. Don't use bold headings in some places and italics somewhere else. Don't use bullet lists in one place and numbered lists someplace else. Apply font sizes logically and consistently. Also, including humorous content is always taking a risk (It's best to leave the humorous content to the bloggers -- we're trained professionals). And, of course: spellcheck, spellcheck, spellcheck.
2. Try to put the more important content (read: figures) higher up on the poster. Reviewing anything at groin level is generally difficult. A common layout you will see is a line of figures high-up with explanatory text beneath. I wish we put the title, etc at the bottom of the poster just to free up valuable real estate, but I guess that's just too weird. Maybe someday.
3. Arrange your content in blocks, each presenting a major point you'd like to make, and number the blocks for easy navigation. The flow of your poster may be obvious to you, but it's not to a visitor. Many posters simply use the familiar publication headings (Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Summary) but numbering shows the entire organization at a glance. Some folks like to draw boxes around the blocks so the poster content fits together like a collection of floor tiles. Your call.
4. Perhaps you are smitten with math, but many people are not. If you want to reach the broadest audience, you might want to dial it back a bit. Don't show a derivation when a result will do, and don't show an equation when words will do. If you applied some standard analysis technique (e.g., convolved an image with a Gaussian kernel or band-pass filtered the data) just say so -- don't make me parse that tidbit from an equation. If it gets to the point where people are just nodding politely, that's not good for anyone. I also don't need to see your Matlab or Python or whatever code. Those things I can look up later.
5. Bullet points or numbered lists make for more efficient information exchange than a big block of text.
Specific Content
1. Title = important. Note you usually get to specify a list of keywords for your poster if a searchable index is going to be made available by the conference organizers. Don't feel compelled to play keyword bingo with your title, is the point. Just devise the most interesting, informative, and accurate title possible (no pressure). Keep in mind a title attracts spelling mistakes like a faculty retirement party attracts people looking for free lab equipment.
2. Start your poster content proper with a brief introduction. The issue. The importance. Why anyone should care (not just people in your field or familiar with your work). The immediate problem and the focus of the work being presented. I doubt I'm telling you something you haven't figured out. However, writing a good introduction is hard. It's not as sexy as showing results, and it needs to convey much in a few words. Give your introduction the effort it deserves. Don't just slap one one.
3. A picture of your experiment helps get people oriented. However, a cartoon schematic or line drawing might work better than an image, as a preparation or apparatus can be difficult for the uninitiated to decipher, especially after being shot through a printer. Also, you don't need to include every detail when describing your experiment. This isn't the Methods section of a paper. Space is limited and people can ask follow-up questions if necessary. I'm not suggesting you leave what you did to the visitor's imagination, but I've seen posters that have recounted the experiment in excruciating detail (and wee font) which was neither necessary nor instructive. Phrases like "using standard techniques" are helpful to condense what can easily turn into a wall of text.
4. The meat of the poster is your data. These likely appear as a collection of figures, and the rules of good figure layout in publications also apply in posters. Label the axes. Include scale bars. Include units. Show your p values. Make sure terminology used in labels matches what you write in the text. Make sure data are presented consistently (often a problem if you are combining figures from several sources). You may need to bump up your line width and symbol sizes for good readability (see "Poster Printer Fu," below). In fact, I suggest you start your poster with the figures, and work from there. And remember: just because you have a figure doesn't necessarily mean you should include the figure (see: "Golden Rule," above).
5. Conclude with a take-home message. As with the introduction, there can be a tendency to put less effort into a summary than it deserves. Resist this tendency.
6. A big bibliography is not necessary. I have seen people include an extensive reference list on their poster (in wee font) which seems to me a poor use of limited space. You should cite work you lean on in the introduction, but this should be a short list. I suppose you might also list your own most recent publication(s) connected to the work shown (if any) so visitors know it exists.
7. Put your contact information on the poster. The title will include your affiliation, yes, but provide your email somewhere. (Bonus tip: bring business cards to hand out. Yes, the paper kind. Even in the digital age, handing out a card is a one second transaction that never has a battery or connection issue and doesn't distract you while you fist bump iPhones or whatever. And It beats trying to shout your contact information over the din while someone writes it on their hand.) Also, list your source of funding, if any.
8. Don't forget to put your poster number on the poster (if there is one) so you don't wind up writing it on the corner at the last minute in lipstick (don't ask).
Poster Printer Fu
1. Posters printed over a giant background image started popping up around the time high-end poster printers became commonplace. Just don't. It mostly succeeds in making the data hard to see. If you simply must include some fancy graphics like a campus image or an institution logo, put it up in the title.
2. Speaking of printing posters, it takes forever and you probably only get one shot at it. Additionally, your advisor might pay to have your poster printed, but s/he won't want to pay to have it re-printed. Check your proof before sending it off. Check your proof again. Have someone else check your proof. Have your dog check your proof (just kidding. Dogs r dumb).
3. If you can, find someone who has used the same software and printer as you will, grab their source -- e.g., the Illustrator or PowerPoint file -- and compare it with their printed poster. This is a great help in the design of both text (font, font size, etc.) and graphics (line weights, symbol size, potential color problems, etc.) that will save you time and heartache. Your department might have a test print hung up somewhere and will provide the corresponding source file for reference. Ask around.
Putting it all Together
Here's a rough poster mock-up that illustrates our tips in action.
Note the use of color is reserved to highlight important results or clarify a diagram. Nonessential graphics (the divider lines in the title and the institution logo) are also kept to a minimum. A sans serif font (here, Helvetica) makes for easy reading. The title conveys awesomeness and erudition, with additional useful information provided in the second line. Author name and affiliation, and poster number appear beneath. A concise introduction explains the importance of the issue and the specific aims of the current work. Methods are summarized in bullet-point form for rapid information exchange. Numbered blocks then guide the visitor though the results. The most important material is positioned higher for easy viewing. Prioritization is necessary given that space is limited. Presumably, the faux data in block 2 was important enough to include, but is of secondary importance and so is shown lower. A summary caps the results with a collection of memorable take-home messages, also in bullet-point form. Author email and the funding source is provided at lower right.
Such a bauplan may suit your needs to varying degree. Real-world posters tend to be rather more complex than the example shown here, especially as you move up the conference feeding chain. But the goal remains the same. You want to convey the what, how, and why of what you did to a visitor -- including one who is not necessarily intimate with your field -- and do so in a manner that is both easy to understand and present. A good poster doesn't require fancy graphics or a gimmicks. Good design is what makes a poster useful. It's what makes your work memorable. This is achievable at any level, be it a local science fair or a national meeting.
Best of luck, and see you in the aisle.
That being said, a poster barn is not exactly the ideal venue for information exchange. It's noisy. It's crowded. The attendees have issues. There's much to see in little time and, especially at the big conferences, posters can easily begin to blur together. Your audience brings a range of backgrounds, from doe-eyed newbies struggling with the material to jaded Nobel laureates who have seen it all. Many visitors might have jet lag, or a splitting headache, or a gut full of conference dogs.
Hence, good poster design is vital. My advisor use to tell us stand behind your data, not in front of it! Still, what you're standing behind needs intelligent organization. That doesn't happen by accident, and if you do it right people won't know you did it at all. There's more to it than simply taking what you did in your last paper and bigifying it.
Well, LabKitty is here to help. I have put together a collection of tips for good poster design, gleaned from my years of working the aisle at various nerdfests. Tips that apply at every level, from a tape-and-construction-paper summary of your term project to a professionally-printed laminated synopsis of cutting-edge research. As with all things, you will only become truly skilled at postercraft through experience. However, there are also mistakes everyone makes -- even people who should know better -- and you can learn from their experience. Steer away from the rocks and get a superior product right out of the gate.
There are, of course, as many opinions on good poster design as there are posters. If you don't like my advice, that's okay: I still like you. In fact, feel free to add your tips in the comments. (Anyone can leave a comment, but your comment might not appear until I go in and shake the Google filter.) Questions, criticisms -- anything that will help the would-be poster presenter -- are welcome. There is always more to learn.
Read on and make a better poster. LabKitty gives you: Tips for a Good Conference Poster! Before getting started, you should check out any guidelines provided by the conference sponsors (usually found in the back of the preliminary program or on the organization's website). They will at minimum specify the poster dimensions. However, they may also include restrictions and requirements on anything from font size to a conflict of interest disclosure. It will save you work if you discover these sooner rather than later. I've never run into poster police at a conference flagging violations, but flaunting the rules is bad form.
Beyond any mandates specifying what you can and can't do are the larger set of guidelines suggesting what you should and shouldn't do. They aren't decided by any conference organizer, but by the principles of good presentation. I present these below, divided into tips related to general layout and tips related to specific content. Some you may have come across before, or applied in a different context such as preparing a talk or writing a paper. Some are common sense, but it doesn't hurt to point them out. I also include a few comments on poster printers, and finish with a simple example.
If there is a single guiding principle to remember, a Golden Rule of poster design, it's this: before including anything on your poster, ask: is this deserving of poster real estate? Less is generally more. A poster isn't just a jumbo version of a research article. It has its own gestalt. Neither is it mute. You are presenting the poster. If there are gaps or questions, you are there to fill in the answer. A good poster doesn't only help the visitor, it also helps the presenter.
General Layout
1. Let's get this out of the way right off: no silly fonts or creative color schemes. You can't go wrong with a nice sturdy sans serif. If color isn't necessary to convey a point, don't use it. Whatever you do, do it consistently. Don't use bold headings in some places and italics somewhere else. Don't use bullet lists in one place and numbered lists someplace else. Apply font sizes logically and consistently. Also, including humorous content is always taking a risk (It's best to leave the humorous content to the bloggers -- we're trained professionals). And, of course: spellcheck, spellcheck, spellcheck.
2. Try to put the more important content (read: figures) higher up on the poster. Reviewing anything at groin level is generally difficult. A common layout you will see is a line of figures high-up with explanatory text beneath. I wish we put the title, etc at the bottom of the poster just to free up valuable real estate, but I guess that's just too weird. Maybe someday.
3. Arrange your content in blocks, each presenting a major point you'd like to make, and number the blocks for easy navigation. The flow of your poster may be obvious to you, but it's not to a visitor. Many posters simply use the familiar publication headings (Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Summary) but numbering shows the entire organization at a glance. Some folks like to draw boxes around the blocks so the poster content fits together like a collection of floor tiles. Your call.
4. Perhaps you are smitten with math, but many people are not. If you want to reach the broadest audience, you might want to dial it back a bit. Don't show a derivation when a result will do, and don't show an equation when words will do. If you applied some standard analysis technique (e.g., convolved an image with a Gaussian kernel or band-pass filtered the data) just say so -- don't make me parse that tidbit from an equation. If it gets to the point where people are just nodding politely, that's not good for anyone. I also don't need to see your Matlab or Python or whatever code. Those things I can look up later.
5. Bullet points or numbered lists make for more efficient information exchange than a big block of text.
Specific Content
1. Title = important. Note you usually get to specify a list of keywords for your poster if a searchable index is going to be made available by the conference organizers. Don't feel compelled to play keyword bingo with your title, is the point. Just devise the most interesting, informative, and accurate title possible (no pressure). Keep in mind a title attracts spelling mistakes like a faculty retirement party attracts people looking for free lab equipment.
2. Start your poster content proper with a brief introduction. The issue. The importance. Why anyone should care (not just people in your field or familiar with your work). The immediate problem and the focus of the work being presented. I doubt I'm telling you something you haven't figured out. However, writing a good introduction is hard. It's not as sexy as showing results, and it needs to convey much in a few words. Give your introduction the effort it deserves. Don't just slap one one.
3. A picture of your experiment helps get people oriented. However, a cartoon schematic or line drawing might work better than an image, as a preparation or apparatus can be difficult for the uninitiated to decipher, especially after being shot through a printer. Also, you don't need to include every detail when describing your experiment. This isn't the Methods section of a paper. Space is limited and people can ask follow-up questions if necessary. I'm not suggesting you leave what you did to the visitor's imagination, but I've seen posters that have recounted the experiment in excruciating detail (and wee font) which was neither necessary nor instructive. Phrases like "using standard techniques" are helpful to condense what can easily turn into a wall of text.
4. The meat of the poster is your data. These likely appear as a collection of figures, and the rules of good figure layout in publications also apply in posters. Label the axes. Include scale bars. Include units. Show your p values. Make sure terminology used in labels matches what you write in the text. Make sure data are presented consistently (often a problem if you are combining figures from several sources). You may need to bump up your line width and symbol sizes for good readability (see "Poster Printer Fu," below). In fact, I suggest you start your poster with the figures, and work from there. And remember: just because you have a figure doesn't necessarily mean you should include the figure (see: "Golden Rule," above).
5. Conclude with a take-home message. As with the introduction, there can be a tendency to put less effort into a summary than it deserves. Resist this tendency.
6. A big bibliography is not necessary. I have seen people include an extensive reference list on their poster (in wee font) which seems to me a poor use of limited space. You should cite work you lean on in the introduction, but this should be a short list. I suppose you might also list your own most recent publication(s) connected to the work shown (if any) so visitors know it exists.
7. Put your contact information on the poster. The title will include your affiliation, yes, but provide your email somewhere. (Bonus tip: bring business cards to hand out. Yes, the paper kind. Even in the digital age, handing out a card is a one second transaction that never has a battery or connection issue and doesn't distract you while you fist bump iPhones or whatever. And It beats trying to shout your contact information over the din while someone writes it on their hand.) Also, list your source of funding, if any.
8. Don't forget to put your poster number on the poster (if there is one) so you don't wind up writing it on the corner at the last minute in lipstick (don't ask).
Poster Printer Fu
1. Posters printed over a giant background image started popping up around the time high-end poster printers became commonplace. Just don't. It mostly succeeds in making the data hard to see. If you simply must include some fancy graphics like a campus image or an institution logo, put it up in the title.
2. Speaking of printing posters, it takes forever and you probably only get one shot at it. Additionally, your advisor might pay to have your poster printed, but s/he won't want to pay to have it re-printed. Check your proof before sending it off. Check your proof again. Have someone else check your proof. Have your dog check your proof (just kidding. Dogs r dumb).
3. If you can, find someone who has used the same software and printer as you will, grab their source -- e.g., the Illustrator or PowerPoint file -- and compare it with their printed poster. This is a great help in the design of both text (font, font size, etc.) and graphics (line weights, symbol size, potential color problems, etc.) that will save you time and heartache. Your department might have a test print hung up somewhere and will provide the corresponding source file for reference. Ask around.
Putting it all Together
Here's a rough poster mock-up that illustrates our tips in action.
Note the use of color is reserved to highlight important results or clarify a diagram. Nonessential graphics (the divider lines in the title and the institution logo) are also kept to a minimum. A sans serif font (here, Helvetica) makes for easy reading. The title conveys awesomeness and erudition, with additional useful information provided in the second line. Author name and affiliation, and poster number appear beneath. A concise introduction explains the importance of the issue and the specific aims of the current work. Methods are summarized in bullet-point form for rapid information exchange. Numbered blocks then guide the visitor though the results. The most important material is positioned higher for easy viewing. Prioritization is necessary given that space is limited. Presumably, the faux data in block 2 was important enough to include, but is of secondary importance and so is shown lower. A summary caps the results with a collection of memorable take-home messages, also in bullet-point form. Author email and the funding source is provided at lower right.
Such a bauplan may suit your needs to varying degree. Real-world posters tend to be rather more complex than the example shown here, especially as you move up the conference feeding chain. But the goal remains the same. You want to convey the what, how, and why of what you did to a visitor -- including one who is not necessarily intimate with your field -- and do so in a manner that is both easy to understand and present. A good poster doesn't require fancy graphics or a gimmicks. Good design is what makes a poster useful. It's what makes your work memorable. This is achievable at any level, be it a local science fair or a national meeting.
Best of luck, and see you in the aisle.
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