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How to Design a Winning Poster Presentation: Quick Guide with Examples & Templates

How are research posters like High School science fair projects? Quite similar, in fact.

Both are visual representations of a research project shared with peers, colleagues and academic faculty. But there’s a big difference: it’s all in professionalism and attention to detail. You can be sure that the students that thrived in science fairs are now creating fantastic research posters, but what is that extra element most people miss when designing a poster presentation?

This guide will teach tips and tricks for creating poster presentations for conferences, symposia, and more. Learn in-depth poster structure and design techniques to help create academic posters that have a lasting impact.

Let’s get started.

Table of Contents

• What is a Research Poster?

Why are Poster Presentations important?

Overall dimensions and orientation, separation into columns and sections, scientific, academic, or something else, a handout with supplemental and contact information, cohesiveness, design and readability, storytelling.

• Font Characteristics
• Color Pairing
• Data Visualization Dimensions
• Alignment, Margins, and White Space

Scientific/Academic Conference Poster Presentation

Digital research poster presentations, slidemodel poster presentation templates, how to make a research poster presentation step-by-step, considerations for printing poster presentations, how to present a research poster presentation, final words, what is a research poster .

Research posters are visual overviews of the most relevant information extracted from a research paper or analysis.   They are essential communication formats for sharing findings with peers and interested people in the field. Research posters can also effectively present material for other areas besides the sciences and STEM—for example, business and law.

You’ll be creating research posters regularly as an academic researcher, scientist, or grad student. You’ll have to present them at numerous functions and events. For example:

• Conference presentations
• Informational events
• Community centers

The research poster presentation is a comprehensive way to share data, information, and research results. Before the pandemic, the majority of research events were in person. During lockdown and beyond, virtual conferences and summits became the norm. Many researchers now create poster presentations that work in printed and digital formats.

Let’s look at why it’s crucial to spend time creating poster presentations for your research projects, research, analysis, and study papers.

Research posters represent you and your sponsor’s research 

Research papers and accompanying poster presentations are potent tools for representation and communication in your field of study. Well-performing poster presentations help scientists, researchers, and analysts grow their careers through grants and sponsorships.

When presenting a poster presentation for a sponsored research project, you’re representing the company that sponsored you. Your professionalism, demeanor, and capacity for creating impactful poster presentations call attention to other interested sponsors, spreading your impact in the field.

Research posters demonstrate expertise and growth

Presenting research posters at conferences, summits, and graduate grading events shows your expertise and knowledge in your field of study. The way your poster presentation looks and delivers, plus your performance while presenting the work, is judged by your viewers regardless of whether it’s an officially judged panel.

Recurring visitors to research conferences and symposia will see you and your poster presentations evolve. Improve your impact by creating a great poster presentation every time by paying attention to detail in the poster design and in your oral presentation. Practice your public speaking skills alongside the design techniques for even more impact.

Poster presentations create and maintain collaborations

Every time you participate in a research poster conference, you create meaningful connections with people in your field, industry or community. Not only do research posters showcase information about current data in different areas, but they also bring people together with similar interests. Countless collaboration projects between different research teams started after discussing poster details during coffee breaks.

An effective research poster template deepens your peer’s understanding of a topic by highlighting research, data, and conclusions. This information can help other researchers and analysts with their work. As a research poster presenter, you’re given the opportunity for both teaching and learning while sharing ideas with peers and colleagues.

Anatomy of a Winning Poster Presentation

Do you want your research poster to perform well?  Following the standard layout and adding a few personal touches will help attendees know how to read your poster and get the most out of your information. 

The overall size of your research poster ultimately depends on the dimensions of the provided space at the conference or research poster gallery. The poster orientation can be horizontal or vertical, with horizontal being the most common.  In general, research posters measure 48 x 36 inches or are an A0 paper size.

A virtual poster can be the same proportions as the printed research poster, but you have more leeway regarding the dimensions. Virtual research posters should fit on a screen with no need to scroll, with 1080p resolution as a standard these days. A horizontal presentation size is ideal for that.

A research poster presentation has a standard layout of 2–5 columns with 2–3 sections each. Typical structures say to separate the content into four sections; 1. A horizontal header 2. Introduction column, 3. Research/Work/Data column, and 4. Conclusion column. Each unit includes topics that relate to your poster’s objective.  Here’s a generalized outline for a poster presentation:

• Condensed Abstract 
• Objectives/Purpose
• Methodology
• Recommendations
• Implications
• Acknowledgments
• Contact Information 

The overview content you include in the units depends on your poster presentations’ theme, topic, industry, or field of research. A scientific or academic poster will include sections like hypothesis, methodology, and materials. A marketing analysis poster will include performance metrics and competitor analysis results.

There’s no way a poster can hold all the information included in your research paper or analysis report. The poster is an overview that invites the audience to want to find out more. That’s where supplement material comes in. Create a printed PDF handout or card with a QR code (created using a QR code generator ). Send the audience to the best online location for reading or downloading the complete paper.

What Makes a Poster Presentation Good and Effective? 

For your poster presentation to be effective and well-received, it needs to cover all the bases and be inviting to find out more. Stick to the standard layout suggestions and give it a unique look and feel. We’ve put together some of the most critical research poster-creation tips in the list below. Your poster presentation will perform as long as you check all the boxes.

The information you choose to include in the sections of your poster presentation needs to be cohesive. Train your editing eye and do a few revisions before presenting. The best way to look at it is to think of The Big Picture. Don’t get stuck on the details; your attendees won’t always know the background behind your research topic or why it’s important.

Be cohesive in how you word the titles, the length of the sections, the highlighting of the most important data, and how your oral presentation complements the printed—or virtual—poster.

The most important characteristic of your poster presentation is its readability and clarity. You need a poster presentation with a balanced design that’s easy to read at a distance of 1.5 meters or 4 feet. The font size and spacing must be clear and neat. All the content must suggest a visual flow for the viewer to follow.

That said, you don’t need to be a designer to add something special to your poster presentation. Once you have the standard—and recognized—columns and sections, add your special touch. These can be anything from colorful boxes for the section titles to an interesting but subtle background, images that catch the eye, and charts that inspire a more extended look. 

Storytelling is a presenting technique involving writing techniques to make information flow. Firstly, storytelling helps give your poster presentation a great introduction and an impactful conclusion. 

Think of storytelling as the invitation to listen or read more, as the glue that connects sections, making them flow from one to another. Storytelling is using stories in the oral presentation, for example, what your lab partner said when you discovered something interesting. If it makes your audience smile and nod, you’ve hit the mark. Storytelling is like giving a research presentation a dose of your personality, and it can help turning your data into opening stories .

Design Tips For Creating an Effective Research Poster Presentation

The section above briefly mentioned how important design is to your poster presentation’s effectiveness. We’ll look deeper into what you need to know when designing a poster presentation.

1. Font Characteristics

The typeface and size you choose are of great importance. Not only does the text need to be readable from two meters away, but it also needs to look and sit well on the poster. Stay away from calligraphic script typefaces, novelty typefaces, or typefaces with uniquely shaped letters.

Stick to the classics like a sans serif Helvetica, Lato, Open Sans, or Verdana. Avoid serif typefaces as they can be difficult to read from far away. Here are some standard text sizes to have on hand.

• Title: 85 pt
• Authors: 65 pt
• Headings: 36 pt
• Body Text: 24 pt
• Captions: 18 pt

If you feel too prone to use serif typefaces, work with a font pairing tool that helps you find a suitable solution – and intend those serif fonts for heading sections only. As a rule, never use more than 3 different typefaces in your design. To make it more dynamic, you can work with the same font using light, bold, and italic weights to put emphasis on the required areas.

2. Color Pairing

Using colors in your poster presentation design is a great way to grab the viewer’s attention. A color’s purpose is to help the viewer follow the data flow in your presentation, not distract. Don’t let the color take more importance than the information on your poster.

Choose one main color for the title and headlines and a similar color for the data visualizations. If you want to use more than one color, don’t create too much contrast between them. Try different tonalities of the same color and keep things balanced visually. Your color palette should have at most one main color and two accent colors.

Black text over a white background is standard practice for printed poster presentations, but for virtual presentations, try a very light gray instead of white and a very dark gray instead of black. Additionally, use variations of light color backgrounds and dark color text. Make sure it’s easy to read from two meters away or on a screen, depending on the context. We recommend ditching full white or full black tone usage as it hurts eyesight in the long term due to its intense contrast difference with the light ambiance.

3. Data Visualization Dimensions

Just like the text, your charts, graphs, and data visualizations must be easy to read and understand. Generally, if a person is interested in your research and has already read some of the text from two meters away, they’ll come closer to look at the charts and graphs. 

Fit data visualizations inside columns or let them span over two columns. Remove any unnecessary borders, lines, or labels to make them easier to read at a glance. Use a flat design without shadows or 3D characteristics. The text in legends and captions should stay within the chart size and not overflow into the margins. Use a unified text size of 18px for all your data visualizations.

4. Alignment, Margins, and White Space

Finally, the last design tip for creating an impressive and memorable poster presentation is to be mindful of the layout’s alignment, margins, and white space. Create text boxes to help keep everything aligned. They allow you to resize, adapt, and align the content along a margin or grid.

Take advantage of the white space created by borders and margins between sections. Don’t crowd them with a busy background or unattractive color.

Calculate margins considering a print format. It is a good practice in case the poster presentation ends up becoming in physical format, as you won’t need to downscale your entire design (affecting text readability in the process) to preserve information.

There are different tools that you can use to make a poster presentation. Presenters who are familiar with Microsoft Office prefer to use PowerPoint. You can learn how to make a poster in PowerPoint here.

Poster Presentation Examples

Before you start creating a poster presentation, look at some examples of real research posters. Get inspired and get creative.

Research poster presentations printed and mounted on a board look like the one in the image below. The presenter stands to the side, ready to share the information with visitors as they walk up to the panels.

With more and more conferences staying virtual or hybrid, the digital poster presentation is here to stay. Take a look at examples from a poster session at the OHSU School of Medicine .

Use SlideModel templates to help you create a winning poster presentation with PowerPoint and Google Slides. These poster PPT templates will get you off on the right foot. Mix and match tables and data visualizations from other poster slide templates to create your ideal layout according to the standard guidelines.

If you need a quick method to create a presentation deck to talk about your research poster at conferences, check out our Slides AI presentation maker. A tool in which you add the topic, curate the outline, select a design, and let AI do the work for you.

1. One-pager Scientific Poster Template for PowerPoint

A PowerPoint template tailored to make your poster presentations an easy-to-craft process. Meet our One-Pager Scientific Poster Slide Template, entirely editable to your preferences and with ample room to accommodate graphs, data charts, and much more.

Use This Template

2. Eisenhower Matrix Slides Template for PowerPoint

An Eisenhower Matrix is a powerful tool to represent priorities, classifying work according to urgency and importance. Presenters can use this 2×2 matrix in poster presentations to expose the effort required for the research process, as it also helps to communicate strategy planning.

3. OSMG Framework PowerPoint Template

Finally, we recommend presenters check our OSMG Framework PowerPoint template, as it is an ideal tool for representing a business plan: its goals, strategies, and measures for success. Expose complex processes in a simplified manner by adding this template to your poster presentation.

Remember these three words when making your research poster presentation: develop, design, and present. These are the three main actions toward a successful poster presentation. 

The section below will take you on a step-by-step journey to create your next poster presentation.

Step 1: Define the purpose and audience of your poster presentation

Before making a poster presentation design, you’ll need to plan first. Here are some questions to answer at this point:

• Are they in your field? 
• Do they know about your research topic? 
• What can they get from your research?
• Will you print it?
• Is it for a virtual conference?

Step 2: Make an outline

With a clear purpose and strategy, it’s time to collect the most important information from your research paper, analysis, or documentation. Make a content dump and then select the most interesting information. Use the content to draft an outline.

Outlines help formulate the overall structure better than going straight into designing the poster. Mimic the standard poster structure in your outline using section headlines as separators. Go further and separate the content into the columns they’ll be placed in.

Step 3: Write the content

Write or rewrite the content for the sections in your poster presentation. Use the text in your research paper as a base, but summarize it to be more succinct in what you share. 

Don’t forget to write a catchy title that presents the problem and your findings in a clear way. Likewise, craft the headlines for the sections in a similar tone as the title, creating consistency in the message. Include subtle transitions between sections to help follow the flow of information in order.

Avoid copying/pasting entire sections of the research paper on which the poster is based. Opt for the storytelling approach, so the delivered message results are interesting for your audience. 

Step 4: Put it all together visually

This entire guide on how to design a research poster presentation is the perfect resource to help you with this step. Follow all the tips and guidelines and have an unforgettable poster presentation.

Moving on, here’s how to design a research poster presentation with PowerPoint Templates . Open a new project and size it to the standard 48 x 36 inches. Using the outline, map out the sections on the empty canvas. Add a text box for each title, headline, and body text. Piece by piece, add the content into their corresponding text box.

Transform the text information visually, make bullet points, and place the content in tables and timelines. Make your text visual to avoid chunky text blocks that no one will have time to read. Make sure all text sizes are coherent for all headings, body texts, image captions, etc. Double-check for spacing and text box formatting.

Next, add or create data visualizations, images, or diagrams. Align everything into columns and sections, making sure there’s no overflow. Add captions and legends to the visualizations, and check the color contrast with colleagues and friends. Ask for feedback and progress to the last step.

Step 5: Last touches

Time to check the final touches on your poster presentation design. Here’s a checklist to help finalize your research poster before sending it to printers or the virtual summit rep.

• Check the resolution of all visual elements in your poster design. Zoom to 100 or 200% to see if the images pixelate. Avoid this problem by using vector design elements and high-resolution images.
• Ensure that charts and graphs are easy to read and don’t look crowded.
• Analyze the visual hierarchy. Is there a visual flow through the title, introduction, data, and conclusion?
• Take a step back and check if it’s legible from a distance. Is there enough white space for the content to breathe?
• Does the design look inviting and interesting?

An often neglected topic arises when we need to print our designs for any exhibition purpose. Since A0 is a hard-to-manage format for most printers, these poster presentations result in heftier charges for the user. Instead, you can opt to work your design in two A1 sheets, which also becomes more manageable for transportation. Create seamless borders for the section on which the poster sheets should meet, or work with a white background.

Paper weight options should be over 200 gsm to avoid unwanted damage during the printing process due to heavy ink usage. If possible, laminate your print or stick it to photographic paper – this shall protect your work from spills.

Finally, always run a test print. Gray tints may not be printed as clearly as you see them on screen (this is due to the RGB to CMYK conversion process). Other differences can be appreciated when working with ink jet plotters vs. laser printers. Give yourself enough room to maneuver last-minute design changes.

Presenting a research poster is a big step in the poster presentation cycle. Your poster presentation might or might not be judged by faculty or peers. But knowing what judges look for will help you prepare for the design and oral presentation, regardless of whether you receive a grade for your work or if it’s business related. Likewise, the same principles apply when presenting at an in-person or virtual summit.

The opening statement

Part of presenting a research poster is welcoming the viewer to your small personal area in the sea of poster presentations. You’ll need an opening statement to pitch your research poster and get the viewers’ attention.

Draft a 2 to 3-sentence pitch that covers the most important points:

• What the research is
• Why was it conducted
• What the results say

From that opening statement, you’re ready to continue with the oral presentation for the benefit of your attendees.

The oral presentation

During the oral presentation, share the information on the poster while conversing with the interested public. Practice many times before the event. Structure the oral presentation as conversation points, and use the poster’s visual flow as support. Make eye contact with your audience as you speak, but don’t make them uncomfortable.

Pro Tip: In a conference or summit, if people show up to your poster area after you’ve started presenting it to another group, finish and then address the new visitors.

QA Sessions 

When you’ve finished the oral presentation, offer the audience a chance to ask questions. You can tell them before starting the presentation that you’ll be holding a QA session at the end. Doing so will prevent interruptions as you’re speaking.

If presenting to one or two people, be flexible and answer questions as you review all the sections on your poster.

Supplemental Material

If your audience is interested in learning more, you can offer another content type, further imprinting the information in their minds. Some ideas include; printed copies of your research paper, links to a website, a digital experience of your poster, a thesis PDF, or data spreadsheets.

Your audience will want to contact you for further conversations; include contact details in your supplemental material. If you don’t offer anything else, at least have business cards.

Even though conferences have changed, the research poster’s importance hasn’t diminished. Now, instead of simply creating a printed poster presentation, you can also make it for digital platforms. The final output will depend on the conference and its requirements.

This guide covered all the essential information you need to know for creating impactful poster presentations, from design, structure and layout tips to oral presentation techniques to engage your audience better . 

Before your next poster session, bookmark and review this guide to help you design a winning poster presentation every time. 

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How-To Geek

How to make a poster using microsoft powerpoint.

Microsoft PowerPoint isn't just for presentations--you can make posters with it, as well. Here's how.

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Define the poster dimensions, design your poster.

Microsoft PowerPoint isn't just for presentations---it also provides all of the creative tools you need to design a beautiful poster. Just set the dimensions, design the poster, and print it out. Here's how to make a poster using PowerPoint.

Posters come in all sizes, but the first thing you need to know is PowerPoint's slide limit is 56-inches x 56-inches, so you'll need to plan accordingly. It's also important to note that you want to set your poster dimensions before you start designing your poster. Otherwise, you might end up having to rework parts of your design due to the size change.

Related: How to Reduce the File Size of a PowerPoint Presentation

Here are some of the standard poster sizes to get you started:

• Small poster: 11" x 17"
• Medium poster: 18" x 24"
• Large posters: 24" x 36" or 27" x 39"

Once you've decided on your poster size, set the dimensions in PowerPoint. To do this, open PowerPoint and navigate to the "Design" tab.

In the "Customize" group, select "Slide Size."

Select "Custom Slide Size" from the dropdown menu.

The "Slide Size" window will appear. Input the width and height specifications to match your required size. Keep in mind that if your height is larger in size than your width, the orientation of the slide will automatically change to "Portrait."

When you're finished, select "OK."

Once selected, a new window will appear giving you two scaling options: Maximize or Ensure Fit. If your slide already has content on it, you'll want to select "Ensure Fit."

Your slide will now be resized.

Your poster design is going to depend completely on you. You'll want to pay attention to the background of the poster, text and image arrangement, font size and style, etc. Essentially, you should treat this part exactly as if you were just creating another slide for a presentation.

Because the design and process of this step is going to differ for everyone, we'd like to offer some of our previous guides to get you started in the design process:

• Insert a picture or other object.
• Use an image as a background.
• Insert an image inside text.
• Get a picture behind text.
• Make a border or frame.

Once your design is ready, all that's left to do is print it out and hang it up!

Related: How to Troubleshoot Printing Issues in Microsoft Word

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PowerPoint Creativity: How to Create a Poster in PowerPoint

• BY Bogdan Sandu
• 7 March 2024

Imagine transforming a blank canvas into a visual spectacle that grabs eyeballs and an audience. That’s the power harnessed when you uncover the secret to crafting a striking poster in  Microsoft PowerPoint .

In a world where information zips by at lightning speed, your message needs to stand out. Posters are your visual shout-out, essential at conferences, in educational settings, or as a sleek marketing collateral.

But  how to make a poster in PowerPoint ? Buckle up; you’re about to dive into an ocean of creativity facilitated by one of the most widely used  presentation software .

Through this jaunt, you’ll snag design skills that rival the pros—mastering everything from  text formatting  and  image insertion  to  color schemes  and  customizable slide layouts . I’ll guide you through the whirlwind process where  slide design principles  meet your innovation.

By the time you reach the finish line, you’ll be primed to not just make, but  engineer  a poster in PowerPoint that echoes your intention with panache. From stirring  visual communication  to technical  print settings , consider this your treasure map to poster perfection.

How to Create a Poster in PowerPoint: Quick Workflow

To create a poster in PowerPoint, follow these steps:

• Create a new blank presentation.
• Go to the ‘Design’ tab and click on ‘Slide Size’.
• Choose a preset size or enter custom dimensions like 11 x 17 in, 18 x 24 in, etc. Select the orientation (landscape or portrait).
• Sketch out your poster’s layout on paper before adding content.
• Consider the number of columns needed and the placement of images or graphs.
• Fill your poster with images and text to convey your message effectively.
• Use high-resolution images (at least 150 dpi) for clear printing.
• Choose easy-to-read fonts like Arial or Helvetica and vary font sizes for different sections.
• Consider starting with PowerPoint poster templates for inspiration.
• Save your final design as a PDF for printing. Click on ‘File’ > ‘Export’ > ‘Create PDF/XPS Document’.

By following these steps, you can easily create a professional and visually appealing poster in PowerPoint.

Preparing to Create Your Poster

Alright, let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of how to create a poster in PowerPoint .

It’s not just about opening the app and throwing things together. A bit of prep can make a world of difference!

Collecting Materials

Gathering text, charts, data, and graphics.

First things first, you need your raw materials. Think of this as gathering your ingredients before baking a cake.

Got some text? Charts? Maybe some snazzy graphics or crucial data? Pull them all together.

This isn’t just about being organized; it’s about seeing what you’ve got to work with. Remember, a well-prepared plan is half the battle!

Organizing materials in a folder

Now, don’t just dump everything on your desktop. Create a folder, label it something you’ll remember, and put all your bits and pieces in there.

This step is like having a clean workspace – it keeps you sane and your process smooth.

Setting Up PowerPoint

Time to get our hands dirty with PowerPoint, the unsung hero in our how-to create a poster in PowerPoint saga.

Starting PowerPoint

Fire up PowerPoint and let’s get rolling. It’s like stepping into your own digital art studio.

Here, the slides are your canvas, and your creativity is the limit. Whether you’re a PowerPoint newbie or a seasoned pro, there’s always something new to discover.

Choosing Poster Dimensions

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How to Design an Poster in Microsoft PowerPoint in 7 Simple Steps

Last Updated: October 30, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Dillon . Hannah Dillon is a Technology Writer and Editor at wikiHow. She graduated with a B.A. in Journalism from North Dakota State University in 2013 and has since worked in the video game industry as well as a few newspapers. From a young age Hannah has cultivated a love for writing and technology, and hopes to use these passions in tandem to help others in the articles she writes for wikiHow. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 3,777 times. Learn more...

Do you need to make a poster for school or an event? PowerPoint can be a great tool to create a poster to accompany your project or advertise something. PowerPoint can create posters that are up to 56" by 56", and it's a convenient software choice if you already own Microsoft Office and don't want to learn Photoshop or InDesign. In this article, we'll teach you how to make a poster in PowerPoint easily and quickly.

Things You Should Know

• Make sure your images are high quality so they print clearly on the poster.
• Consider how your poster will look when printed, and make your text and images large enough to see.
• If you want to print a poster bigger than 11x17, you'll likely have to get the poster printed at a print shop.

• Make your own graphs or charts using PowerPoint . These assets can be resized while you're in the program so they print clearly on the poster.
• Collect images that are at least 150 dpi. You can check the DPI (dots per inch) of your image various ways , such as in the File Explorer or Paint.

• If you're planning to print at home, keep your poster size to 11"x17" or less. If your printer can print larger-format documents, size your poster accordingly. Otherwise, you'll need to get your poster printed at a print shop.

• Draw out your design before you make it. If you have an idea for your poster's design, sketch it out so you have an idea of where to start once you open up PowerPoint.
• Insert images directly into PowerPoint. Don't use copy and paste , as this may not import the highest-quality image.
• Make sure your text is big enough to read. Depending on your poster size, start with a headline font that is 100pt and a body font between 24 and 48pt. Make sure to select fonts that are easy to read, such as serif or sans-serif fonts.
• Remember contrast . Don't put dark text on a dark image or light text on a light image. If you selected a background with many different colors, consider adding a solid-colored box behind your text to make it legible.
• Arrange your content from top to bottom. Most people will read a poster from top to bottom, so put your initial or most important points near the top of the poster.

• Even if you're printing a small poster, you will have to go to a specialized print shop if you need your poster printed on a unique material like vinyl.
• At-home printers can usually print up to 11"x17" size paper and can generally handle paper thickness up to a sturdy cardstock. Some common paper sizes for at-home printers include 8.5"x11" (letter), 8.5"x14" (legal), and 11"x17".
• If you can't or don't want to go to a print shop, you can print large posters at home using the Rasterbator tool. Simply go to Rasterbator.net and follow the on-screen instructions to upload your poster file and split it into smaller pieces you can print at home. After printing, trim the margins from the papers and join them with tape or by gluing them to the poster board. While this won't create a professional-quality poster for a school or work project, it works when creating a rough draft or just making a poster for your wall at home.

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How to Design a Winning Poster Presentation: A Quick Guide 

Are you looking to make a lasting impression at your next conference or academic event?  Have you ever been in a situation where you had to present a poster presentation for a conference but didn’t know where to start?  Designing a winning poster presentation design can be daunting, especially when you have limited time and resources. But don’t worry, with a little planning and creativity; you can create a poster presentation that will grab your audience’s attention and effectively communicate your message. 

In this blog, we will dive into the world of poster design and provide a quick guide on creating a creative poster presentation design. From choosing the right layout and color scheme to selecting the best images and fonts, we will share examples and templates to help you along the way. 

Are you ready to design a poster presentation that will make an impactful impression? 

Let’s get started!

What is a poster presentation?

A poster presentation is a great way of communicating research, study findings, concepts, and ideas. It is a visual representation of information used to attract the audience’s attention and explain the topic in an easy-to-understand manner. A poster presentation typically consists of a poster and a brief explanation.

The poster should be designed to be visually appealing and include a compelling title slide that will draw the audience’s attention. The content should be organized logically and include a clear message that differentiates it from other posters. 

The text should be concise and written in a large font size to be easily read from a distance. Additionally, the poster should include images, PowerPoint tables , graphs, and other visuals to help illustrate the points made.

The brief explanation should be five minutes long and provide an overview of the poster’s content. The speaker should be friendly and professional and use appropriate language for the audience.

How to make a poster presentation?

Making a poster presentation can be a great way to showcase your research or project, but it can also be a bit overwhelming if you’re unsure where to start. Here are tips for poster presentation that will grab your audience’s attention and effectively communicate your message.

Start with a plan

Before you start designing your poster, it’s essential to have a clear idea of what you wish to achieve. Think about your audience, message, and the key points you want to communicate. Once you have a plan in place, it will be much easier to create a poster presentation PowerPoint that is both visually appealing and informative.

Choose the right layout

The layout of your poster presentation is important as it can affect how easily people can read and understand your information. A good layout with a clear information hierarchy will be easy to read. You can use various fonts, sizes, and colors to emphasize the most important points.

Use images and graphics

A poster presentation full of text can be overwhelming, so it’s important to include images and PowerPoint graphics to break up the text and make it more visually appealing. Make sure to choose relevant images for your topic, which will help to communicate your message.

Use contrasting colors

Choosing the right color scheme is essential for ensuring your poster presentation design is easy to read and engage. Use contrasting colors for the background and text, and ensure that the text is easy to read against the background.

Proofread and edit

Once you’ve finished designing your creative poster presentation, it’s vital to proofread and edit it to ensure there are no mistakes or typos. It’s also a good idea to get feedback from others to see if any changes or improvements can be made.

Creating a creative poster presentation takes a bit of planning, creativity, and attention to detail, but by following these tips, you can design a poster that will engage your audience and effectively communicate your message. Remember, a poster presentation PPT is not just a collection of text and images; it’s a visual tool to communicate your ideas and research.

Tips for Poster Presentation

Creating an appealing poster presentation perfectly captures your audience’s attention and effectively communicates your message. Here are five tips to help you create an effective PowerPoint poster presentation:

Keep it simple

Your poster should be easy to read and understand. Avoid using too many colors or borders, as this can be distracting and look untidy. Use a limited color palette and keep the text concise.

Choose an eye-catching headline

Think of some eye catchy or witty text as your poster’s focal point to grab people’s attention. They will want to look closer if it makes them laugh or piques their curiosity.

Use high-quality photos

You can use pictures to design posters, and choosing high-resolution photos is essential, especially if you print them in large pixels or sizes. Any pixelation or slightly blurred graphics can turn your design into a disaster.

Introduce your poster presentation with a “1 Minute Pitch.”

You don’t want to “give everything away,” so to speak, but rather capture the interest of your audience, introduce yourself and the project, and spark a dialogue.

Add a memorable call to action

Your poster will only be meaningful if it makes the audience act on the message you delivered. Compose a clear call to action to inform them of what to do next. You can add details on where to purchase tickets for event posters in your call to action.

By following these tips, you can create a compelling and creative poster presentation design that will capture your audience’s attention and effectively communicate your message.

Poster Presentation Examples

When creating a creative poster presentation, seeing examples can be a great way to get inspiration and see what works. In this section, we will be showcasing a variety of poster presentation examples that demonstrate different design techniques and styles. 

From scientific research posters to creative projects, these examples will give you a better understanding of how to create a poster that will grab your audience’s attention and effectively communicate your message. 

Wrapping It Up

Creating a creative poster presentation requires careful planning and attention to detail. It is essential to identify the poster’s goal, consider the target audience, decide where to share it, use a pre-made PowerPoint template , pick a relevant or branded color scheme, include a clear call-to-action, and use fonts to create a hierarchy of information. 

Additionally, ensuring the poster has an attractive visual impact, a compelling title, a clear message, cohesiveness, design and readability, storytelling, alignment, margins, and white space is essential. By following these tips, you have access to various ideas for poster presentations that will have a lasting impact.

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How to Create a Research Poster

• Poster Basics
• Design Tips
• Logos & Images

What is a Research Poster?

Posters are widely used in the academic community, and most conferences include poster presentations in their program.  Research posters summarize information or research concisely and attractively to help publicize it and generate discussion. 

The poster is usually a mixture of a brief text mixed with tables, graphs, pictures, and other presentation formats. At a conference, the researcher stands by the poster display while other participants can come and view the presentation and interact with the author.

What Makes a Good Poster?

• Important information should be readable from about 10 feet away
• Title is short and draws interest
• Word count of about 300 to 800 words
• Text is clear and to the point
• Use of bullets, numbering, and headlines make it easy to read
• Effective use of graphics, color and fonts
• Consistent and clean layout
• Includes acknowledgments, your name and institutional affiliation

A Sample of a Well Designed Poster

View this poster example in a web browser .  

Image credit: Poster Session Tips by [email protected], via Penn State

Where do I begin?

Answer these three questions:.

• What is the most important/interesting/astounding finding from my research project?
• How can I visually share my research with conference attendees? Should I use charts, graphs, photos, images?
• What kind of information can I convey during my talk that will complement my poster?

What software can I use to make a poster?

A popular, easy-to-use option. It is part of Microsoft Office package and is available on the library computers in rooms LC337 and LC336. ( Advice for creating a poster with PowerPoint ).

Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign

Feature-rich professional software that is good for posters including lots of high-resolution images, but they are more complex and expensive.  NYU Faculty, Staff, and Students can access and download the Adobe Creative Suite .

Open Source Alternatives 

• OpenOffice is the free alternative to MS Office (Impress is its PowerPoint alternative).
• Inkscape and Gimp are alternatives to Adobe products.
• For charts and diagrams try Gliffy or Lovely Charts .
• A complete list of free graphics software .

A Sample of a Poorly Designed Poster

View this bad poster example in a browser.

Image Credit: Critique by Better Posters

• Next: Design Tips >>
• Last Updated: Jul 11, 2023 5:09 PM
• URL: https://guides.nyu.edu/posters

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Blog Education How to Make a Poster in PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Guide

How to Make a Poster in PowerPoint: Step-by-Step Guide

Written by: Danesh Ramuthi Apr 17, 2024

Did you know the first modern poster appeared in the mid-15th century? Since then, posters have captured people’s attention and left lasting impressions.

Fortunately, creating posters today is easy with digital tools like PowerPoint. You can experiment endlessly and make mistakes to your heart’s content — PowerPoint even offers poster templates!

However, PowerPoint’s downside is that it lacks options that poster creation tools like Venngage offer (customizable templates and an extensive library of icons and images to add visual appeal).

In this article, I’ll teach you how to make a poster in PowerPoint (alternatively, check out our  Free Online Poster Maker  and  customizable poster templates ).

Click to jump ahead :

How to create a new poster in PowerPoint

Setting up the slide, how to make a poster in venngage.

Here’s a brief overview of how to create a poster in PowerPoint.

Step 1: Create a blank slide Step 2: Select design –> slide size Step 3: Select the poster dimensions Step 4: Set width and height Step 5: Choose poster orientation Step 6: Add text, visuals, and design your poster Step 7: Finalize your poster Step 8: Save and print

Before starting work on your poster, remember that all effective posters have the following in common.

• Are easy to understand
• An appealing layout and typography
• A clear and concise message

Start with a blank slide

When you open PowerPoint, you’ll see template options like a minimalist presentation or architecture pitch deck.

Instead of these, select Blank Presentation to get a clean slate to work with.

Choose a poster template

Poster templates help save time and increase productivity. You do not need to do any design or layout work; you only have to think about the content.

To find poster templates in PowerPoint, click on the Design tab at the top of the screen.

You should see template options in the Themes bar.

For more options, select the Designer option at the top right. Here, you’ll find colorful templates that are the perfect poster options.

For example, this template is a great option to use as a visually appealing poster.

Remember that PowerPoint templates are for slide decks and presentations.

If you want to create traditional posters, I recommend using Venngage’s poster make r instead. Our drag-and-drop interface makes creating professional posters easy and doesn’t require you to have design skills to use it.

You’ll also find poster templates on Venngage, including event posters , sales posters , movie posters , infographic posters , and more.

Choose the right slide size and orientation

If you’re determined to make a poster in PowerPoint, you’ll need to adjust the size and orientation of the PowerPoint slide so it looks more like a typical poster.

To do this, click the Design tab at the top and select the Slide Size dropdown option.

Then, click on Page Setup.

In Page Setup, select the Custom option slide size and enter these measurements.

• Width: 59.4cm
• Height: 84.1cm  

You’ll notice my design doesn’t fit the scaled size. One workaround is to stretch the design (it might look a bit off, but overall, it is still decent).

Now, our poster is beginning to take shape.

Select a background

When choosing a poster background, choose clean and subtle colors and designs so that the primary message pops.

This also prevents clutter, which can be an eyesore and distract from what’s important.

To change your poster’s background, click on Format Background. You should see options for adding solid fills, gradient fills, or photos.

You can also add textures under Pattern Fill and watermarks to add a unique touch to your poster.

Since this template seems too colorful to be used for a poster about Women’s Day, I changed the background to a pinkish-purplish hue.  

Design your poster

When designing your poster, keep the following things in mind.

• Ensure visual hierarchy: Arrange elements to guide the viewer’s eye across the poster. The most important information should be prominent.
• Focus on white space: Give elements in your poster room to breathe. Less is more since we want the poster to convey a message rather than be an art piece at a museum.

In my poster example representing Women’s Day, I added icons by selecting Insert and then Icons.

The symbols I chose hint at what will happen at the event: beauty and makeup booths and drinks.

Add a title and headings

Besides visual appeal, your poster’s title is critical to grabbing people’s attention, so write something catchy that draws viewers in.

Here’s another pro tip. Use large, easy-to-read fonts that are easy to see.

To add a title to your poster in PowerPoint, insert a Text Box by going to Insert and then Text Box. You can customize the text for size, color, and boldness from the Home tab.

Add your text and content

After the title, it’s time to add supporting text to convey your message.

I recommend using only bullet points and short paragraphs for better readability in posters.

Also, ensure everything is organized and aligned. Adding content using text boxes each time is a great way to keep everything neat.

For my Women’s Day event poster, I added details about the event in bullet format.

To add bullets in a Text Box, go to the Home tab and select the arrow next to the Bullet button.

Add your visuals and graphics

Posters that are all text are very dull, so you’ll need visuals, which can be anything from high-quality images to charts and diagrams.

Visuals in posters provide dual benefits: they make information accessible and can evoke emotional responses in viewers.

To add visuals to a PowerPoint poster, click the Insert tab and choose Pictures. PowerPoint lets you upload your photos or browse the web for stock images.

I added balloons and wine glasses to make this poster more fun and happening.

The great thing about visuals in PowerPoint is the potential for customization.

For example, I changed the thickness at the ends of the balloon image to make the colors stand out more.

The drag-and-drop interface also makes aligning your visuals with other elements easy.

Use shapes and SmartArt to add diagrams

Incorporating shapes into your poster is a great way to create visual sections and segregate information. You can also use them as callouts to draw attention to important details.

To add shapes to your poster, go to the Insert tab, click Shapes and choose the one that fits your needs.

Alternatively, you can use PowerPoint’s SmartArt feature to add diagrams, such as flowcharts, to your poster.

To add a diagram to your poster, go to the Insert tab, click SmartArt, and browse the options.

Add the final touches

Once finished designing your poster, spend a few minutes to ensure everything looks in place and apply the final touches.

For example, two elements may not align, or some text may be too small.

Proofread your poster

Before sending your poster to print, double-check it for typos and grammatical errors.

One great way to do this is to copy and paste the text into a tool like Grammarly, which can spell-check for you. Also, getting a third person to review your poster for errors and/or clarity is a good idea.

Print your poster

Once finished with your poster, you can print it from PowerPoint. Just go to the File tab and select Print.

In the pop-up window, select your printer, adjust settings such as paper size, quality, and orientation, and choose the scale-to-fit option.

Before hitting Print, preview your poster one final time, then click Print.

Venngage is a simple and powerful business communication tool that can help you make posters without design skills.

Here’s to create a poster in Venngage.

Step 1 – Sign up for a FREE Venngage account

Sign up  for a free Venngage account using your email, Gmail, or Facebook account.

Step 2 – Pick a poster template from our templates page

Go to our  templates page  and select the poster option on the left panel to see poster templates, including movie posters , event posters , and more.

Step 3 – Edit one of our poster templates

Once you find a poster template you like, click on the Create button. You’ll need to sign in (or sign up if you haven’t already).

Once signed in, you’ll get access to our editor tool to customize posters.

Here are some things you can do with posters in the Venngage editor:

• Change the text, icons, layout, or graphics within the template.
• Add your  brand colors  to your vision board with a single click using  My Brand Kit  (available only for  Business  users).

Once you’re happy with your edits, you can download your poster in PDF, PNG, and other formats (for Business plan users only) or share a link to your poster for free.

Here are some poster templates you can edit using Venngage. 

Mental health has been a much-discussed topic lately, and this poster is an excellent reminder to take a break.

Are you looking to make a hiring poster? This one is perfect, with attractive colors and a clear message.

To spread awareness about your event, a colorful event poster is perfect for the job.

For more poster-related guides and content, check out our other posts. How to Make a Poster in 10 Steps (2024 Poster Design Guide + Templates) 55+ Creative Poster Ideas, Templates & Design Tips 12 Types of Posters for Every Business Need [Templates Included]

Conclusion: Create posters for any occasion in minutes using Venngage templates

Creating posters in PowerPoint is possible but tedious and time-consuming, especially if you don’t have design skills.

If you’re looking for an easy way to make posters, I recommend using Venngage’s intuitive poster maker (drag-and-drop interface) or editing one of our customizable poster templates to get professional posters in minutes.

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How to Make a Poster in PowerPoint

A poster is always a very good idea to advertise an event, as it allows you to highlight important information and attract the attention of everyone who sees it. With a poster, you can indicate place, time, and a small description of birthday celebrations, concerts, plays, graduation, and, in short, the event you want to present. It is also a fantastic decorative element to decorate.

However, how can we create these creative designs? At Slidesgo , we have some A3 Google Slides and PowerPoint templates ready to be printed to get amazing posters . You can filter your search on our website so that the results you get are A3 or even A4.

However, if you want to learn how to make a poster using PowerPoint and from scratch, we are going to tell you about it in this post. Here are the necessary steps!

How to make a poster in PowerPoint step by step

• The first step to creating your poster is to adjust the size in PowerPoint. To do this, click on Design > Slide Size. In the pop-up window that appears, you can customize or choose the size you need. In the example, we have chosen an A3 paper. In addition, you can choose the orientation of the slides, between portrait and landscape. Finally, Ensure Fit. When you click OK, the slide will appear in the new format.
• Then, the editing possibilities are very numerous. You can change the style of the presentation, add images, texts... whatever you want your poster to include. However, if you need a more professional design, at Slidesgo we have plenty of them, even with formats such as A3 and A4 already defined. Take a look at them!
• Another possibility, in addition to using a template with A3 or A4 format already defined, is to adapt a template in 16:9 format. For this, just follow the first step, but instead of opening a new PowerPoint presentation, open an existing one. In the following example, we have adapted the slide to the A4 landscape format.
• If you want to print your final design, you will need to export it to PDF. Click File > Export > Create PDF/ XPS Document. Save the file with the name of your choice and select Publish.
• From the Options tab, you can set whether to export the whole presentation, a selection of specific slides, or the current slide, in addition to other available options. If you want to know more about how to export a PowerPoint presentation as a PDF file , you can read the tutorial you can find at Slidesgo School .

As you have seen, creating a poster in PowerPoint is very easy. Now that you know, where are you going to place the amazing poster you make? On a high place so that everyone can appreciate the amazing creation!

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CAUSE AN EFFECT

Blog on science communication

How to design a poster presentation so your research stands out

Giving a poster presentation is not the dream of every scientist, but we help you to make a beautiful and effective poster presentation to take advantage of the networking opportunity!

Your research is important, so why waste everyone’s time with a poster with the main message hidden in bullet points and a design that makes it challenging to decipher text and tables?

Also check out our Poster Design Guidelines

The ultimate guide for good poster presentation design. Use it to create a well-designed poster that stands out and effectively communicates your research. We’ve created this together with conference organizers, scientists and universities. It’s based over a decade of experience with (visual) science communication.

What is the goal of your poster presentation?

A quick reminder: The main goal of a poster presentation is not to share your research results. If that were the case, you could just publish it, email it to colleagues in your field or hand out copies of your paper during conferences. Instead, the goal of standing next to your poster is to have interaction with other researchers in your field , learn from their critical questions, feedback, and suggestions, and make connections for future collaborations.

Your new goal is to present your work clearly and make sure that people stop to talk to you about your work. To achieve this goal, you and your poster need to STAND OUT. If you do it well, presenting your poster is an incredible learning opportunity. In our e-book about designing presentations , we talk a bit more about how to define your goal and message. Think about what your main message is, WHY your message is so important (typically the ‘background’ section) and only then WHAT the evidence is supporting your message (the ‘results’ section).

Write down your research as a story

We do this exercise in our science communication workshops a lot:

Write down your entire research in a single sentence (commas are allowed). Don’t worry if you don’t get it on the first try. In our workshops, we often start out by writing it down in a single paragraph or a one-minute speech and then shorten it until you have a single sentence. Answering the following questions help you get started:

Why are you doing your research? What is your ultimate goal?

e.g. We want to slow down Alzheimer’s disease, find a cure for small-cell carcinoma, find out which cells are responsible for skin cancer. We want to improve patient care in hospitals. We want to understand the environmental causes of obesity. We aim to study the best way to lose weight. We want to develop a new standard for research outcomes. (Just a few examples from our clients)

What is the underlying problem? Sometimes your research goal is more obscure than curing cancer or solving obesity. People will know these are major problems, and you do NOT need to point this out to them. However, you might be solving a problem people don’t know about yet. If that’s the case, you have to explain the problem AND the goal or solution to the problem. e.g. We think there is a better way to diagnose disease X than is currently done because current practice is very costly.

What exactly are you looking at in your research? How are you executing your research?

e.g. you are studying human behavior, performing cell microscopy, literature research in the national archives, interviews in local communities.

e.g. you are using epidemiology, meta-analysis, RCT, In-vitro study, computer modeling, AI, fieldwork, (online) questionnaires.

What makes your research, approach, or team unique?

e.g. We’re doing the first multi-disciplinary research into obesity prevention / We have an international team with over 20 participating countries / We developed a unique new technique or methodology / We combine all available data to date / We have a specific breed of mice that might answer the question better / This is the first time anyone has ever looked at X or used method Y.

This would result in a sentence like this:

To find out how to slow down Alzheimer’s disease, we are using new metabolomic profiling techniques to find pathways to prevent beta-amyloid proteins from forming harmful plaques in the brain.

This can be the new subtitle or large quote of your poster! It’s the main summary of what you’re trying to achieve.

Have a question as your main title

For the main title, you might want to use something even shorter. You can choose to have a question as a main title. This might lure more people to your poster than a statement. What about “Mental health in hospitals: what can health professionals do to ease the pain?”. It’s the perfect start to a conversation. Imagine what the first question would be that you can ask a person approaching you. It does not tell the whole story but makes people curious enough to walk up to your poster to read the answer or have a discussion with you.

Another example:

QUESTION: Will assessing differentiated dysplasia improve risk assessment of leukoplakia better than current WHO standards?

STATEMENT: Adding differentiated dysplasia to classic dysplasia assessment is a stronger prognostic indicator (HR:7.2) for malignant transformation than current WHO standards.

The 5-second science communication rule

In general, you only have a few seconds to grab attention with your poster. People will only stop at your poster if they are drawn in by an interesting title or a stunning design. When they decided to slow down and start reading more, it takes them about 30 seconds to read your poster. This is not reading in a traditional sense, but more skimming the titles. This means that if your titles are words such as Introduction, Methods, Results, Conclusion they will still have no idea what your research is about!

Reading your poster should not be a chore. Test it with some friends or colleagues. Show them your poster for 30 seconds, and ask them what they think is your main message, and what result/word/graph/design piqued their interest.

Poster prep-time!

• Think about what you want to get out of this poster presentation. Do you want to connect with at least 3 senior researchers? Do you want to get feedback on a specific result? Do you want to discuss your methods and ask others how they would do this?
• Prepare what you want to say when someone approaches your poster. Or better yet, what you want to ask them.
• Think about what critical questions people may have about your poster and prepare a short answer. Is your research about dairy and it is funded by the dairy industry? Expect some critical questions. Be grateful you get these questions, it’s what proper scientific discussion is all about!

Do not conform to “standards” imposed by the conference

We know that you often have to adhere to guidelines for your poster presentation. Maybe you have to abide by a standard template from your institution, or have huge logos from every single collaborator (and even pictures of their locations!) on it. We advise that you do NOT give in to these demands without a fight. Remember: these guidelines are not made by science communication experts, but often by the press officer with a desire for a uniform look or by more senior scientists who think design is something achieved by rainbow-colored text effects in Word. You get our frustration…

Of course, it’s good to adhere to the physical format of the poster mount and have large and legible text, but we’ll try to push you out of your comfort zone here a bit. You will not get punished by anyone for using different colors than your institution, use a different font, and use design in a way that makes your research pop. Remember: you can not stand out if your poster looks like all the other boring posters in the room!

TEXT: How to make sure your main message stands out

Don’t structure your presentation like a paper.

Ditch the abstract/introduction/results/conclusion/acknowledgments structure and create your own interesting titles. Instead: write conclusive titles that people can skim. This means that you should make sure that your titles (the largest texts on your poster) tell your story.

Turn headings into conclusions & quotes.

Instead of the vague descriptive title “Costs of diabetes” you can turn it into the main conclusive message: “Total costs of diabetes have increased to $245 billion.” Which one do you prefer?

This means that you do NOT highlight the least interesting words on your paper, but let the MESSAGE stand out. We cringe when we see the words “Background” highlighted in huge bright blue text, and the main message obscured in smaller text.

An example: How to structure your research (based on https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32023777 ).

Which behavioral and nutritional factors are targets for stomach cancer prevention programmes?

A meta-analysis and systematic review of 14 behavioral and nutritional factors in 52,916 studies.

Helicobacter pylori infection, smoking, alcohol, high salt intake were identified as the main factors contributing to stomach cancer.

These results may be utilized for ranking and prioritizing preventable risk factors to implement effective prevention programs.

As you can see, with the new structure, it’s already a short explanation of your entire research! Way to go!

TIP: Does your research show negative results? Shout it from the rooftops! Don’t be disappointed, your research is just as important as anyone else’s. Do not hide it, show it, so other people can learn from it.

DESIGN: Keep it clean and simple

How do you think you will come across if you use different backgrounds, colors and fonts for every slide? Does that really make you look creative and professional? We know it’s tempting, but don’t use every tool PowerPoint has given you to design with. Don’t use gradients, drop-shadows, text effects if you don’t know how to use them.

The design of your poster should support your story, provide structure, and make your presentation more effective. Design can also help distinguish between the main message and supporting information. By using different designs for your main thread and quotes, anecdotes, or examples you make sure people don’t lose sight of your most important messages.

We love to show bad examples, so check out this poster presentation dissection:

Only use bullet points for actual lists

If there is one piece of advice we would love for you to remember from this post: do NOT use bullet points for sentences! It transforms them into weird short sentences and doesn’t make your messages any clearer. Please, only use bullet points for actual lists. Like countries or disease outcomes you are measuring. Disregard your instinct to put bullets before sentences and just write a nice readable paragraph instead. People will love you for it! If you’re feeling creative you can always ask yourself the question of whether there are better ways to visualize your bullet points. Showing the countries you’ve gathered data from in an actual map is MUCH more informative than a list (anybody knows where Kyrgyzstan is located exactly?). We often use https://mapchart.net/world.html for creating maps.

COLOR: When in doubt, start with white and grey, and add a single pop of color.

We’re not going to explain color theory here. And don’t be afraid to use ANY color you want. Just make sure to check whether it has enough contrast with the background to be legible (with the WebAIM contrast checker ). Don’t waste your time on this. When in doubt, choose 1 single color (or shades of the same color) and combine it with black for text and white and light grey for backgrounds, boxes, and borders. Add a single pop of color to create focus where you want the audience to look, e.g. important keywords, arrows, and your main message. We have added some color scheme examples in our Poster Presentation Template (see below).

IMAGES: Only use images that contribute to your message

Text alone can be a bit uninspiring sometimes. We encourage the use of images but make sure they contribute to your message. Either use them to show which topic you are researching (e.g. plane aerodynamics, body fat distribution, or the history of women’s rights), or when they have intrinsic value and show something that you cannot point out in words (e.g. the location of an aorta stent, or the flow of information between low-orbit satellites). Don’t add cute images of people, landscapes, university buildings or flower patterns to spice up your poster. Check out our favorite resources for good free copyright-free images and design tools.

So please don’t use random useless stock photo’s like these in your presentation! #facepalm

GRAPHS: Make sure people can read a graph without having to consult a legend or description.

A graph is better than a table. It’s much easier to understand relationships in your data when presented visually in a graph than as numbers in a table. However, a conclusion drawn from the data, presented as a main conclusion with a single number (e.g. alcohol consumption is 23% higher in France than in Sweden) is better than your run-of-the-mill graph with a vague description of the two axes.

Write graph titles as a conclusion of your result.

Which title do you think is better?

Projected disease prevalence and mortality reduction over 20 years for the population aged 18 to 95 years in nine European countries with lower salt intake.

Lower salt intake reduced the prevalence of stroke in Poland by 13.5%

Don’t use separate legends in your graph (e.g. those boxes on the side of the graph). If possible, put the text/label explaining what a line represents next to the line. This prevents people from having to go back and forth between the graph and legend to understand its message.

• Do not copy your complex research paper title as the title on a poster. Create a short and snappy poster title that draws people in.
• Don’t include any text, graph, or image that does not contribute to your main points. If people can understand your main message without them, leave them out.
• Never apply chart junk in your graphs, remove all unnecessary lines/gradients/grids.
• Don’t use high-contrast boxes with rounded corners: this creates weird arrows between boxes that draw your eye to the area in between text.
• Avoid unclear QR codes, people will have no idea what happens after they scan it and it’s often being used for fraudulent purposes.
• Rewrite the title into an intriguing question or statement, so people know what to talk to you about.
• Your main purpose/unique proposition/interesting result should be the largest text on the poster. You should be able to read it from five meters away.
• Ensure that everything on the poster is self-explanatory. Avoid abbreviations and acronyms.
• Make sure it’s clear from the poster who you are. Highlight one of the authors, or add a (recent, professional) portrait, so people can also find you later if they visited the poster when you were away.
• White. Space. Scientists seem to think that white space is wasted space that needs more text crammed in. The opposite is true. More white space makes your poster seem less daunting, and easier to approach.
• Have a call to action on your poster. Who do you want people to contact, and what would you want to talk about in future communications? Include your Twitter, LinkedIn, email if possible.
• When in doubt about the colors: choose white and light grey and add a single pop of color. It’s the safest bet!
• Avoid jargon. You can get into jargon and details AFTER people have approached you and your poster.
• Use enough contrast between the background and letters so people can actually read it. You can check your contrast at: https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/

Creative ideas for those who are ready to conquer the world with their research:

• Laminate your poster and give people a whiteboard marker to write things on it or highlight sections they think are important. This is not only a nice gimmick that people will remember, but can be good for you as a reminder of the feedback you were given. As an added bonus it gives visitors a chance to interact with each other.
• Bring a prop related to your research to the stand. Do you research fat cells? Bring a pound of lard with you. Do you research tooth health? Bring a plastic jaw with you that people can look at.

Tip: Print on textiles instead of paper. Easier to take with you on a plane without tearing or creasing. However, do this only when you are going to use the poster multiple times, it’s a waste of material otherwise.

To hand out or not to hand out?

A hand-out is a great way to get into depth without cramming every single detail into your poster. But you might just have printed 20 copies and nobody to hand it out to. Also, who reads all the things they collect when they get home? In other words: we do not advise you to bring hand-outs.

As useful as it may seem, we think that making the connection is more important than sharing the details of your research right then and there. So instead, give out your LinkedIn or ResearchGate details or your personal website URL, so you are instantly connected and they will see any new updates you post in their timeline. If they are still interested in the details, you have their contact information to send them your paper when it’s published!

POSTER PRESENTATION – A CASE STUDY

Have you read all our tips but still don’t know how to implement them in your poster? Don’t worry, we will go over a case study of an existing poster presentation.

For this case study, we worked together with Joseph Diab , a PhD candidate in bioanalytical chemistry at The Arctic University of Norway (UiT) doing research into Ulcerative Colitis. He wanted to update his poster for his next poster presentation and volunteered with us to make it better.

The BEFORE poster

The poster he made was a typical poster, not bad at all actually, we’ve seen much, much worse… But there was plenty to improve. Let’s go over the poster to find out what could be improved.

The good thing about the poster was that the main title was written in big text, and he even emphasized the most important words. This is a great way to have it stand out more. He did not fall into the trap of having his paper title as the main title, and put it in smaller text below. He was right to make the conclusion bigger as well.

However, there is room for improvement. When you look at the poster while squinting your eyes, only the main title jumps out at you. There is not much larger text to scan to get a feel for what he’s trying to tell us. We’re also missing the reason he is doing this research. Why is it important to reveal the metabolomic signature? If the urgency is missing, people might walk past your poster.

So, to make his poster better we’ve given Joseph some homework questions about his research. These are his answers:

What do you want to get out of this poster presentation?  Joseph: I want to get feedback on how to proceed and validate these finding, and how to unravel the role of microbiota in IBD (Inflammatory bowel disease).

Can you tell me in your own words what the main purpose of your research is? Joseph: IBD is an untreatable nasty disease. The only available treatment just makes the patients go from active inflammation into remission. Most of these patients will develop inflammation again. Moreover, 20-30% of the patients develop very severe outcomes and need surgery, and they might die from complications or from cancer (caused by the treatment failure). In my research, we aim to find a biomarker to predict the outcome from the moments the patient gets the diagnosis.

Why is your research unique? Joseph: This is the first study to determine the full proteomic and transcriptomic profile in treatment-naïve and deep-remission UC patients.

What is the relevance of your results in the real world? Joseph: We are using metabolomics to improve the patient’s stratification in IBD.

We love it when researchers explain something in their own words, it’s so much clearer than when written as a paper! Here are the steps we took to improve his poster:

Step 1: Create an engaging main message.

We’ve rewritten the main message of his poster to include the main goal of his research (to improve IBD treatment) and made it a bit more interesting by adding part of his research results stating that he has found the “first clue”. This is a great way of showing that each research project is just one small step towards final answers, and this can make your audience a bit more curious. Who doesn’t like to figure out clues? This way the title also gives away a part of the results, which makes it easier for people to understand what you’ve accomplished.

Before: Ulcerative Colitis is characterized by altered tryptophan and fatty acid metabolism.

After: Finding biomarkers to improve the personalized treatment of Ulcerative Colitis. Altered tryptophan and fatty acid metabolism provide the first clue.

Step 2: Put the most important messages first.

In Joseph’s poster, like in so many, the conclusion is hidden away at the end of the poster. We’ve moved it up next to the title. In addition, we’ve moved the author affiliations to the bottom of the poster. They were taking up too much prime real estate, and it’s not very relevant for your audience.

Step 3: Create an effective design

We were lucky that Joseph was doing research in a field that is easy to visualize. Ulcerative Colitis is a disease of the large intestines, so we used an illustration of one to enhance the design. This was not just to “make it pretty”, but also to visually show the topic and draw your eye towards the most important message: the conclusion. People recognize an intestine much faster than reading the text.

We stayed away from the boring academic blue. Everybody is using it, which is a good reason to not use it yourself (the easiest way to stand out!). In this case the best choice was to just use the colors from the image. With this bright pink as an accent color, and whites and greys as main colors, you generate a nice cohesive color scheme in a snap!

TIP : If you can find a relevant image for your poster, always use that color in your color scheme! PowerPoint now has an eyedropper tool that enables you to pick any color from an image and use it in texts or boxes.

We wanted to separate the different paragraphs, but not draw too much attention to it by using dark backgrounds, thick borders or lots of contrast, so we used subtle shadow which divides the main sections but does not distract.

Step 4: Emphasize your most important messages

Our advice is to de-emphasize words such as methods and background . However, this might be a bit scary, since it deviates so much from what posters have looked like for years. So we decided to keep it, but use a smaller font size. We used the pink color to emphasize the most important sentences and draw your eyes towards them. If you squint and just read the larger pink text, you should be able to understand the research. We wanted to make it stand out more and make it bigger, but there was not enough space on the poster to increase the font size. An important lesson in working with limitations!

Step 5: Make it engaging and easy to understand for your audience

To make sure the answers to Joseph’s homework were included in the poster, we came up with the “What’s new” section. Just reading this section gives you a very good grasp of the main goal and why the research is unique.

The “How can you help?” section prompts the visitor to have a conversation and invites them to share their ideas about this topic. This is the conversation starter you need for a successful poster presentation.

Step 6: Kill your darlings

There is never enough space on a poster, so we needed to scrap some of the texts and graphs. For each graph, we asked whether it was really necessary to include. Did this graph really contribute to the main message, or could anyone at the conference understand the research perfectly fine without it?

As you can see, we ditched one of the two almost similar multivariate analysis graphs. They showed almost the same thing. We also removed the Venn diagram. It contained some very detailed information that was not essential for the main message and therefore took up too much valuable space.

We also wrote new titles for the graphs in the results section. Instead of a descriptive title (Pathway analysis), we wrote a concluding title (Integrated pathway analysis provides a unique and detailed snapshot of the metabolic changes in the onset of UC.). You want to give away your conclusion from the graph, not have people spend 5 minutes trying to figure it out themselves from looking at the dots.

In the graphs we made the outlying pathways more prominent with the dark blue background, so you can immediately find these pathways without having to read all of them.

Step 7: Background information & call to action

There is always some boring information you have to include, or your supervisors won’t be happy. Logos of your institutions, affiliations, the title of your paper. We put them where they belong: on the bottom of the page in smaller font. Very few people will be interested in this at first glance.

We do want to show who the person is behind the poster, so we kept the headshot of Joseph and added a call to action: Connect with Joseph Diab for more details and a discussion of this paper.

This lowers the threshold for people to connect with Joseph later. After all: he invited them to email him already! Since Joseph is active on Twitter we included his Twitter handle as well as his email address. This is very important. If you want to keep in touch with people who pass by, you have to give them your contact information.

A QR code might sound very hip, but we advise against using it. For starters, it’s not really telling anyone where you will end up. Are you linking to the paper, to Joseph’s personal website, his Twitter account, or his University’s website? People might not even have a smartphone or QR reader. The best thing is to ask people on the spot to connect with you on LinkedIn, Twitter, or send you an email, so you’re sure they will keep in touch.

The result:

Check out Joseph attracting attention with his new poster at the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO) 2020 annual congress:

Let us know what you think!

Do you have a question that wasn’t answered in this article? Write to me at [email protected] , or check out our workshop on Poster presentation & Infographic design .

A poster presentation template to not take too seriously

Want to get a head-start on designing your poster? We’ve developed a simple template for your poster to get you ahead of the curve. But don’t take this template too seriously! In fact, we usually advise against using templates, if everybody starts using them, nobody will stand out. It’s your job to make it interesting and fit your needs and limitations.

About the Author: Liesbeth Smit

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How to Create a Poster For Research Presentation

Here you’ll find all the info you’ll need to make a poster for research presentation in the most effective way.

A poster for research presentation serves two purposes: as a tool for connecting with others and a means of communicating one’s research.

When you give a poster presentation at a seminar or conference, you are providing information to your audience about the research you performed.

There is more than one way to design and display your project on a poster, just as there are many ways to present a slide show verbally. A few guidelines and factors are really important.

Many, however, do not produce a visually appealing conference poster so their chances of capturing attention and networking are slim.

But don’t worry! Here you’ll find all the info you’ll need for your poster presentation. So let’s start with the basics.

What is a Research Poster?

A poster for research presentation typically consists of a brief text along with charts, illustrations, images, or other presentation elements with the purpose of providing a summary of findings in an appealing manner to help disseminate information and spur discussions. Your poster can be arranged either in portrait or landscape format, depending on its size.

The organizers of seminars or conferences usually equip presenters with a presentation board and clipboards, as well as other equipment for holding and projecting poster presentations.

While other participants are watching the posters for research presentation and getting involved with the poster exhibit, the researcher stands nearby and explains it.

How to do a research poster presentation?

A research poster presentation is often discussed, but also how to do it is important.

It turns out that your poster can be used in a variety of ways, depending on where and to whom you are presenting.

An overview of your research in five to ten minutes for people with no previous knowledge in your area. It is a two-three minute summary followed by a 10-minute question set that you present to someone with expertise in your field. 

The key here is to skip everything they already are familiar with and put the emphasis on the new content.

There will also be people who will read your poster independently, either in case you are giving a presentation to someone else, you took a short break to see someone else’s post, or because they generally opt to check out your poster first.

Your poster should be suitable for all three categories of presentations. It also needs to have text large enough to be readable, as well as enough equations and tables so that you can present a discussion without reading the entire text.

Just don’t overdo it. Keep it simple and big. Please do not copy and paste from your paper. These paragraphs will usually involve a lot of text explaining. Visuals are essential for effective posters.

Remember that you should engage your audience in an energetic discussion during your presentation.

A one-on-one conversation is quite common, as is talking to a crowd. Especially when there are only a few people present, pay attention to them to determine when to explain more elaborately and whether to progress at a faster pace.

Show your gratitude for readers who come by to see your poster and engage with you.

What should a poster for research presentation contain?

It takes time and effort to condense an entire research project into a poster. A good starting point is to outline your poster first. This is usually what posters should include:

• It is crucial to include a title and list of authors . You need to have a title that grabs the reader’s attention, so they are inclined to read the poster.
• An institutional logo is commonly included on posters, often alongside the heading and authors’ names (for example, the logo of theresearch lab).
• You should include an introductory paragraph , outlining your research as well as descriptions of key terms .
• The methods and materials section contains a short explanation of the methods, techniques, and materials used to complete the project.
• In order to make the poster appealing to the reader, illustrations and tables are essential. Check out this free gallery of scientific illustrations.
• A section describing the results and conclusions of your work, clearly and concisely describing its significance and relevance to readers.
• A brief acknowledgement of your research supervisor, sources of funding, etc..

It is important to note that some things such as citations will not necessarily fit on a poster.

If so, then you should cite supporting evidence, which can be done in short parentheses or by summarizing or quoting.

You might consider providing a handout that combines citations and the abstract of your research.

What are the tools available to create my research poster?

There are many tools and software programs that you can use to create a research poster.  When choosing a tool, consider financial accessibility, what you are more comfortable using and whether or not you are willing to learn a new program.

Easily accessible and popular. The typical use of PowerPoint is to create standard-sized slides for presentations, but a slide’s dimensions can be changed in PowerPoint.

Changing its dimensions from 11 inches wide by 8 1/2 inches tall to 40 inches wide by 32 inches long will result in a bigger print. It is basically a poster-sized “slide”.

There are several features you can use in PowerPoint, including embedding text, adding graphics, and adjusting the background hue.

Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign

These are professional software with many features. However, they are more sophisticated and therefore more expensive and complex.

They are good for posters including many high-resolution images. There is however a relatively steep learning curve that can be challenging at times.

Poster Maker

This is an easy to learn, easy to use tool. It is integrated with a gallery of more than 40,000 scientifically accurate images and illustrations following the same design style to compose an attractive poster. Poster Maker also automates the process of turning your research paper into a beautiful poster layout with artificial intelligence in just a few minutes, simply by submitting your paper, with no effort or any design skills required. It is easier to remember a research study with remarkable and accurate illustrations and images. See some examples of posters built by the AI of Poster Maker:

There are a variety of poster outlines that you can choose from in the tool, and there’s also a customized service to better suit your needs.

Now, you can also notice from the examples above how the posters are outlined containing all the essential components mentioned in this content in place:

• Title/logo of the university
• Background/ Introduction
• Questions/knowledge gap
• Methodology (limit it to the essentials)
• Illustrations/table/images
• Results/ data output
• Conclusions
• References and acknowledgements (smaller at the bottom)

So finally, when making your poster for research presentation, always double-check your work before submitting to print, so you get the best results possible.

Make sure all images and text are correct. Be sure to include all essential content in a logical order. Align the logos correctly and make sure they are visible. Make sure all graphics, illustrations, and charts are clear and readable.

Checking these points ensures that your poster is ready for the audience!

If you are on the process of writing your scientific paper, you might want to check this guide: “ How to write an awesome scientific paper ”

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How to Create a Poster Presentation

Getting started, poster design best practices.

• Don't be too wordy! Keep text concise and clear.
• Organization is key. Think about what you want to say first and then carefully consider layout.
• Consider your audience. What will they have questions about? What do you want them to learn from your poster?
• Make sure your title is descriptive and large enough to be readable from far away.
• Think about image and font sizes so the poster is readable from 5-8 feet away.
• Use headings, bullets, and graphics to break up text.
• Make sure your images and graphics have contrast so they pop on the page.
• Think about including contact information for those who want more information.
• Remember, your poster will read left to right just like a page.

Example Posters (Click arrow to scroll through)

Award Categories

This year posters will be judged in two categories:

Most Visually Appealing Poster Description: A visually appealing poster can be judged based on the following criteria:

• Do visuals enhance poster content? Is it eye-catching?
• Are the components of the poster balanced across the space?
• Easy to read, pleasing-on-the-eye font/ color scheme choices? Is text error-free?
• Are photographs, graphs, tables, and other graphics creative?  

Best Articulation of Career Development Through Internship Description: In this category, we are looking for the poster to show how the internship impacted the student’s career path and development of career competencies.

• Poster provides clear description of the internship including student’s responsibilities/accomplishments
• Poster clearly identifies career readiness skills and how they were strengthened through internship
• Poster articulates student’s next steps and career goals
• Poster showcases internship in dynamic way such as “day-in-the-life”

Poster Template

This template will help you get started. Just download this and add your content to the boxes using PowerPoint. Be sure to keep the box sizes the same so that the poster will print properly.

Need Access to PowerPoint?

Because of the ease of importing images, formatting text boxes, and making slides with extra-large dimensions, many people use PowerPoint for creating posters. For this project, please use the PowerPoint template on this page for your poster. BC students can download PowerPoint for free . You are only allowed one download per computer. If you have received a new computer since your first download, you can re-download it on your new device. For any other technical assistance or if installation does not work, please connect directly with BC Information Technology Services by either calling (617-552-4357) or visiting the IT Help Desk located in O’Neill Library, 3rd floor. For those on or close to campus this summer, you can also use the Library computers that house all softwares.

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• Last Updated: Feb 7, 2023 11:38 AM

How to create an effective poster presentation

Organizers of nursing conferences depend on nurses who have created new programs or are doing research to submit their work for presentation at conferences. Through these presentations, nursing knowledge is disseminated.

If you belong to a professional organization, you’ve probably received at least one call for abstracts. Arriving well in advance of the conference date, this is an invitation to submit an abstract for presentation at the conference. You may have the choice of submitting an abstract for either an oral (podium) presentation or a poster presentation. Poster presentations can be a good way to get started presenting your work—and they’re a great opportunity to get feedback and suggestions from colleagues.

Congrats! Now get started.

It’s exciting to get a letter or e-mail telling you that your poster proposal has been accepted for a conference. But don’t waste timing resting on your laurels. When asked what they’ve learned about doing posters, many experienced presenters say they wish they’d begun their poster design earlier because the process took much longer than they anticipated. So to avoid a time crunch, start designing your poster shortly after your abstract is accepted.

Creating a compelling poster

Avoiding copyright violations in educational presentations

Four steps to preparing irresistible presentations

Plan the size, content, and layout

Unlike an oral presentation, the poster itself should do most of the talking about your project. Good design matters. It allows you to tell the “story” of your work more effectively.

Begin by carefully reviewing the poster guidelines for the conference. These guidelines specify what size the poster should be and how it will be displayed—tabletop, corkboard, or easel. Poster size affects how much information you can put on the poster. Allowable poster sizes for conferences vary widely.

Poster content should closely follow the format of the abstract you submitted. But keep in mind that a poster is not an abstract. With a poster, your goal is to tell a clear, simple story of your work. If your poster topic is a project or an organizational innovation, see Sample conference poster for ideas on what content to put where by clicking on the PDF icon above.

In contrast, a poster that presents research findings should include:

• background and significance of the study
• aims of the study
• discussion and implications.

Many healthcare organizations and universities have graphic design resources available to assist with poster design. Some organizations even ask presenters to use a specific template. Today many posters are designed with Microsoft PowerPoint templates, but you can also lay out the sections of your poster on a large piece of poster board (available at art supply or office supply stores) before finalizing it. Or you might consider using an Internet vendor (such as www.makesigns.com ). Many vendors not only guide you through poster design but also can print and ship your poster.

Use a “less is more” design

The maxim “less is more” is good advice to follow for a poster. Although you may be tempted to include every detail of your project or research, you won’t have enough space to do this. What’s more, you shouldn’t do this; it would make your poster too busy. Here are some design tips to follow:

• Leave adequate white space . Some empty space is critical to readability and legibility. Without it, the reader has no visual pauses.
• Convey your message clearly. The poster should capture the attention of attendees and convey at least one significant idea they’ll remember. Most people spend 3 to 5 minutes viewing a poster, so use plain, descriptive language that leaves no doubt what your poster is about. Generally, posters are read from left to right; organize the content with this in mind. When possible, lead the viewer through the logical flow using bold take-home points or arrows.
• Use a visual image . People retain visual images longer than the written word, so aim for at least one visual image—a photograph, an illustration, a graph.
• Make it readable . Design the poster so it can be read from a distance of 4′ to 6′. To accomplish this, lettering has to be at least 1″ high. The title should be readable from 15′ to 20′ away, with letters 2″ to 3″ high. Try to have high contrast between the background and text. Generally, a lighter background with darker text is easier to read.
• Pick fonts carefully . Arial and Tahoma are examples of nonserif fonts that work well for poster titles. Serif fonts, such as Times New Roman and Courier, are easier to read at smaller sizes and work well for body text. Having too many font types on a poster can be distracting, so use at most two to three fonts, with bold or italics for emphasis only. Avoid all uppercase letters (capitals) in your poster, as this makes material harder to read.
• Use color sparingly. Although most presenters want colorful posters, color must be incorporated carefully. Blue and green are popular because they’re considered calming.
• Ask colleagues for help . If this is your first time designing a poster, ask an experienced colleague for help. Before the poster is printed, have colleagues familiar with your subject area review it for clarity and possible errors. Proofread the poster carefully before you transport it to the conference.

Transporting and setting up your poster

Posters can be delivered to the conference site by overnight services, such as FedEx or UPS, but many presenters prefer to hand-carry them in poster canisters or portfolios. Normally, posters are set up just before the conference begins. You should receive advance guidelines from conference organizers telling you how to set up your poster. If the poster will be attached to corkboard, find out if you’re expected to bring the required materials (usually pushpins or Velcro strips) to adhere it.

Most professional meeting agendas set aside specific times for poster presentations. Many organizations offer continuing education credit for poster session attendance. Be aware that if your poster is accepted at a conference, a presenter familiar with the project or research is expected to be available during poster sessions to answer questions.

A networking opportunity

Poster presentations are excellent opportunities not just to showcase your work but also to network with colleagues who have similar interests. Effective presenters introduce themselves to attendees and “walk” them through their poster, often adding information that they think will interest them. Some attendees may want to take the information back to their organizations, so consider having handouts available to distribute at the conference. Also, bring your business cards or written contact information to give to participants.

From poster to article?

Interest in your poster by conference attendees may inspire you to take the next step—turning it into an article. Often, journal editors attend specialty conferences and visit poster exhibits. This can be a good opportunity to query them about their journals’ potential interest in your topic.

Presenting a poster is a chance to learn from attendees about aspects of your work that particularly resonate with your audience. This can give you a better idea of how to present your work in a journal article to ensure it’s informative and interesting and provides clear implications for the nursing profession.

Poster sessions have become an important part of most professional conferences and are an excellent way for presenters to share their work. Enjoy the experience of proudly standing next to your poster and discussing your work with interested colleagues.

Selected references

Blakesley D, Brizee A. Designing research posters. Purdue University Writing Lab. 2008. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/media/pdf/20080626013023_727.pdf . Accessed July 20, 2010.

Briggs DJ. A practical guide to designing posters for presentation. Nurs Stand . 2009;23(34):35-39.

Halligan P. Poster presentations: valuing all forms of evidence. Nurse Educ Pract . 2008;8:41-45.

Keely BR. Planning and creating effective scientific posters. J Contin Educ Nurs . 2004;35(4):182-185.

Moore LW, Augspurger P, King MO, Proffitt C. Insights on the poster presentation and presentation process. Appl Nurs Res . 2001;14(2):100-104.

Sherman RO. Writing abstracts for podium and poster presentations. In: Saver C. ed. Anatomy of Writing for Publication for Nurses . Indianapolis, IN: Sigma Theta Tau International; 2011.

University of Buffalo Libraries. Poster presentations: designing effective posters. http://library.buffalo.edu/asl/guides/bio/posters.html . Accessed July 20, 2010.

Rose O. Sherman is director of the Nursing Leadership Institute and associate professor of nursing at the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. She can be reached at [email protected].

2 Comments .

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Creating a Poster

What exactly is a poster presentation.

A poster presentation combines text and graphics to present your project in a way that is visually interesting and accessible. It allows you to display your work to a large group of other scholars and to talk to and receive feedback from interested viewers.

Poster sessions have been very common in the sciences for some time, and they have recently become more popular as forums for the presentation of research in other disciplines like the social sciences, service learning, the humanities, and the arts.

Poster presentation formats differ from discipline to discipline, but in every case, a poster should clearly articulate what you did, how you did it, why you did it, and what it contributes to your field and the larger field of human knowledge.

What goals should I keep in mind as I construct my poster?

• Clarity of content. You will need to decide on a small number of key points that you want your viewers to take away from your presentation, and you will need to articulate those ideas clearly and concisely.
• Visual interest and accessibility. You want viewers to notice and take interest in your poster so that they will pause to learn more about your project, and you will need the poster’s design to present your research in a way that is easy for those viewers to make sense of it.

Who will be viewing my poster?

The answer to this question depends upon the context in which you will be presenting your poster. If you are presenting at a conference in your field, your audience will likely contain mostly people who will be familiar with the basic concepts you’re working with, field-specific terminology, and the main debates facing your field and informing your research. This type of audience will probably most interested in clear, specific accounts of the what and the how of your project.

If you are presenting in a setting where some audience members may not be as familiar with your area of study, you will need to explain more about the specific debates that are current in your field and to define any technical terms you use. This audience will be less interested in the specific details and more interested in the what and why of your project—that is, your broader motivations for the project and its impact on their own lives.

How do I narrow my project and choose what to put on my poster?

Probably less than you would like! One of the biggest pitfalls of poster presentations is filling your poster with so much text that it overwhelms your viewers and makes it difficult for them to tell which points are the most important. Viewers should be able to skim the poster from several feet away and easily make out the most significant points.

The point of a poster is not to list every detail of your project. Rather, it should explain the value of your research project. To do this effectively, you will need to determine your take-home message. What is the single most important thing you want your audience to understand, believe, accept, or do after they see your poster?

Once you have an idea about what that take-home message is, support it by adding some details about what you did as part of your research, how you did it, why you did it, and what it contributes to your field and the larger field of human knowledge.

What kind of information should I include about what I did?

This is the raw material of your research: your research questions, a succinct statement of your project’s main argument (what you are trying to prove), and the evidence that supports that argument. In the sciences, the what of a project is often divided into its hypothesis and its data or results. In other disciplines, the what is made up of a claim or thesis statement and the evidence used to back it up.

Remember that your viewers won’t be able to process too much detailed evidence; it’s your job to narrow down this evidence so that you’re providing the big picture. Choose a few key pieces of evidence that most clearly illustrate your take-home message. Often a chart, graph, table, photo, or other figure can help you distill this information and communicate it quickly and easily.

What kind of information should I include about how I did it?

Include information about the process you followed as you conducted your project. Viewers will not have time to wade through too many technical details, so only your general approach is needed. Interested viewers can ask you for details.

What kind of information should I include about why I did it?

Give your audience an idea about your motivation for this project. What real-world problems or questions prompted you to undertake this project? What field-specific issues or debates influenced your thinking? What information is essential for your audience to be able to understand your project and its significance? In some disciplines, this information appears in the background or rationale section of a paper.

What kind of information should I include about its contribution ?

Help your audience to see what your project means for you and for them. How do your findings impact scholars in your field and members of the broader intellectual community? In the sciences, this information appears in the discussion section of a paper.

How will the wording of my ideas on my poster be different from my research paper?

In general, you will need to simplify your wording. Long, complex sentences are difficult for viewers to absorb and may cause them to move on to the next poster. Poster verbiage must be concise, precise, and straightforward. And it must avoid jargon. Here is an example:

Wording in a paper: This project sought to establish the ideal specifications for clinically useful wheelchair pressure mapping systems, and to use these specifications to influence the design of an innovative wheelchair pressure mapping system.

Wording on a poster:

Aims of study

• Define the ideal wheelchair pressure mapping system
• Design a new system to meet these specifications

Once I have decided what to include, how do I actually design my poster?

The effectiveness of your poster depends on how quickly and easily your audience can read and interpret it, so it’s best to make your poster visually striking. You only have a few seconds to grab attention as people wander past your poster; make the most of those seconds!

How are posters usually laid out?

In general, people expect information to flow left-to-right and top-to-bottom. Viewers are best able to absorb information from a poster with several columns that progress from left to right.

Even within these columns, however, there are certain places where viewers’ eyes naturally fall first and where they expect to find information.

Imagine your poster with an upside-down triangle centered from the top to the bottom. It is in this general area that people tend to look first and is often used for the title, results, and conclusions. Secondary and supporting information tend to fall to the sides, with the lower right having the more minor information such as acknowledgements (including funding), and personal contact information.

• Main Focus Area Location of research fundamentals: Title, Authors, Institution, Abstract, Results, Conclusion
• Secondary Emphasis Location of important info: Intro, Results or Findings, Summary
• Supporting Area Location of supporting info: Methods, Discussion
• Final Info Area Location of supplemental info: References, Acknowledgments

How much space should I devote to each section?

This will depend on the specifics of your project. In general, remember that how much space you devote to each idea suggests how important that section is. Make sure that you allot the most space to your most important points.

How much white space should I leave on my poster?

White space is helpful to your viewers; it delineates different sections, leads the eye from one point to the next, and keeps the poster from being visually overwhelming. In general, leave 10—30% of your poster as white space.

Should I use graphics?

Absolutely! Visual aids are one of the most effective ways to make your poster visually striking, and they are often a great way to communicate complex information straightforwardly and succinctly. If your project deals with lots of empirical data, your best bet will be a chart, graph, or table summarizing that data and illustrating how that data confirms your hypothesis.

If you don’t have empirical data, you may be able to incorporate photographs, illustrations, annotations, or other items that will pique your viewers’ interest, communicate your motivation, demonstrate why your project is particularly interesting or unique.

Don’t incorporate visual aids just for the sake of having a pretty picture on your poster. The visual aids should contribute to your overall message and convey some piece of information that your viewers wouldn’t otherwise get just from reading your poster’s text.

How can I make my poster easy to read?

There are a number of tricks you can use to aid readability and emphasize crucial ideas. In general:

• Use a large font. Don’t make the text smaller in order to fit more onto the poster. Make sure that 95% of the text on your poster can be read from 4 feet away. If viewers can’t make out the text from a distance, they’re likely to walk away.
• Choose a sans-serif font like Helvetica or Verdana, not a serif font, like Times New Roman. Sans-serif fonts are easier to read because they don’t have extraneous hooks on every letter. Here is an example of a sans-serif and a serif font:
• Once you have chosen a font, be consistent in its usage. Use just one font.
• Don’t single-space your text. Use 1.5- or double-spacing to make the text easier to read.

For main points:

• Use bold, italicized, or colored fonts, or enclose text in boxes. Save this kind of emphasis for only a few key words, phrases, or sentences. Too much emphasized text makes it harder, not easier, to locate important points.
• AVOID USING ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, WHICH CAN BE HARD TO READ.
• Make your main points easy to find by setting them off with bullets or numbers.

What is my role as the presenter of my poster?

When you are standing in front of your poster, you—and what you choose to say—are as important as the actual poster. Be ready to talk about your project, answer viewers’ questions, provide additional details about your project, and so on.

How should I prepare for my presentation?

Once your poster is finished, you should re-familiarize yourself with the larger project you’re presenting. Remind yourself about those details you ended up having to leave out of the poster, so that you will be able to bring them up in discussions with viewers. Then, practice, practice, practice!

Show your poster to advisors, professors, friends, and classmates before the day of the symposium to get a feel for how viewers might respond. Prepare a four- to five-minute overview of the project, where you walk these pre-viewers through the poster, drawing their attention to the most critical points and filling in interesting details as needed. Make note of the kinds of questions these pre-viewers have, and be ready to answer those questions. You might even consider making a supplemental handout that provides additional information or answers predictable questions.

How long should I let audience members look at the poster before engaging them in discussion?

Don’t feel as if you have to start talking to viewers the minute they stop in front of your poster. Give them a few moments to read and process the information. Once viewers have had time to acquaint themselves with your project, offer to guide them through the poster. Say something like “Hello. Thanks for stopping to view my poster. Would you like a guided tour of my project?” This kind of greeting often works better than simply asking “Do you have any questions?” because after only a few moments, viewers might not have had time to come up with questions, even though they are interested in hearing more about your project.

Should I read from my poster?

No! Make sure you are familiar enough with your poster that you can talk about it without looking at it. Use the poster as a visual aid, pointing to it when you need to draw viewers’ attention to a chart, photograph, or particularly interesting point.

Sample Posters

Click on the links below to open a PDF of each sample poster.

“Quantitative Analysis of Artifacts in Volumetric DSA: The Relative Contributions of Beam Hardening and Scatter to Vessel Dropout Behind Highly Attenuating Structures”  James R. Hermus, Timothy P. Szczykutowicz, Charles M. Strother, and Charles Mistretta

Departments of Medical Physics, Biomedical Engineering, and Radiology: University of Wisconsin-Madison

“Self-Care Interventions for the Management of Mouth Sores in Hematology Patients Receiving Chemotherapy” Stephanie L. Dinse and Catherine Cherwin

School of Nursing: University of Wisconsin-Madison

“Enhancing the Fluorescence of Wisconsin Infrared Phytofluor: Wi-Phy for Potential Use in Infrared Imaging”  Jerad J. Simmons and Katrina T. Forest

Department of Bacteriology: University of Wisconsin-Madison

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Reference Examples

More than 100 reference examples and their corresponding in-text citations are presented in the seventh edition Publication Manual . Examples of the most common works that writers cite are provided on this page; additional examples are available in the Publication Manual .

To find the reference example you need, first select a category (e.g., periodicals) and then choose the appropriate type of work (e.g., journal article ) and follow the relevant example.

When selecting a category, use the webpages and websites category only when a work does not fit better within another category. For example, a report from a government website would use the reports category, whereas a page on a government website that is not a report or other work would use the webpages and websites category.

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Examples on these pages illustrate the details of reference formats. We make every attempt to show examples that are in keeping with APA Style’s guiding principles of inclusivity and bias-free language. These examples are presented out of context only to demonstrate formatting issues (e.g., which elements to italicize, where punctuation is needed, placement of parentheses). References, including these examples, are not inherently endorsements for the ideas or content of the works themselves. An author may cite a work to support a statement or an idea, to critique that work, or for many other reasons. For more examples, see our sample papers .

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Audiovisual media are covered in Sections 10.12–10.14 of the Publication Manual . The most common examples are presented together here. In the manual, these examples and more are separated into categories for audiovisual, audio, and visual media.

• Artwork References
• Clip Art or Stock Image References
• Film and Television References
• Musical Score References
• Online Course or MOOC References
• Podcast References
• PowerPoint Slide or Lecture Note References
• Radio Broadcast References
• TED Talk References
• Transcript of an Audiovisual Work References
• YouTube Video References

Online Media

Online media are covered in Sections 10.15 and 10.16 of the Publication Manual . Please note that blog posts are part of the periodicals category.

• Facebook References
• Instagram References
• LinkedIn References
• Online Forum (e.g., Reddit) References
• TikTok References
• X References
• Webpage on a Website References
• Clinical Practice References
• Open Educational Resource References
• Whole Website References

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Akero Therapeutics Presents Poster and Late-breaking Oral Presentation on EFX at the EASL Congress 2024

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., June 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Akero Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: AKRO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing transformational treatments for patients with serious metabolic disorders marked by high unmet medical need, today announced two presentations featuring its lead product candidate efruxifermin (EFX) at the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) Congress 2024, in Milan, Italy. The presentations will also be available on Akero’s website following the meeting.

A late-breaking oral presentation will feature 96-week data from HARMONY, a Phase 2b study evaluating the efficacy and safety of EFX in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), fibrosis stage 2 or 3 (F2–F3). The study met its primary endpoint of ≥1-stage improvement in fibrosis with no worsening of MASH after 24 weeks of treatment for both the 50 mg EFX (41%, p<0.05) and 28 mg EFX (39%, p<0.05) dose groups, compared to 20% for the placebo group. At Week 96, response rates for this endpoint increased to 75% (p<0.001) for 50 mg EFX and 46% (p=0.07) for 28 mg EFX, vs 24% for placebo.

The study also met additional histology endpoints at week 96. Notably 36% (p<0.01) and 31% (p<0.01) of patients treated with 50 mg EFX and 28 mg EFX, respectively, had a 2-stage improvement in fibrosis without worsening of MASH, more than 10-fold the placebo rate of 3%.

A comparison of week 96 with week 24 results showed that treatment response among EFX-treated patients was both sustained and expanded with longer treatment, particularly among the 50 mg EFX group. More than 80% of all EFX-treated patients with improved fibrosis at week 24 experienced sustained improvement through week 96, reflecting maintained reductions in markers of liver injury and fibrosis, whereas more than half of placebo responders at week 24 failed to maintain their response. In addition, 63% of patients treated with EFX 50 mg who were non-responders at week 24 experienced an improvement in fibrosis and no worsening of MASH with the benefit of treatment for 96 weeks, three times the placebo rate of 21%. In a subset of patients with baseline F3, treatment with EFX was associated with response on fibrosis improvement similar to the overall study population of F2 and F3 patients treated with EFX, showing the potential for treating more-advanced fibrosis, associated with increased risk of progression to cirrhosis. Results from the HARMONY study indicate EFX was generally well tolerated, with no liver injury or decompensation events, and no deaths. The most frequent adverse events (AEs) were transient Grade 1 or 2 gastrointestinal events, with an overall event profile similar to what was observed during the first 24 weeks.

A poster presentation will present results from a post-hoc analysis of key biomarkers associated with collagen synthesis and degradation. These data improve our understanding of EFX pharmacology and its effects on extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling in the liver and fibrosis improvement. EFX treatment was associated with significant changes in the ECM toward a potentially beneficial phenotype, with decreased interstitial collagens (fibrils) and regeneration of structural collagens (basement membrane). The observed remodeling of ECM biomarkers after 24 weeks was associated with reductions in markers of liver injury over the same period and with improvements in liver fibrosis after longer treatment.

Together, the data to be presented at EASL suggest that EFX modulates markers of pathological fibrosis consistent with improvements in metabolic health, liver health, and suppression of fibrogenesis.

“We’re looking forward to sharing our Week 96 data from the Phase 2b HARMONY study in patients with pre-cirrhotic MASH (F2–F3) with the scientific community at EASL Congress,” said Andrew Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Akero. “We are highly encouraged by these results, which are the first reports of histological improvement after more than 48 weeks. We believe the unprecedented response rates of EFX-treated patients who experienced not only 1-, but 2-stage improvement in fibrosis without worsening of MASH observed in the HARMONY study, sustained over 96 weeks, is a key differentiator of EFX from other treatments in the MASH therapeutic landscape.”

Details of the presentations are as follows:

Oral Presentation Title:  Efruxifermin significantly reduced liver fibrosis in MASH patients with F2–F3 fibrosis, with sustained improvement in liver injury and resolution of steatohepatitis over 96 weeks (HARMONY phase 2b study)

• Presenter:  Vlad Ratziu, M.D., Ph.D. Professor of Hepatology, Sorbonne Université and the Hôpital Pitié-Salpêtrière Medical School
• Late Breaker Abstract Number:  LBO-002
• Session Title:  Late Breaker
• Session Date and Time:  Saturday, June 8, 2024, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM CEST
• Presentation Time:  2:15 PM CEST
• Location:  Gold Room

Poster Presentation Title:  Efruxifermin treatment improved collagen biomarkers consistent with remodeling of the extracellular matrix in patients with F2-F3 fibrosis due to MASH

• Presenter:  Erik Tillman, Ph.D., Associate Director, Translational Biology & Pharmacology
• Late Breaker Abstract Number:  SAT-220-YI
• Session Title: MASLD: Therapy
• Session Date and Time:  Saturday, June 8, 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM CEST
• Location:  Poster Area

About the HARMONY Study The Phase 2b HARMONY study was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in biopsy-confirmed adult MASH patients with fibrosis stage 2 or 3. The study enrolled a total of 128 patients who were randomized to receive once-weekly subcutaneous dosing of 28 mg or 50 mg EFX, or placebo for 24 weeks, 126 of whom received at least one study dose. The primary efficacy endpoint for the study was the proportion of subjects who experienced ≥1-stage fibrosis improvement without worsening of MASH. The study continued for up to 96 weeks. Secondary endpoints at Week 96 included proportion of patients with ≥1-stage fibrosis improvement and no worsening of MASH, proportion of patients with 2-stage fibrosis improvement without worsening of MASH, and proportion of patients with ≥1-stage fibrosis improvement and MASH resolution, as well as changes from baseline in noninvasive markers of liver injury and fibrosis, glycemic control, lipoproteins, and change in body weight as well as safety and tolerability measures.

About Efruxifermin Efruxifermin (EFX), Akero’s lead product candidate for MASH, is a long-acting, bivalent Fc-FGF21 fusion protein that has been engineered to mimic the balanced biological activity profile of native FGF21, an endogenous hormone that alleviates cellular stress and regulates metabolism throughout the body. EFX appears to reduce liver fat and inflammation, reverse fibrosis, increase insulin sensitivity and improve lipid and lipoprotein profile. This pleiotropic mechanism offers the potential to address the complex, multi-system disease state of MASH, including improvements in risk factors linked to cardiovascular disease – the leading cause of death in patients with pre-cirrhotic MASH. EFX is designed to offer convenient once-weekly dosing and has been generally well tolerated in clinical trials to date.

About MASH MASH is a serious form of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) that is estimated to affect more than 17 million Americans. MASH is characterized by an excessive accumulation of fat in the liver that causes stress and injury to liver cells, leading to inflammation and fibrosis, which can progress to cirrhosis, liver failure, cancer and eventually death. MASH is the fastest-growing cause of liver transplants and liver cancer in the US and Europe.

About Akero Therapeutics Akero Therapeutics is a clinical-stage company developing transformational treatments for patients with serious metabolic diseases marked by high unmet medical need, including MASH. Akero's lead product candidate, EFX, is currently being evaluated in the ongoing SYMMETRY study, a 96-week Phase 2b clinical trial in patients with compensated cirrhosis due to MASH (F4 fibrosis), as well as two ongoing Phase 3 clinical trials: the SYNCHRONY Histology study in patients with pre-cirrhotic MASH (F2-F3 fibrosis) and the SYNCHRONY Real-World study in patients with MASH (F1-F3 fibrosis) or MASLD. A third clinical trial, the SYNCHRONY Outcomes study in patients with compensated cirrhosis due to MASH (F4 fibrosis), is expected to be initiated in the second quarter of 2024. The Phase 3 SYNCHRONY program builds on the results of two Phase 2b clinical trials, the HARMONY study in patients with pre-cirrhotic MASH (F2-F3) and the SYMMETRY study in patients with compensated cirrhosis due to MASH (F4). Akero is headquartered in South San Francisco. Visit us at  akerotx.com  and follow us on  LinkedIn  and  Twitter  for more information.

Forward Looking Statements  Statements contained in this press release regarding matters that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Because such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Akero’s business plans and objectives, including future plans or expectations for EFX; the therapeutic effects of EFX; the timing and initiation of Akero’s Phase 3 SYNCHRONY program and upcoming milestones. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are based on management's current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Risks that contribute to the uncertain nature of the forward-looking statements include: the success, cost, and timing of Akero’s product candidate development activities and planned clinical trials; Akero’s ability to execute on its strategy; positive results from a clinical study may not necessarily be predictive of the results of future or ongoing clinical studies; regulatory developments in the United States and foreign countries; Akero’s ability to fund operations; as well as those risks and uncertainties set forth more fully under the caption "Risk Factors" in Akero’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties and other important factors in Akero’s other filings and reports with the SEC. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they were made. Akero undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

Investor Contact: Christina Tartaglia 212.362.1200 [email protected]

Media Contact: Peg Rusconi 617.910.6217 [email protected]

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