If the very mention of the word “posters” brings memories of Elmer’s glue and elementary school, it’s time you rethought the medium.
A mainstay of medical and scientific conferences, posters represent a time-honored way of displaying detailed information. But posters have evolved enormously beyond the grade-school versions we remember. They’ve morphed into a new species known as e-posters.
E-posters work because they more effectively showcase a presenters’ content than traditional posters can, according to Bob Hughes, president of The Hughes Group, a Maryland-based exhibit design firm.
“From an exhibitor’s viewpoint, e-posters are nice because they increase attendee dwell-time in the booth,” said Hughes. “Provided the content’s author or a subject-matter expert is also available to engage attendees in conversation, e-posters help an exhibit manager give the booth the characteristics of a destination, a mini learning-stop. When you become a learning destination, you automatically increase dwell-time.”
And when it comes to drawing-power, traditional posters can’t hold a candle to e-posters.
“E-posters draw attendees into your booth like moths to a flame,” said Hughes.
The key to drawing attendees is the use of a large-screen monitor.
“The bigger the monitor, the more attractive it is,” he said.
Hughes recommends 46-inch monitors at a minimum, although 60-inch ones are better.
“A big, bright monitor full of bright colors will pull attendees in,” he said. “You don’t even have to integrate video, if the monitor is large enough.”
Before considering an e-poster, an exhibit manager should question the value of the presenter’s content.
“Do I have content that’s of high interest to a good percentage of the attendees?” Hughes asks. “Can I pre-promote the poster and invite attendees to come to my exhibit and learn about the topic from an expert?”
The exhibit manager should also take charge of an e-poster’s design.
“Of course good content based on good research is fundamental,” said Hughes. “But keeping the font size readable at seven feet away is just as fundamental. It’s also critical to have a key image or graphic that’s equally legible and appropriately annotated. And it’s crucial to have an intriguing headline. Believe it or not, an intriguing title may be the most important element of the e-poster.”
Other design components of an e-poster matter, too.
“You need to include an appropriate amount of type, but never any ‘mice type.’ A graphic that tells the story will also enhance the attendees’ experience,” said Hughes. “Use one, two or three colors, but no more. Five, six and seven colors will make the e-poster impossible to read. Use a single typeface, two at the most, and be sure they are sans serif.”
Hughes cites one client’s success with e-posters at a recent IT event.
“The exhibitor wanted to be seen as an industry leader, so it created a learning destination in its 20 by 20 foot space by using eight 55-inch monitors back to back,” he said. “The monitors featured both self-directed and assisted poster presentations. The results far exceeded all the company’s expectations, for two reasons. First, because the e-posters were low cost, the company freed up dollars, so it could pre-promote its exhibit at the event though emails and telephone calls. Second, by making its space a learning destination in the event that was easily visible from afar, the company drew additional people to its exhibit. Attendees just couldn’t resist walking up and asking, ‘What’s going on?’”
Basic e-poster set-ups cost as little as $2,000, according to Hughes.
“For a 10-foot solution, with the monitor included, we’ve outfitted spaces for as little as $15,000,” he said. “That includes the booth, booth design, booth graphics and e-poster design. Labor and shipping are extra.”
Exhibit managers who already own a booth can incorporate an e-poster inexpensively as well. A turnkey package, including shipping, costs just $5,000.
“It’s literally as simple as renting a monitor stand with a 55-inch monitor, which we can pack and ship to you while we are working on the design of your poster’s content,” said Hughes.
By showcasing content, e-posters may just be the thing that motivates the next generation of attendees to come to conferences and tradeshows.
“I think e-posters are part of a trend in face-to-face marketing,” said Hughes. “Content, and an ongoing connection to that content, are becoming the key reasons attendees come to events, and the key reasons organizers hold them. It’s a slowly emerging trend, but I think it’s inevitable.”
Bob James is vice president of marketing for ITN, an event analytics company known for pioneering the use of NFC (short-range wireless) within the exhibitions industry.With operations in China, France, New Zealand, the UK and the U.S., ITN provides exhibitors with innovative lead management solutions based on NFC.
