2019 Conference Poster Presenters Information

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Email #5 (Sent November 1, 2019)

Good morning Poster Presenters,

Just a final reminder that today, Nov. 1, is the day to get the .pdf file of your poster and any handouts you wish to include to us so our website fairy can get them added to VLA.org. Please send all files — or links to your documents if you have them hosted online — to [email protected]. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experiences with our conference goers and we hope to see you at next year's conference, set for October 28-30, 2020 at the Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, VA.

If you have any questions, please feel free to send them to me.

Email #4 (Sent October 29, 2019)

I hope you all have had a chance to recover from this year's conference.

In case you were unaware, VLA volunteers post files from the concurrent and poster sessions on the website every year. This helps extend the learning beyond the conference. Please submit a .pdf version of your session, as well as any additional handouts that you have, via email to  [email protected] by November 1.

Please ensure that you uniquely name the file with the title of your poster and your last name. For example "AwesomePosterTitle_Land.pdf" instead of "vlaconferenceposter.pdf". This will help us organize the posters. You may also share the web link to your poster and materials instead if they are hosted online. If you have any trouble creating the .pdf version of your file, please let me know and I can assist you with the process.

Thank you for contributing to an amazing conference!

Email #3 (Sent October 21, 2019)

Good afternoon, poster presenters!

The 2019 VLA Annual Conference is almost upon us. I wanted to touch base with you one last time to share some updates and reminders.

• Because we have so many posters (25!), we decided to number the posters and assign spaces in the poster area. This will hopefully make it easier for interested attendees to find your poster in the limited timeframe for the poster session. Please see pages 26-28 of the Final Conference Program to find your number, listed next to your poster's title. Please look for that numbered space when you put your posters up on Thursday. I will be available on Thursday morning and at 3 p.m. on Thursday to help direct anyone to their space.
• The Poster Sessions will take place in the Main Ballroom Foyer on the 4th Floor. The maps are located on page 8 of the Final Conference Program.
• You can begin putting your poster up after the Ribbon Cutting, which is set for 9 a.m. Thursday, outside the ballroom on the 4th Floor. The session begins at 3:15 p.m., but I would try to have your poster and information up no later than 3:10 p.m. to ensure you are ready for the attendees.
• There will be basic thumbtacks for everyone, but you can also feel free to bring your own if you prefer a certain type, such as the clip style that doesn't put holes in the poster.
• Please be sure to take down your poster, handouts, etc. by 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, since that is when everything will be taken down.
• Consider downloading the VLA Conference App today. It has all of the information you need for a successful conference, as well as extra maps so you can have them on hand. Just visit your app store and search "VLA Conference" to download it and begin planning for an awesome conference.

If you have any last-minute questions, feel free to email me. I hope you all have a safe trip to The Main in Norfolk and I will see everyone on Thursday!

Email #2 (Sent Aug. 14, 2019)

Good morning Poster Presenters!

I know we just met, but it's already time to send you a few updates about VLA 2019!

Conference Registration:

Registration for the conference has opened! Visit the Conference Portal to find registration rates, look up hotel information, register for the conference and much more!

If you are presenting a poster at the conference and also plan to attend one or both days of the conference, you are entitled to 1 presenter rate registration for your poster session. If you have more than 1 presenter for your poster session, the other presenter(s) will have to register at the full conference rate.

NOTE: If you are only attending the conference to present your poster and are not attending any other sessions, you do NOT need to register for the conference.

Conference Program:

The Preliminary Conference Program has been posted and is accessible from the Conference Portal.

Please view the program, especially pages 17-19, to read your poster description and make sure it reads correctly. If you have changes to make, please send them to me. If you are changing presenter information, please include email addresses and places of work for any new or additional presenter(s). NOTE: Changes will only be reflected in the Final Conference Program, which will be printed for those attendees that want it and available digitally via VLA.org closer to the conference.

Remember that this email, as well as any future updates from me and general information about the conference, will be posted on the Conference Portal.

As always, please send me any questions or concerns you may have. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at VLA 2019 at The Main in Norfolk, VA!

Email #1 (Sent Aug. 11, 2019)

Greetings, VLA 2019 Conference Poster Presenters!

I am writing to fill you in on the details for the poster session at the 2019 VLA Annual Conference at The Main in Norfolk.

Session Details:

• If you are able, please hang your poster Thursday morning after the ribbon cutting. This will let folks view your posters all day, and hopefully encourage attendees to come back for questions.
• The poster session is from 3:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 24. You should try to get to your poster a few minutes before the session starts so you are prepared for attendees. This is especially important if you are unable to post your poster earlier that day.

Specifications:

• We are providing 4’ X 8’ double-sided boards for your use, on which you can Velcro or pin your posters. You will be sharing one side with another poster presenter. The maximum size of your poster is, thus, 4 feet by 4 feet, though I would recommend making it a little narrower, so you can stand to the side of your poster and not block it.
• We will provide push pins, though we cannot guarantee what color they will be. If you prefer to use something else to hang your poster, you are welcome to bring it.
• Additionally, we will provide 6 ft. tables that will be available for you to share with neighboring presenters. You can use these to display handouts, business cards, and anything else you want interested attendees to take with them.

Additional tips:

Professional Development

In 2017, we held two webinars on best practices for conference poster presenters. If you are a first-time poster presenter, or would like a refresher, the recordings are linked below.

• What is This Poster Session You Speak of? VLA Webinar, 2017: http://bit.ly/VLAPosterTips1
• Poster Tips, Tricks and Specifics: VLA Webinar, 2017: http://bit.ly/VLAPosterTips2

Where to print your poster

• You might already have access to a suitable printer within your library or wider organization. Talk to your library director or your university printing office or local government public affairs office to see if anyone has a printer that can print up to a 4 foot X 4 foot page.
• FedEx and PhD Posters are two resources with pros and cons. Make sure you do your research before designing to see which one would be most appropriate for your budget, size, and shipping time needs.
• Fabric: A cool alternative that has gained popularity is printing on fabric. You can print posters on fabric using either PhD Posters or Spoonflower.

A copy of this email, as well as any additional information about posters or the conference in general will be available on our Conference Portal. But, please feel free to send me any questions you might have. We look forward to seeing you and your groovy poster at the Peace, Love, Libraries: 2019 VLA Conference at The Main in Norfolk!