Host engaging virtual poster sessions
Easily manage interactive virtual poster sessions to increase networking among participants and facilitate access to live streaming.
A fully integrated virtual event experience
Eliminate disconnected tools
Stop juggling Zoom links or separate poster galleries. Bring virtual poster sessions, live talks, and networking together in one platform.
Seamless attendee engagement
Let attendees browse posters, join live video conversations from the same interface. Virtual poster presentations feel easy, intuitive, and engaging.
Designed for research conferences
Unlike generic platforms, Fourwaves is built for conferences with poster presentations, giving you tailored tools for posters, sessions, and scientific networking.
Set up your virtual space
Effortlessly display your full program with livestream links, posters, presentations, videos and more content uploaded by participant for interactive viewing.
See it in action
Engage attendees with live & interactive tools
Host live presentations, Q&A discussions, and interactive virtual poster sessions so attendees can connect with presenters and each other in meaningful ways.
See it in action
Analyze & enhance your event
Access real-time analytics on poster views, conversation minutes, and attendee interactions to understand engagement and improve future events.
See it in action
A virtual experience designed for everyone
Effortless virtual and hybrid events
Manage presentations, posters, video sessions, and networking in one place, while using the livestream provider you’re comfortable with.
- Host live or pre-recorded presentations
- Include virtual poster sessions with built-in video chat
- Use chat, Q&A, and other engagement tools
- Invite judges to evaluate student posters virtually
- Download engagement metrics for quick reporting
Engage your audience with interactive tools
Upload your poster, slides, or video, interact in real time, and receive valuable feedback.
- Share your screen and present your work live
- Use a laser pointer to highlight key parts of your poster
- Receive and respond to comments and questions asynchronously
A virtual event that feels like an in-person poster hall
Join live sessions, browse posters, and connect with researchers through video, chat, and interactive spaces.
- Access presentations, posters, and session recordings
- Bookmark favorite sessions and poster presentations
- Engage in live Q&As and network with your peers
Everything you need for an engaging virtual conference
Fourwaves eliminates disconnected tools by bringing presentations, posters, networking, and engagement into one platform.
Live & on-demand sessions
Host live presentations or pre-recorded talks with interactive Q&A.
Virtual poster sessions
Upload, view, and discuss research posters in an interactive format.
Attendee interaction & networking
Enable video chats, group discussions, and participant directories.
Session bookmarking & scheduling
Attendees can bookmark sessions and build personalized schedules.
Integrated speaker & presentation pages
Automatically link speakers, abstracts, and session materials.
Gated access & registration control
Restrict access to registered attendees only.
Built-in analytics & engagement metrics
Track session attendance, poster interactions, and engagement.
Real-time updates & last-minute changes
Adjust schedules and poster sessions instantly across the platform.
A fully integrated virtual conference platform
Host engaging, interactive virtual events with live sessions, poster presentations, and networking, all in one easy-to-use platform.
Live & pre-recorded presentations
Stream live talks or upload pre-recorded videos for flexible participation.
Interactive virtual poster sessions
Allow attendees to see where participants are in real-time and talk with poster presenters easily.
Seamless networking & attendee interaction
Enable video chats, discussions, and participant directories for meaningful connections.
Why choose Fourwaves over general virtual platforms?
Without Fourwaves
- Multiple disconnected tools (Zoom, Google Docs, emails) with no integration
- Limited attendee interaction beyond basic video calls and chat
- Static, low-engagement poster session experience
- No built-in analytics for poster or session engagement
With Fourwaves
- One platform for sessions, virtual posters, chat, and networking
- Live Q&A, video chat, and asynchronous poster discussions
- Interactive virtual poster sessions with real-time engagement
- Real-time event analytics and attendee engagement tracking
What is a virtual poster session?
A virtual poster session is an online version of the poster hall at a scientific conference: presenters upload a poster (and optionally a short video), and attendees browse the posters, then join a live video conversation with the presenter at a scheduled time or leave questions asynchronously. It is also called an e-poster session, an electronic poster session, an online poster session, an interactive poster session, or a digital poster session (and its talks, virtual poster presentations), and it is used in fully virtual conferences and as the online half of a hybrid conference. The format lets students and researchers who cannot travel present their work and get feedback, and it gives judges a way to evaluate student posters remotely.
Fourwaves virtual poster sessions are part of a conference platform built for academic conferences, so the posters come from the abstract submission form, the session appears in the conference program, and access is limited to registered attendees. The University of Zurich Cancer Biology PhD program moved its poster sessions online with Fourwaves and back to an in-person format afterward, and the University of Florida College of Medicine presents more than 500 research posters through Fourwaves at its annual Celebration of Research.
How virtual poster sessions work in Fourwaves
- Presenters upload their poster. Accepted presenters upload a PDF or image poster (1920 x 1080 pixels, 16:9, is the recommended format for screens) and an optional pre-recorded video through their submission, so the organizer never collects files by email.
- Attendees browse the poster hall. Posters are listed in an interactive poster hall where the participants viewing each poster is indicated and updated in real-time, also showing if there’s a live video conversation. That gives a sense of being present with others. Attendees can zoom into a poster, read the abstract, and bookmark the ones they want to visit later.
- Live conversations happen at each poster. During the session, attendees see which posters have people at them and join a video conversation with the presenter, who can share their screen and use a integrated laser pointer to walk through the poster. Several visitors can join the same conversation, as in a physical poster hall.
- Questions continue asynchronously. Attendees leave written comments and questions on a poster at any time, and presenters answer them after the live session, so time zones do not cut the discussion short. There is also a live chat for each poster for live conversations.
- Judges evaluate posters online. For student competitions, organizers invite judges who score posters through a review form inside the platform.
- Organizers read the analytics. Fourwaves reports poster views, conversation minutes per presenter and per participant, and how many presentations each attendee visited, exportable for the post-event report or a funder.
Live talks and keynotes run alongside the poster session through the livestream provider you already use (Zoom or another platform), with the link embedded in the program, and recordings can be published in the program afterward.
Fourwaves vs Zoom for a virtual poster session
Zoom, Webex, and Teams run a video call. They do not display a poster gallery, let attendees move from poster to poster on their own, record who visited which poster, or gate access to registered attendees. Organizers who run a poster session on Zoom end up with dozens of breakout rooms, a spreadsheet mapping posters to rooms, and no analytics. Fourwaves replaces that setup with one platform where the poster, the presenter, the conversation, and the program entry are the same object, and keeps your existing livestream tool for the plenary talks. For platform comparisons, see the virtual poster session software options roundup and Fourwaves vs Whova.
Trusted by the best conference organizers worldwide.
Leading institutions and organizations rely on Fourwaves to deliver exceptional events with ease.
Office of Research, University of Florida College of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Outreach and Strategic Partnerships in Asia, AAAS
Tulane University
McGill
University of Queensland
Mount Saint Vincent University
University of Toronto
University of Maine
Frequently asked questions
Zoom and Webex run the video call. Fourwaves adds what a scientific conference needs around it: a virtual poster session with a poster gallery and per-poster video conversations, the event website, registration, abstract submission and peer review, and the conference program. Most organizers keep Zoom for the plenary talks and embed the link in the Fourwaves program, replacing the rest of their tool stack with one platform.
Yes. On the Fourwaves virtual platform you can embed a livestream link for live talks, upload pre-recorded videos for on-demand viewing, or combine both in the same program, so attendees in other time zones can still watch every session.
In a Fourwaves virtual poster session, presenters upload their poster (PDF or image) and an optional video through their submission. During the session, attendees browse the poster gallery, see which posters have visitors, and join a live video conversation with the presenter, who can share a screen and point at parts of the poster. Outside the live slot, attendees leave written questions the presenter answers asynchronously.
Fourwaves is not limited to small conferences or poster sessions: poster sessions are one module, and the same platform runs multi-track society annual meetings: the Geological Association of Canada (about 800 participants and 500 abstracts each year since 2022) and the Organization for Human Brain Mapping (2,880 participants from 49 countries at its 2022 hybrid meeting) run on it alongside 30-abstract departmental research days. Abstract submissions, peer review, registration, event website and program are on one event at every size, on a flat annual plan with no per-registrant fee.
Yes. Fourwaves built-in analytics report attendance and engagement, with the most detail for poster sessions: poster views, conversation minutes per presenter and per participant, and how many presentations each participant interacted with. The data exports for post-event reports to committees and funders.
Any change an organizer makes to a session in Fourwaves (time, room, speaker, or livestream link) updates the event website, the conference program, and the conference app at the same time, so attendees always see the current version without a re-published PDF.
For virtual poster sessions, dimensions are usually based on screen resolution. The most conventional formats include:
- 1920 x 1080 px (16:9) – Standard HD
- 3840 x 2160 px (4K resolution) – For detailed, high-quality posters
- 1600 x 1200 px (4:3) – For older display setups or specific platforms Always check the platform’s preferred slide size or poster template to avoid cropping or stretching.
Unlike general-purpose event tools, Fourwaves is built for scientific and academic events, with abstract submissions, peer review and virtual poster sessions included. Read our detailed comparisons: Fourwaves vs Cvent and Fourwaves vs Whova.