Advertising & Promotion

Event Posters & Flyers

Before you hang that poster or flyer for your upcoming event, please make sure that you are only posting promotional materials in approved areas and at approved times. We have installed metal holders (see photo below) for event posters in the Smith stairwell landings and on each floor of Smith. These are for event posters only, and should only be used on the day of an event. To use the metal holders, insert your flyer into the slit at the bottom of the holder; no tape or adhesive necessary. 

Don't forget to take posters down after an event so that we can keep Smith clean and relevant!

Smith Digital Signage 

Promote your activity, event or program in Portland State’s most visited building. Smith Memorial Student Union offers digital signage opportunities for Portland State departments and SALP-recognized student groups. 

Events or announcements must be of student interest or student-oriented in nature, and must be open to the public or a broad segment of the campus community.

Review these guidelines before submitting your request.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• The group wishing to advertise must either be a Portland State department or SALP student group. 

• PSU departments and student groups may not reserve space request postings on behalf of external organizations or other PSU departments/student groups. The department or group requesting the posting must be primarily responsible for planning, implementing, and financing the event. We have the right to evaluate and make final determination of the posting. If intentional misrepresentation has occurred, this may result in suspension of posting privileges Smith.

• Postings must prominently display the name of the student group/PSU department planning the event, as well as provide date, time, and location of the event. It is recommended that you keep the number of words to a minimum, emphasizing the most important information. Most images display for only around 7 seconds.

• QR codes are scannable and recommended in still images and video clips. 

• Content must be "friendly" to students, staff, visitors. No vulgarity, nudity, etc.

• The request must be made at least 10 business days prior to the event date. 

• No more than 2 postings per department or student group are permitted at one time.

• You must include the dates that you would like your posting to remain active, maximum of 10 business days.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

All submissions must be horizontal screen format (16x9 ratio) and must meet the following specifications:

• Content must prominently include:

  • Name of the student group/PSU department planning the event

  • Date, time and location.

  • If the event is not in Smith, please contact rmishler@pdx.edu before posting. Events hosted in Smith are given display screen priority.

• Still Images

  • Acceptable file formats: JPG, PNG

  • File size: 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high, horizontal orientation. Do not submit vertical fliers or posters.

  • Resolution: 72 dpi

• Video clips

  • Acceptable file formats: MPG4, MOV, GIF

  • File size: 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high, 720dpi preferred. Excessive file sizes (generally more than 12MB) will be returned for resizing

  • 6-12 seconds: Clips must be short to allow other display items their due time. (Many YouTube pre-video ads are six seconds if you seek examples)

  • Caption all speaking parts. No audio is played through the displays.

SCREEN LOCATIONS

• Smith’s Kitchen entrance

• Broadway lobby

• Smith’s Kitchen dining area 

SPONSORSHIPS & EXTERNAL REQUESTS 

If you are an external group or organization that would like to advertise in Smith Memorial Student Union, contact Brian Jansen bjanssen@pdx.edu.

HOW TO SUBMIT

Should your PSU group/department meet these criteria, they may submit a digital advertisement for the screens to SmithAds@pdx.edu or Campus Events & Student Union office’s marketing coordinator, rmishler@pdx.edu.

For more information, please review the Smith Digital Signage Policy. Updated March 2022

TIPS FOR DIGITAL ADVERTISING

Do

• Keep it simple and visual -- think billboard not bulletin board flier

• Make the who, what, where, when information clear and easy to read

• Use at least 25 point font for event descriptions

Don’t

• Create an advertisement that is text heavy

• Include textual information that exceeds a 50 word count

Examples That Work:

Banners 

The Smith Memorial Student Union will allow banners by SALP-recognized student organizations and SALP-affiliated student organizations and departments to be hung from the exterior of the Smith Ballroom balcony as per the following procedures:

• Banners must be made of canvas, plastic or other weather-resistant materials. Paper or cardboard banners are not permitted. 

• Banners must have metal grommets and will be hung from the Ballroom balcony by Smith management. 

• Banners must not be larger than 32 square feet in area and cannot exceed 10 feet in length or 6 feet in height. 

• Banners must be submitted to Portland State Campus Events & Student Union (Smith 119) no later than 2:00 p.m. on Friday to be hung the following week. 

• Banners will be mounted for a maximum of one week, starting on Monday after submission, and will be taken down the following Monday.

• It is the responsibility of the user to pick up the banner from the Campus Events & Student Union office (Smith 119) once it has been taken down. Unclaimed banners will be discarded 5 days after being taken down from the balcony.

Bulletin Boards in Smith

The bulletin boards in and outside of Smith are available for anyone to post flyers and posters on. Bulletin boards inside of Smith are cleared on the 1st of each month by Smith staff. A list of bulletin board locations is included below: 

First Floor

• Inside Parkway North (101 SMSU) in the dark seating area by the ATM  

• Broadway lobby in front of men’s restrooms, next to Smith’s Place (127 SMSU)

• Bulletin board across from Bowery Bagels (142 SMSU) near the microwave against the University Market (105 SMSU)

Second Floor

• Bulletin board in Second Floor Study Lounge (248 SMSU) across from 294 SMSU and next to the Browsing Lounge (238 SMSU) 

• Multicultural Student Centers: ask before posting 

  • Multicultural Student Center (228 SMSU)

  • La Casa Latina Student Center (229 SMSU)

  • Pacific Islander, Asian & Asian American Center (235 SMSU)

  • Pan-African Commons (236 SMSU)

Fourth Floor

• Better Needs Hub (outside SMSU 435) 

• Diversity & Multicultural Student Services (SMSU 425): ask before posting 

• Queer Resource Center (SMSU 458): give to receptionist 

• Resource for Students with Children (SMSU 462): give to receptionist

• Women's Resource Center (in SMSU 439): give to receptionist

It's important that you READ all bulletin boards before posting. Do NOT post on a bulletin board that is designated for a specific department unless you visit the department office and receive permission beforehand. The list above will tell you specifically where your poster should go in that office/area of Smith. Some offices change their bulletin board locations without us knowing.  If you notice that a bulletin board is either not included in the list above, or is listed above at the wrong location, please email rmishler@pdx.edu so that we can update our Smith bulletin board list. Thank you!