Finding the Right Font for the Right Message

When it comes to business branding, it’s arguable that HOW the message looks is almost as important as the message itself.  Business owners will spend hours developing the perfect logo, taglines, mission statements, etc.  But once those are complete, which of the thousands of fonts do you choose to represent you, your business and your message?

As a website developer, I have seen that choosing a font is one of the most important processes.  You want your message and your branding to be consistent.  Here is a great article on where to start when choosing fonts and helps with common questions like what the main types are – serif, sans-serif and cursive.

By the way, does that all-caps font look familiar to you in the image above?  It’s called Lion King.  Now you see how important font and its associations (even subconsciously) can be!

Google Fonts updated their website to make finding fonts easier

Google Fonts has recently updated their website to make it easier to find new good-looking fonts.  Google has always provided free fonts that can be downloaded by users.  These designer fonts are open-source, so there are no worries about copyright infringements or use guidelines.  For more information about the Google Fonts project click here.

It’s so easy to use, you can type your message directly on the screen to see an instant preview – no download required.  You can also sort by font type – serif, sans-serif, handwriting, etc. – or by popularity, alphabetical order, date added, etc.  Good job Google Fonts!   Video courtesy of Google Design channel.

Always read the terms on fonts, just like stock images

If you choose to look for fonts through a website other than Google Fonts, it’s good to be attentive to their licensing information.  Usually there are hidden terms that do state there is a cost for royalties on those font downloads.  You can’t use the excuse that you didn’t see it, as the license document is attached to the downloaded font file.

Sometimes, even though a font is free for personal or light business use, they may not be free for commercial or re-sale use.  Let’s say you have a clothing company, and are looking for fonts to use on a new t-shirt line.  In this case, it’s very important to read the small print about where you can use the font for free, and the implications if you are to print and resell items using the font.

When in doubt and you will be getting good use and return out of the font, it may be best to purchase the font for peace of mind sake.  Remember what happened when Ghetty Images unleashed themselves on unwary stock photo users?  The same can be done by font creators.

Choose a font that speaks to your demographic

One thing to keep in mind when choosing a font is your target audience demographic.  An article by The Huffington Post was recently published that the younger generation cannot read/write in cursive.  Therefore, if you are targeting children, tweens and teens, cursive is not the best font for you.  On the other hand, if you are the owner of an elite spa, you don’t want to use comic sans or another childish font and a script font might be best.

A picture is worth a thousand words, and so too is the font you choose to associate with your business!

Font combinations, the possibilities are endless

This is a whole other discussion.  There are numerous resources to help you choose which fonts to put together.  And again, it’s all related to the message their relaying.  There are guides that demonstrate how similar, but different two complimenting fonts must be.  Which should be the larger headline, and the other the subheading.  The possibilities are literally endless with font combinations, but there are some guidelines to help.

Because I mentioned Google Fonts, here is FontPair.co which recommends which Google Fonts to pair.  You can also download both fonts directly from the FontPair page which will download from Google Fonts.

Need help developing your brand or online presence? I love working with small business in Newmarket and York Region in a Green Niche of Health and Wellness, Fitness and Eco-Friendly industries.  If you are looking for help building your online presence with social media marketing, I invite you to contact me by telephone or email, or through Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.  I look forward to helping you help our community!

Until next time,

Deanna