The Impact of Typography on Website Readability and Branding

Fonts can easily be overlooked when it comes to web and branding. No one bats an eye at a suitable font, but the wrong font can get a lot of unwanted stares. As a result, the right typography is an important decision for a business’ website and branding. We’ll explain the impacts of typography, why font choice is important, and how you can start to pick the right font for your business.

Typography and Communication

Typography is an art dedicated to communication that is nearly a millennium old. In fact, some of the major fonts used today are age-old standards. Garamond dates to the 15th century, Baskerville is about 250 years old, Times New Roman was designed in 1931, and Helvetica (which you’re reading this in) at 67 is enjoying a surge in popularity. Some other standard fonts are more recent and date to the digital age such as Arial and Georgia, but the reason all of these fonts have become standard is because of their legibility and accessibility.

Why Pick a Font

While there are certainly a set of well-established favourites in typography, there’s still the task of choosing which is suitable for your business. This is an important decision because it guides the appearance and design of its website and all other forms of communication including social media, emails, ads, etc. Picking a single font for all of these is essential for building your brand’s consistency. That visual consistency in the same typography naturally increases a sense of trust for your business.

Furthermore, certain fonts also have associations and tones. It might seem odd that some text on a page or screen can cause certain emotional reactions, but some people respond negatively when they see something written in Comic Sans or Papyrus. You not only want to pick a font that allows your website and business to effectively and accessibly communicate, but also accurately reflects the character of your brand.

Font Readability Comes First

Of course, communication is a primary factor in all typography. You will want to pick a highly legible font for your branding. There are certain aspects that will help you consider the right typography for your website and branding.

Weight

A font’s weight refers to the thickness of its outlines. For example, a bold version of a font has a greater weight than the thin version. Most fonts offer multiple weights. This is beneficial because you can use the same typeface to visually organize information. For example, the Rosewood website is using bold weight for each heading along with a larger size for visual distinction from the medium regular text. Your website design should set out these typgraphy styles and your branding should outline which weight is appropriate where. Remember that thinner weights can be much harder to read.

Serif vs Slab Serif vs Sans-Serif

Serifs are the small lines attached to a letters’ large strokes in some fonts. Times New Roman and Georgia are two fonts with serifs. Slab serifs also have these strokes, but are thicker, such as Rockwell or Courier. Helvetica is an example of a sans-serif font, i.e. one without any extra strokes. These are also sometimes called grotesque fonts (referring to the time of their origin rather than an aesthetic judgment).

The argument about whether serif or sans fonts are more legible is still a matter of debate. However, the general rule is that those with full vision can read serif fonts faster, but sans-serif fonts are more legible for those with visual difficulties. As a result, sans-serif fonts are typically considered the more direct and accessible choice, slab-serifs are recognized for their modernity, while serif fonts have an air of sophistication or elegance.

Script and Decorative Fonts

Script fonts are those that imitate handwriting. Some of these are cursive, where the letters in a single word connect. While these might seem elegant or sophisticated, they are also less legible than typical fonts. Casual script fonts (e.g. Comic Sans) are a more recent development, imitating non-cursive handwriting. As a result, these typography have a non-serious tone and are rarely used by businesses in their official branding.

There are also famous decorative fonts such as Arnold Böcklin or Curlz. These are more often found in logos and titles. Decorative fonts have an impact, but they prize form over function. Keep in mind that highly decorative typography can be harder to read and undermine clarity. Therefore, use these sparingly for only a few words in a large size. They should never be your brand’s font for its usual typography.

Picking the Right Colour

Along with font, colour is a critical element of your brand’s typography and web design. While you will likely pick a primary colour that connects to your logo or other branding, you will want to pick a set of secondary colours. This ensures that you will have suitable colour contrast in all instances. For example, your business may have a blue logo and regularly use materials with white and purple backgrounds. While the same colour of blue will work for type on a white background, it will have much less contrast on the purple, especially those with colour deficiency. Pick a suitable set of colours that matches your branding while ensuring legibility.

Find Your Business’ Type

You should now have a sense of why picking the right font and typography for your website and branding is important. It’s a big decision now, but like the rest of your branding, picking that suitable font is something that should last for a long time and even multiple iterations of your website’s design for that trusted consistency. If you’re looking for further assistance in finding legible typography or finding a font that matches your branding’s character, be sure to contact Rosewood’s marketing team. Our web team will also be happy to help you update your website’s design with a new font or improve its accessibility.