I love getting to design logos – even without drawing. That’s because a huge part of it is just getting to mess around with different font styles. If you’re looking to revamp your website or your logo, here are three things I’ve learned that could be helpful to you.

Fonts generally fall into four categories. You’ve got serif, like Times New Roman; sans serif, like Helvetica; script, which look like handwriting; and decorative, which is almost like cartoon, like when a font looks like it was written with chalk. 

Know that you are subconsciously communicating. Did you know that serif fonts tend to convey a sort of traditional approach to things, even a sense of authority? By contrast, sans serif fonts are often associated with newness. The new favorite these days is Avenir, and you’ve seen its numbers on the outside of every flipped and remodeled house in SoCal. Script fonts, in turn can make things look both more elegant and more personal.

When to use which fonts. As you think about signage, flyers, or even messages and thank you notes to clients, your fonts are as much a design choice as your logo or color scheme. While large, swooping fonts are elegant and stately, they’re often difficult to read in smaller texts. So don’t be afraid to mix it up: a serif font as a header and a sand serif font for the body of your message tend to pair nicely together.

Knowing these pieces should be enough to help you get the ball rolling in creating promotional materials that can set you apart from your competitors.

Further reading
If you think this sort of thing is interesting, you’ll probably enjoy Why Fonts Matter by Sarah Hyndman, which talks about the psychological and even emotional impact fonts can have. If you want a little more history and fun facts, then Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield would be right up your alley.

Until next time!

Dom
Admin Consultant
USCG 100 Ton Captain