When you browse font options for your blog, how do you know which is the right and which is the wrong typeface to use?
Major companies spend millions of dollars on logos and identity packages. But for bloggers, it’s mostly a do-it-yourself proposition. When you start making decisions about what your site will look like, the typeface you choose can set the tone for your site before a visitor reads the first word. The wrong typeface, some suggest, could do damage before your reader even gets to know your style.
I definitely consider myself a typeface nerd when it comes to studying typefaces websites use. Some are much easier than others to read. In the past, I’ve told you about a browser extension I found called Fonts Ninja. It lets you hover over text on a website and it will determine the typeface used. It provides information whenever it can about where that font came from. That way, you can see if it’s available for you to use on your own website or project.
When it comes to print, many feel that serif fonts — the fonts with the little tails or feet — are easier on the eyes. But on the screen, many believe that sans serif fonts — fonts that depict the letter I as a single straight line without the horizontal bars at the top and bottom — are easier to read.
On the other hand, some believe that serif typefaces give a more polished, professional or even conservative look. They might believe that sans serif fonts provide a more contemporary, modern feel.
Yes, if you’re thinking it’s silly to get wrapped up in a typeface instead of the words themselves, I agree. But the wrong typeface can give a bad impression before your readers even get to your words.
That’s why I think it’s important to choose wisely.
Are certain typefaces definitely the wrong choice?
Typefaces, like other elements of design, can be very subjective. They also may legitimately vary depending on the type of blog you have. An academic-oriented blog might warrant more professional-looking typefaces, for example. A blog devoted to technology or gaming — or even science fiction — might call for a more modern font, while a blog oriented to children might favor handwritten or whimsical fonts.
There are a handful of typefaces, however, that seem to get almost no love at all, especially in a professional setting.
I was browsing sites recently and found a mention of font suggestions for a college.
“Whether in campus signs, brochures, or emails, typography either helps unify and clarify our brand message, or make us look amateur and fractured,” the University of California-Chico’s website states.
It goes on to list the university’s official typefaces that make up their identity package.
What struck me as funny was this instruction at the bottom of the page in a paragraph with the heading “Fonts to Avoid:”
Some fonts may feel fun but should be used sparingly and never in official or professional communications that represent the University. There are many fonts that fall into the questionable category, however, using Comic Sans, Curlz MT, or Papyrus fonts could be damaging to you or the University’s credibility.
Comic Sans rarely, if ever, gets any love these days. If there was one font that might win an award for “World’s Most Hated,” I suspect it’d be the top vote-getter. Microsoft released the font back in 1994. It was designed to mimic comic book lettering. So I’d hope you could easily imagine that it’s a little too informal for more formal applications.
Agfa Monotype released Curlz the following year, in 1995. As the name implies, it’s loaded with fancy swirls on each letter. Wikipedia notes that one of its designers said it wasn’t one of their “proudest moments.” Ouch.
Papyrus is the oldest of the three, dating back to 1982. Its designer reportedly had studied the Bible and decided to develop a typeface that might represent how people might have written the Bible back then. (That would assume, of course, that the Bible was originally written in English.)
Would they be dealbreakers for you?
If I’m browsing for sites to read and I come across either of the three, I wouldn’t automatically click away.
But it would depend on the context. If I’m looking for a travel blog, any might be fine. If I’m looking for a website that might offer something serious like medical or financial advice, those typefaces aren’t going to convey that to me at all.
That doesn’t mean I won’t read what the sites have to say. I do think the content is more important than the typeface it’s set in. But we have to acknowledge that some people won’t be so forgiving.
When choosing the fonts for your site, govern your choices accordingly!
