Contemplating which font to use for your overall branding scheme? We’ve got the guide for you. Learn about the types of font and what each of them expresses.
After all, typography is a huge factor in your marketing scheme besides your logo design. It’s what expresses who you are as a business and tells your market what to expect from you.
Join us as we learn the different fonts and what they mean.
Brief History of Typefaces
Did you know that you can create your font? If you need guidance, read the origins.
Fonts can be traced back to the invention of the printing press. Johannes Gutenberg saw profit in mass-producing books, so Blackletter calligraphy was used for his printing process of books.
By 1470, Nicolas Jenson thought of a more efficient font, the roman typeface, which was slimmer than Blackletters and allowed more words to be printed on a page. It inspired Bruce Rogers’s Centaur (1914) and Robert Slimbach’s Adobe Jenson (1996).
And in 1510, Aldus Manutius and Francesco Griffo created the first italic typeface that improved on the later typefaces to fit more words into a page. It’s also used to emphasize specific phrases depending on the topic.
By the 16th century, typography contributed to the branding of establishments through different types of fonts. The different business names allowed for better distinction between businesses at the time paired with their logo.
But for better readability, by 1710, William Caslon created Old Style with a touch of the medieval era. It’s the typical font we see when creators reference the olden times, hence the name.
But the most readable of all is the font named after John Baskerville. Despite getting criticized by the people around him in 1757, the font re-emerged in the 20th century, and he was called “the greatest printer England ever produced.”
After resolving the readability issue, here comes creativity. Modern serifs, Slab serifs, and Sans serifs come into the picture to combine readability and uniqueness. They’re used especially for headlines.
Lastly, we get into the age of the digitized era of fonts. We see TrueType come to life since it allowed printers and digital devices to use the same font. And finally, in 2009, the Web Font style rose to the ranks of used fonts.
Web Font or WOFF compressed font files and made loading web pages faster. And there you have a brief history of how typefaces came into existence. But is it similar to font and typography?
Typography vs. Typeface vs. Font
Now that you got a glimpse of how typefaces came to be let’s differentiate all three related terms: Typography, Typeface, and Font. Knowing these terms allows you to understand better how to create your overall business graphic design.
The definition of typography is the art of arranging letters and adding artistic design to those letters. The text needs to be clear and visually appealing for your audience.
A typeface is a set of glyphs with a standard design. Times New Roman or Arial is the typeface. The font has a particular set of glyphs in the typeface. That means a size 12 Times New Roman differs from a size 16 Times New Roman.
Get it? Typography is the umbrella term for typeface and font. But typeface is the overall style of a font. And the different sizes of that typeface are what we call font.
Now you know the difference, let’s get into the significant type of fonts.
Meet the Font Types
Let’s get into the important stuff since we learned the history and differences of terms. It’ll be easier to understand the content below. It’ll aid in choosing the right font for your design needs, like headlines and content.
There are precisely five significant font types.
Serif
This style’s fonts are primarily seen as designs exuding trust, tradition, integrity, and honesty. It’s one of the oldest and most commonly used by brands today.
The letters have wedged edges, diagonal stresses, bracketed, and light contrast in their font design. You can use serifs when printing out business cards, letterheads, etc., since they are legible even in small formats.
Serifs also give off a formal vibe that makes your branding look professional and neat. That’s why it’s the usual font used for printed books. Serifs are pretty to look at and readable, so your readers would be delighted to read and retain their attention.
Depending on your font choice, you can simultaneously look sophisticated and creative. Note any font with a tail is a serif.
The types of serifs are:
- Didone: also known as modern serifs, they’re characterized by ball-shaped edges, alternating between thick and thin strokes, and have little to no bracketing. Some of the fonts under these are Karmilla, Imbue, and Pervinca Family.
- Old Style: the fonts under this type are usually seen in the content body. The fonts here also have wedge edges, bracketed serif, and minimal contrast to make them legible. Examples of this font include Mortly Old, Wensley Modern Serif, and Carra.
- Slab Serif: as the name suggests, slab serifs look like blocks and have thicker lines that enhance the text and have little to no bracketing. Font examples are Adelle, Clarendon, and Shift.
- Transitional: lastly, we have font styles that are a mix of old style and modern serifs. The strokes are thin, but the tails are sharp and circular depending on the case of the letters. Some fonts under this style are Giverny, Nandi, and Branch Elegant.
Sans Serif
Designers today love to use this type because of how well it looks in the digital format. Compared to serifs that have tails, sans serifs are the opposite. They have crisp lines and are minimalist by default.
Sans serifs are great for web design since they look great on screen and are used for headlines. They’re great at emphasizing certain aspects of a website as well and directing the visitor where to look.
The types are:
- Grotesque: the letters of this font style have embellishments like the double story g, spurred G, and the curves are more square-like. And are also used as headlines, brochures, and more. Examples of the font here are Eksena Grotesk, Mriya Grotesk, and Morton Grotesque.
- Neo-Grotesque: This style is what you usually see used for headlines, posters, brochure design, and more. It’s a plainer version of the grotesque font style since it lacks the unusual shapes of the letters. Some examples here are Focus Grotesk, Quartella, and Osande.
- Geometric: as the name suggests, the strokes of the font are based on shapes, specifically, the circle. The O is really round and some of the upper and lower case letters are round. This style also represents balance and purity because of how clean it looks. Some fonts here are Mint Round, Beckman Modern Geometric, and Ageo.
- Humanistic: this style is inspired by the Roman font. It has a higher contrast and allows you to use small sizes, but still be legible. Examples of this font are Freight Sans, P22 Underground, and Optima.
Script (Handwritten)
If you want a more natural and pretty-looking font, try scripts. They’re based on handwritten strokes and you’d often see these on invitations for any fancy occasion.
Script font is used for displays and trade printing. They emulate being natural and personable so they’re great if you want to promote connectivity between you and your market.
The types under this style are:
- Formal: for this style, letters are connected and have exaggerated loops. It gives off a feel of sophistication and as the name suggests, formality. Some of the fonts here are Alex Brush, Great Vibes, and Allura.
- Casual: if you like your font to look like brush-made strokes, this is the font style for you. It gives your brand a relaxed feel with a whole lot of personality. Some fonts under this style are Karmina, Hamurz, and Anana.
- Calligraphic: if you want a font that highlights short headings and accents, use this style. Calligraphic design shines because of its intricate handwritten-like cursive nature of it. Examples include Adreno Script, Quiggly Wiggly, and Bukhari Script.
- Blackletter: this font is incredibly formal compared to every font under script. Blackletter font is used to make diplomas, awards, and anything historical. It gives off a feel of olden times mixed with magic and a tad bit of creepy. Some examples of the font are Cambridge Bold, Huntly Blackletter, and Black Baron.
- Handwriting: similar to casual font, handwriting imitates modern-day handwriting. Compared to calligraphy though, it’s less fancy but more functional. Font examples here are Amatic, Indie Flower, and Daniel.
Monospaced
Compared to all the fonts here, monospaced is the only one that doesn’t care about beautifying your content, but is more functional for typewriters. The name itself is already saying its very characteristics.
Monospaced fonts have the same space between letters and could actually either be sans serif or serif fonts. Despite the style being hard to read on print or other content, it’s easier for coders to use this font for programming.
Some examples of this type are Courier, Maison Mono, and Inconsolata.
Decorative
Lastly, we have decorative fonts. Use this type of font when you want to focus on advertising. It entices your market and gives you a professional yet friendly appearance.
Use this font for your headlines, postcards, and greeting cards since they’re intricate and look well with short text. But use them sparingly since they may look great with a short text, but as content, they’re too distracting and exaggerated for your market.
You either use it for personal or for advertising, there is no in-between. Some fonts here are Leah Gaviota, The Crow, and Norwalk.
Pick the Right Font For Your Business Today
Did ya find the perfect font style for you? We hope you did. Whether you go for bold text fonts or fancy cursive ones, choosing the right font could entail better brand personality and invite your market to support you.
Fonts can help you create beautiful social media posts and even use them as your logo design. Or just use it to present content on your website.
Either way, we support you. If you need any other type of help with your graphic design needs, our community of freelance designers can help you.
Or visit us at BrandCrowd and check out our logo maker, business cards, letterhead designs, and more.
Good luck designing!
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Written by DesignCrowd on Monday, August 1, 2022
DesignCrowd is an online marketplace providing logo, website, print and graphic design services by providing access to freelance graphic designers and design studios around the world.