Why Fonts Matter: 3 Things To Consider When Choosing A Website Fonts

The font and calligraphy you use on your website and marketing materials say a lot about your business. Often, it is one of the very first things a consumer or customer will see. As such, it needs to convey a clear message about who your brand is and what your brand does.

Typography can reflect the style and tone of voice of your brand. So you want to make sure you’re getting it right.

Is your brand fun, quirky, and casual?

Are you professional, serious, and business-like?

Or is your brand elegant, classy, and sophisticated?

Finding the right font which reflects the key elements of your business can be tricky. Luckily, at Shape the Market, we offer services which can help with such. If you want to find out more about our different website packages, find out more here.

So, what are the key factors you should consider when choosing your website fonts?

Read on to find out!

As your website font will be read from a consumer’s screen, you want your font to be easy on the eyes. Something which doesn’t require them to squint or strain when trying to decipher what you’re saying.

This is especially important for eCommerce stores.

A font that leans too heavily on the side of elegance and unnecessary quirkiness can often be off-putting, especially when it’s hard to distinguish between an ‘ o ’ and an ‘ a ’. All it takes is a matter of seconds for your reader to decide whether they can be bothered to make out what you’re saying.

And if not, then, goodbye!

Easy to read fonts often include Sans-Serif fonts like Arial and Calibri.

They’re the default fonts on many browsers for a reason. They make it easy to read and are pretty much universally accessible.

Using a font like Arial or Calibri can come across as professional and modern – their simplicity makes them look sleek and refined.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, you also don’t want to make a font too easy to read.

Fonts like Verdana which have larger spaces between words in theory sound like it will make for an easier read. But in actuality, it may slow you down! The spaces between the words can reduce the speed of reading and can subconsciously put off a consumer.

What’s more, fonts like Comic Sans, while easy to read, are not one to be taken seriously.

Comic Sans is pretty much universally acknowledged as unserious and unprofessional – so steer clear of it if you can!

It can be difficult to try and find the balance between a font which is easy to read but also looks professional. But, with time and patience, you can find the perfect one for your website.

What would Vogue be without its classic sleek font?

What would Tiffany & Co. be without their regal elegance?

Even Instagram has a memorable and easily identifiable font choice.

All of these brands benefit from the use of a font which is a signature of their brand. They would be completely unrecognisable if tomorrow you woke up and Vogue was written using Webdings.

Finding a font which is characteristic of your brand identity and who you are is very important when it comes to designing your website.

Aesthetic should never be an overlooked factor when choosing a font.

You need to make sure that you pick a font that will remain consistent throughout your website, and will become a part of your brand identity.

You don’t want to decide on a default font at the creation of your website, only to realise a year down the line that you don’t like how it looks – but have already established this as your brand’s style.

Whilst it’s not impossible to change the font on your website, often it can be confusing for the reader.

If a company is going through a rebranding, consumers are able to accept this and can expect changes to be happening.

Whereas if a company has merely changed its mind and no longer wants to use a font like Arial – this can be confusing for the consumer. They have become familiar with your font and associate it with your brand.

When designing your website, take time in picking which font you are going to use.

Much like your logo or slogan, a font is reflective of your products and services. It is a recognisable way for a consumer to get to know you and needs to be taken seriously.

It’s all about the first impression.

The type of font you use is representative of the tone of voice of your brand. It shows consumers and potential customers who you are, if you should be taken seriously, and what your brand is all about.

Even if it’s not consciously, a consumer will make a swift decision about your company based on the first impression they see.

If your font comes across as lazy and default without any attempt at personalisation, it will seem as if you don’t put in any effort.

On the other hand, if your font is too silly or unprofessional then you likely won’t be taken very seriously at all.

The first step in deciding which font to use is figuring out what your tone of voice is.

Do you want to come across as serious?

How about friendly?

Or do you want consumers to see you as casual and fun?

If you’re a company that is looking to come across as important and earnest, like a newspaper or law firm, then it’s recommended that you use a font like Times New Roman.

It will help convey the gravity of the topics you are discussing and your business-like attitude.

Whereas, if you are a family-owned baking company and want to come across as friendly, you may want to use a more casual font like Cooper. This will convey the approachability of your brand and your light and wholesome content.

Fonts say a lot about the message behind the type of company you are.

Consumers tend to make an emotional connection with the brands they do business with. They want to feel that they can trust you, that you’re reliable, and that you care.

A font choice can hugely influence how a consumer feels about your brand.

Let’s pretend that you’re a clothing company marketed to young people aged 16-25.

Your clothes are styled after casual streetwear, influenced by the likes of brands like Urban Outfitters, Bershka, and Topshop.

You want to portray your brand message as cool, laidback, and unpretentious.

Would you use a font like Cerdarville Cursive? Or a font like Saira Extra Condensed? Or what about a font like Sawarabi Gothic?

Here’s what they look like below:

Which do you think best portrays the tone of the company and is easiest to read?

It’s probably going to be the last one.

Whilst the first is pretty and elegant, that’s not what your clothing company is about.

The second one is modern, but can be difficult to read given how condensed the writing is.

The third one, however, is both modern and easy to read. It comes across as cool and unpretentious without trying too hard.

These are all things to consider when choosing a font. But often, you can just get a feel of what’s right and what isn’t.

Choosing the right font for your website is not a decision that should be taken lightly or overlooked.

There is a lot of psychology that goes into the choice of font, and you want to make sure you find one that your consumer will identify with and be able to gauge your brand’s message clearly.

Often, font choice isn’t considered as important or necessary to a website’s success as other factors like graphics, logo, and design.

But hopefully, this article will have challenged this perception.

There’s a lot to try and convey through one choice of font, and that’s not easy.

You have to find the balance between readability, how it looks, and what it says.

Thankfully, it’s not a decision you have to make alone or without advice.

Shape the Market offers a variety of premium and free website templates for you to choose from for your company.

Each theme has been carefully designed with the tone of voice, brand identity, and the consumer in mind.

If you’re looking to set up a website for your company and don’t know where to begin, contact Shape the Market. Our team of expert designers and content writers are available to help, and will make sure that your website represents your company accurately.