/ Branding, Typography

Brand Typography: Why does it matter and how to find the right Fonts for your Brand

importance of typography for a brand

According to an MIT study, unappealing fonts have a negative impact on readers’ emotional responses to content.

The subconscious perception of your brand is influenced by fonts.

One of the most important aspects of visual branding is choosing brand typography that reflects your company’s personality and values.

In this article, we’ll go over the five steps to finding a brand font for your organization.

What Is Brand Typography and How Does It Work?

Brand typography is a visual component of a brand style guide, also known as a brand book, that organizes your company’s written copy in a readable manner and aligns your messaging with your brand personality.

Although they are all closely related, brand typography is not the same as brand font or typeface.

  • Typography is a set of characteristics that support a company’s design, brand voice, and personality across all digital and traditional channels.
  • A typeface is a name for a group of fonts that are related.
  • Fonts are the different weights, widths, and styles that make up a typeface.

Why Does Brand Typography Matter? How Can Font Help Your Brand Identity?

Typography is an important part of a brand’s identity, even if you don’t realize it.

A lot of typography can be found in a brand’s logo, packaging, emails, documents, website, and social media imagery.

So, with typography being such an important part of a brand, how does it help the brand?

  • Typography gives your brand meaning: Just like colors, typefaces and fonts communicate your brand’s values and tone. Clean, modern, and simple sans-serif fonts reverberate with the audience in a different way than old-fashioned serif fonts, and they present what your brand stands for. Monospaced fonts have a more technological feel to them, whereas blackletter and script fonts have a more personal feel to them. That’s why it’s crucial to pick typography carefully and to know why you’re using it.
  • The way people perceive your brand is defined by typography: Your customers are exposed to your brand’s messages via television, online ads, and retail stores, as well as by reading about you in the press and online. They are exposed to your brand through words, and branding is very much a sum of your customer’s interactions with your company. Positive brand associations are formed by positive experiences. Typographical errors on a website, such as small fonts – one of the most common web user complaints – lead to negative brand experiences.
  • It alters users’ perceptions and increases brand awareness: Because typography and fonts are such an important part of your visual identity, they have an impact on how your audience perceives and remembers your brand. A memorable typeface is instantly recognizable; consider well-known brands like Coca-Cola or Disney, which have even created and registered their own typeface as part of their brand identity. Consider your own company and conduct a typography audit across all touchpoints by asking the following questions:
    1. How does the typography of my company make me feel?
    2. What kind of experience is it providing?
    3. Is it memorable and recognizable?
    4. What kind of demeanor does it set?

5 Steps to Choosing The Right Fonts For Your Brand

Let’s take a look at the qualities of a good brand font before we look at how to choose or create the right typeface, font, and typography for your company.

The following is an example of a good brand font:

  • Legible
  • Unique
  • Memorable
  • Dedicated to multiple platforms
  • Able to communicate the personality of a brand

These are the essential typographic characteristics that your brand will use across multiple channels as an extension of its personality.

However, before you adopt typography, you should be aware of the steps involved in selecting a font.

1. Define the personality of your brand.

A brand’s personality is a key component of its identity, and it also helps to raise brand awareness.

It’s a collection of characteristics that your customers associate with you and remember.

Brand fonts and typography, like other brand elements, must be in sync with the personality of your company. You may have already defined the personality of your brand in concrete terms, but if not, take some time to consider how you want your brand to be perceived.

Brand owners, managers, decision-makers, and pretty much everyone else on your team should think in terms of the following main types of brand personalities, or brand dimensions, and their shared characteristics:

  1. Sincerity: thoughtful, kind, and down-to-earth.
  2. Competence: a track record of success, influence, and accomplishment, as well as an understanding of how to lead others.
  3. Daring, carefree, youthful, and up-to-date are some of the adjectives that come to mind when people think of excitement.
  4. Prestige, elegance, upscale, and charming are all words that come to mind when thinking of sophistication.
  5. Outdoorsy, tough, and athletic are all words that come to mind when thinking of ruggedness.

You’re ready to choose the font and typography for your brand once you’ve determined which traits make up its personality.

2. Recognize Each Typeface's Characteristics

Only, as previously stated, fonts and typographies have their own personalities and characters. As a result, you must be aware of these as well.

Understanding that each typeface has its own distinct characteristics is known as font psychology. They come in categories, which are classifications that help you identify and select fonts more easily.

The following are the basic font categories and their characteristics:

  • Serif: Traditional, classic, and trustworthy. For brands that exude respectability and a sense of timelessness.
    • Serif fonts include the following:
      1. Times New Roman
      2. Garamond
      3. Bodoni
      4. Palatino
  • Sans-Serif: For brands that evoke a feeling of freshness and modernity.
    • Sans-serif fonts include the following:
      1. Droid Sans
      2. Helvetica
      3. Verdana
      4. Futura 
  • Script: It is a one-of-a-kind, elegant, and distinctive typeface. For brands that place a strong emphasis on their unique purpose.
    • The following are some examples of Script fonts:
      1. Pacifico 
      2. Windsong 
      3. Allura 
      4. Alex Brush
  • Handwritten: Arty, informal, and entertaining. For brands that want to come across as fun and approachable.
    • The following are some examples of handwritten fonts:
      1. Salima
      2. Herbarium
      3. Balqis
      4. Porcelain Sans Serif 
  • Decorative: Dramatic, stylized, and diverse. For brands that want to be remembered right away.
    • Decorative fonts include the following:
      1. Authentica 
      2. Boho 
      3. Blueshift 
      4. Boucherie
  • Slab Serif: Bold, confident, and unconventional. For brands with a track record of excellence.
    • Slab serif fonts include the following:
      1. Avant-garde 
      2. PT Sans Pro
      3. Arial 
      4. Pro Dejavu
3. Select a typeface that reflects your brand's personality.

Now that you’ve established your brand’s personality and gained a better understanding of the characteristics of each font category, it’s time to find the right typeface for you.

Each font category, of course, has its variations, so when you’re pairing the two fonts, keep in mind what the result will be.

Certain typeface combinations and single usages are more appropriate for certain brand personalities than others. Consider the following example:

  • A professional and corporate look is achieved by using a minimal sans-serif font.
  • The combination of bold serif headers and a nondescript sans-serif subheader gives the impression of trustworthiness.
  • Sans-serif fonts that are thick and rounded give off a youthful and friendly vibe.
  • A conservative corporate feel is conveyed by using a traditional serif font.
  • The use of thin sans-serif fonts can create an elegant, high-end feel.
4. Check to see if your fonts are up to snuff.

Whatever typography you choose for your brand, it should share some characteristics with all other fonts.

The typography for your brand should be:

  1. Flexible: Make sure your typography is adaptable to all mediums, including online, print, and mobile devices. Because your typography will be a part of your brand identity for years, you want it to be as adaptable as possible across all platforms, including print, product packaging, the web, and mobile.
  2. Contrast: If you’re using multiple typefaces for your brand, there should be some contrast between them. In contrast, fonts should create harmony. When it comes to creating an effective brand typeface, the rule of thumb is to choose two typefaces that have one thing in common but differ in other ways. When combining two different fonts, it’s crucial to establish a hierarchy; we’ll go over this later in the article.
  3. Legible: The fonts used in your brand must be perfectly legible and readable. Any text you create with your styled fonts should be simple to read, whether it’s in large or small letters, lowercase or uppercase. Although the header text may be less legible than the main text, it should be clear and understandable to the reader at first glance.
5. Consider your budget and licensing requirements.

Only the issue of sourcing and licensing your brand font remains after you’ve completed the previous four steps.

Font Library, Font Squirrel, and Google Fonts are just a few of the libraries that offer free and open-source fonts. While convenient, these libraries are frequently limited in the number of fonts available.

Licensing fonts can help you take a more professional approach to brand typography, but you must be aware of the individual and licensing fees.

You’ll also need separate licenses if you want to use different typefaces for different platforms, such as print materials, mobile apps, and mobile websites.

Watch this video to learn more about 'TYPOGRAPHY'.

Brand Typography Takeaways

Creating brand typography is a time-consuming process that will result in increased brand recognition and a consistent brand personality across all channels.

To find and use the right font for your company, follow these steps:

  1. Recognize and define the personality of your brand.
  2. Learn about each typeface’s characteristics and personality to find the best match for your company.
  3. Choose between free, paid, and custom fonts.
  4. Make sure the fonts you choose are readable, adaptable, and complementary to the rest of your brand’s elements. They should also be able to grow with you.

RiffScript is a creative digital marketing firm that applies unique strategies to spread awareness about the brand quite elegantly. Our aim is not only to work with clients with the utmost professionalism but to develop a long-term relationships. Contact us now to learn more about our services.

Scroll to Top