Choosing the right font styles to represent your business and brand is like picking the perfect outfit for your business — it sets the tone, and it makes a lasting impression. Beyond determining which font styles look and feel right for your brand, there are also a few key considerations to make — including how your audience will perceive and respond to the fonts you’ve chosen. That’s why, today, we’re sharing a quick and easy guide to choosing font styles that represent your brand well and help to serve your audience, too!

Welcome to Episode 218 of The Brand It, Build It Podcast: How to Choose Fonts for Your Brand. When we serve our clients through brand and web design, our job is to learn about our clients’ goals and vision — as well as the feelings they’d like to create through their brand and web design. By doing so, we can choose and curate font styles aligned with their goals. In other words, our clients don’t have to begin their design process knowing anything about font styles, or the font styles they’d like to use on behalf of their business — which is the beauty of hiring a professional designer, who not only has expertise in curating the right fonts to convey the right message, but who also has access to a variety of font resources, too. But, if hiring a professional designer isn’t something you feel ready to do, and you’re hand-picking font styles on behalf of your own business, today’s episode is for you! I’m excited to share the questions to ask and considerations to make when choosing fonts for your brand.

Before we dive in, I want to share that we’ve created a fun, engaging, and helpful quiz called “What font style are you?” Visit withgraceandgold.com/quiz to discover which font style aligns with your brand aesthetic!

In addition, I want to explore why fonts matter.

Why Brand Fonts Matter

• Brand Identity and Consistency. Fonts are a fundamental component of your visual identity. They contribute to how your brand is perceived visually, much like your logo, color scheme, and imagery. Using a consistent set of fonts across all marketing materials, websites, and communications ensures that your brand is immediately recognizable. Consistency builds trust and reinforces brand identity.
• Emotional Connection. Different fonts evoke different emotions and associations. For instance, serif fonts often convey tradition and reliability, while sans-serif fonts suggest modernity and simplicity. By choosing fonts that align with your brand’s personality, you can create an emotional connection with your audience. Fonts can communicate your brand’s voice. A playful, casual font can make your brand seem approachable and fun, while a more formal, professional font can establish authority and trustworthiness.
• Differentiation. In a crowded marketplace, having a unique and recognizable font helps your brand stand out from competitors. It can be a key differentiator that makes your brand memorable. Using specific fonts helps avoid confusion with other brands that might use generic or similar fonts. This clarity helps in reinforcing your unique brand identity.
• Professionalism and Credibility. A well-chosen font contributes to a cohesive and polished appearance, which can enhance the perceived professionalism of your brand. Consistent and professional-looking fonts help in building credibility with your audience, as they signal attention to detail and quality.
• Functionality and Readability. Ensuring that your chosen fonts are legible across various media (print, digital, large formats, etc.) is crucial for effective communication. Readability directly impacts how easily your audience can understand your message. Good font choices consider accessibility, too.
• Marketing and Communication. Consistent use of specific fonts in advertising and communications aids in brand recall. When people see your specific fonts, they should immediately associate them with your brand. Fonts can enhance the message you are trying to communicate. For example, a bold font can emphasize importance, while an italic font can denote emphasis or a quote.
• Digital Presence. Choosing fonts that work well across different devices and screen sizes is important for maintaining brand consistency online. This includes ensuring that fonts load properly and look good on various browsers and devices. Web fonts can impact page load times, which in turn affects user experience and SEO. Selecting efficient, well-optimized fonts can improve website performance.

Now for Step 1…

How to Choose Your Brand Fonts

Step 1: Know Your Brand Personality

Think about your brand as a person. Is it formal or casual? Playful or serious? Modern or classic? Understanding your brand’s personality will guide your font choices. For example, a fun and energetic brand might go for a playful, bold font, while a professional, trustworthy brand might choose something more elegant and clean.

Step 2: Prioritize Readability

No matter how stylish a font looks, if people can’t read it easily, it’s not doing its job. Choose fonts that are clear and legible, especially for body text. Test them out by reading a few paragraphs to see how they feel. Remember, your customers should never struggle to read your message.

Step 3: Pair Fonts Thoughtfully

Just like a great outfit, different elements need to complement each other. Choose a primary font for headings and a secondary font for body text. Make sure they contrast well but also look harmonious together. A simple rule is to pair a more decorative font with a simple one. For instance, a stylish script font for headings can pair nicely with a clean sans-serif font for body text.

Step 4: Reflect Your Industry

Consider what’s common in your industry but add a twist to stand out. If you’re in a creative field, you might have more leeway to use artistic fonts. In more conservative fields, like law or finance, sticking to classic, clean fonts might be a better choice. Look at what competitors are doing and think about how you can differentiate while still aligning with what your prospective clients will expect and appreciate.

Step 5: Test and Get Feedback

Before finalizing your font choices, test them out in different scenarios: on your website, business cards, social media, etc. Get feedback from friends, family, and even some customers if possible. Sometimes a font that looks great in one context might not work as well in another, so it’s good to see how they perform across the board.

By following these steps, you’ll be well on your way to choosing fonts that not only look great but also communicate the heart of your brand. Thanks for tuning in!

Brand It, Build It Podcast, Hosted by Kelly Zugay

Hosted by Kelly Zugay, co-founder of With Grace and Gold, The Brand It, Build It Podcast is the best small business marketing podcast for small business owners, creatives, and founders. Weekly, brief, actionable episodes will equip you to build a successful, sustainable small business. Since 2014, With Grace and Gold has provided award-winning custom brand and Showit web design and completely customizable Showit website templates for small businesses worldwide.