Knowing the "Hidden Power" of Fonts Spells Success
By: Bean Jones
I'm a font fanatic. I can't begin to type anything unless I find a font that feels right. My favorites are the trusty Times New Roman, Courier New, Comic Sans, and Arial. I wondered what my font choices say about me, so I did some research and found out that there's more than meets the eye when it comes to fonts.
"Perception of Fonts: Personality Traits and Uses," a 2006 psychology study done at Wichita State University, revealed that people associate fonts with particular moods.
After going through the study's survey charts, I was amused to find out that my font choices present me as a "stable conformist" who could also be funny and "cuddly." (Me? A conformist?) Go figure. Check out the study and see how you might be judged by your favorite fonts.
In any case, the Wichita State University study confirms that fonts have indeed become significant elements of communication. In the old days, a person's handwriting was thought to be the key to his or her personality. Now--with technology as the great equalizer and a blessing to those with horrible penmanship--a person's font choices are supposed to show the world how his or her mind works.
As such, knowing the right fonts to use could spell the difference between the failure and success of communication.
It seems that the advertising industry has tapped into this "hidden power" of fonts. John Doyle, a marketing researcher at Cardiff Business School in the U.K. says that "consumers prefer consistency" and that "congruence between a typeface and an ad's message results in a more memorable product."
To illustrate his point, Doyle presented some of his findings:
1. Ornate, scripted fonts are associated with elegance.
2. A font that is slanted to the right connotes action. It's best for fast, high-paced products.
3. Products meant to exude strength and power are best shown off with heavy, block-like fonts.
Then again, I think we should all remember that the message we want to communicate or the product we're selling should be substantial enough to begin with. While fonts do pack a subtle-yet-powerful psych punch, they can only enhance a good idea or a wonderful product. People won't believe what you're saying or buy what you're selling if it's not any good--never mind if you used the right font in your marketing letter.
Side Note from MJ: Great stuff, Bean. The Direct Marketing world universally seems to agree that the standard serif fonts (12 pt. Times New Roman and 10 pt. Courier) will have a very positive impact on the response rate of any print ad. The theory is that these fonts increase readability and it's only logical that this would increase the response rate of your ads. You can have the best-written ad in the world and if no one reads it, it just doesn't matter. On the web, since serif fonts don't render so well in browsers, the preferred font tends to be Arial, Verdana, and Tahoma. Of course marketers will argue this point from every which direction, but the above seems to be the most universally agreed upon standard in the Direct Marketing world. The brand marketers are looking at things from an entirely different lens, so for them short ads with fonts selected for emotional impact can make good sense.
Comments
Ah, a man after my own font, though I have recently flirted with Verdana, and I have a fascination with bookman old style (maybe the older man...who knows)
But you're are absolutely right, fonts are irrelevant and hold little weight if what you write is a pile of rambling, unfounded, whimsical nonsense.
Take this post for a perfect example.
Fonts are really important to me too, and the size you use can also impact the way it looks for the better or worse.
I confess that I can't abide Comic Sans, having flirted with it briefly a few years ago, and I was surprised - but not surprised! - to discover there's a website devoted to getting it banned! Nothing to do with me but worth a look at http://www.BanComicSans.com
Marion
I particularly dislike business cards that are so ornate that you can't read the information. Give me good old fashioned Arial that is crisp and clean and so very readable!
Lanky
Just a vocabulary point to begin with: what is being discussed here is "typeface" preference, not "fonts". "New Times Roman" is a typeface, the font is "12 pt, bold, italic New Times Roman". This usage error crept into our language with the rise of personal publishing that was championed by individuals who weren't familiar with printing and typesetting terminology.
I have had an ongoing affair with the typeface Palatino. I love the way its lower case e is so perfect. It also works well at very large font sizes. Palatino has the nicest italics font of any of the common serif typefaces. My favorite font for letters is 11 pt Palatino with the occasional use of bold and italics fonts.
Wow Yes ... but this is just scratching the surface of this vital area for Internet Marketers.
Everything matters!
You can have great copy, the right font then prevent people reading by poor line width and leading (feed) etc. SO many times I see chunks of long copy, way too wide and then centred ... reading this is hard and tiring (all about getting a rhythm and finding you way automatically to the start of the next line).
People don't know it's difficult, but they merely give up and move on.
Most of this stuff (like people's associations with font families, color etc) is subconscious. They will just act according to some 'triggers' within.
So it's NO use saying "but nobody has ever complained" or "I've asked and people like it" ... yeah yeah yeah.
THEN there is the use of graphics, the position, of white space ...
I could go on (and I do) but not here.
Good article to wake people up ....
John Gordon
=> The Infotainer
I suspect that the addition of Comic Sans to Mr. Jones' favorites list is what earned him the descriptive 'occasionally cuddly.' I'm not sure it was ever intended for serious business/marketing! I like to use it sometimes, in 'soft' communication with friends or grandchildren, etc. For business, I find myself preferring Verdana or Trebuchet over Arial, but haven't found a substitute for good ole Times New Rp\oman.
As a communicator/graphic designer I love to play with any and all fonts. They each have a purpose in small amounts to achieve a goal. But I agree with Bean certain fonts make the message easier to read depending upon medium, size used, etc. Certain fonts lend credence authority clarity and weight. They must be easy to read over black and white/color.
This is a subject near and dear to my heart. Going back to my print ad sales days in the early 90s, I have always schooled advertisers in the 'personality' of fonts and their ability to emphasize a message. And I still can't abide using all caps. Aside from Internet etiquette, it has been proven that using proper upper and lower case is easier to read.
Does nobody use Osaka? That's my favourite - clear and easy on the eyes.
MY favorite has always been Monotype Corsiva. I love the sensuality of it, yet you dont have to guess what letter it really is.
On the web fonts like Verdana, Arial, and Tahoma are easily readable. However, they don't italicize well. Times New Roman or a Garamond Font works well for italics. It really depends on your message, your audience, and could be, but not necessarily dependent upon your theme. Teens for instance, like the playful, big rounded type fonts and other hard to read fonts. I do agree, though, for readability the Arial font is great. You mainly want to consider your audience and whether your message is easy to read.
Thanks Jeff for the clarification that we should be using the word typeface in this discussion. I have now learned a new thing today.
I prefer clean, straight forward lines and am therefore drawn to Arial and Tahoma. I like the roundness of the letters in Tahoma, but prefer the spacing in Arial. So maybe I need some combination of the two.
I am not a designer, but have always liked the cleaner look that sans serif typefaces produce. They have always been easier for me to read.
Thanks Mark for this interesting blog topic.
Susan - Car Advice For Women (and Smart Men)
I agree with Lanky about the business cards. I have been a Graphic Designer for 2+ years, and I can't count the number of times I have had to convince customers not to go overboard when they want fancy type. Straight forward gets the message out there. Save the fancy fonts for your heading only. And be careful with that choice as well! It still needs to be readable and match your business personality!
While I would concur on the merit and value of good font choice, a colleague of mine even went so far to say that his agency only uses fonts designed by dead guys! But design choice is a two-way street: make the wrong choice or a bad mix of fonts and you alienate your audience or worse yet, with improper usage of scale, color or art direction - it may fail on basic legibility. Can you read it?
I would have thought a person who wrote and article on fonts would have used a more appealing easier to read font. The key factor in fonts is White Space, Size, and ease to read.
I agree that fonts are important, not just for their readability but, IMHO, a quirky font calls attention to itself and to the person using it. Sure, sometimes I WANT to appear quirky, but only in email to my close friends. When dealing with my website or email to strangers - especially business email - I want a more normal, businesslike appearance. Since those reading our emails or websites can't see the clothes we're wearing, we need to think of the appearance of our websites and emails - font choice included - as our internet wardrobe.
RE John Gordon. "..finding you way automatically" or is it your way?
Thanks for the great information. I usually like Times Roman 12. I observed that most internet marketers use Arial, Verdana, and Tahoma. Now Mark's comments validates my observation. Thanks
"It seems that the advertising industry has tapped into this "hidden power" of fonts. John Doyle, a marketing researcher at Cardiff Business School in the U.K. says that "consumers prefer consistency" and that "congruence between a typeface and an ad's message results in a more memorable product."
To illustrate his point, Doyle presented some of his findings:
1. Ornate, scripted fonts are associated with elegance.
2. A font that is slanted to the right connotes action. It's best for fast, high-paced products.
3. Products meant to exude strength and power are best shown off with heavy, block-like fonts."
LOL
I think a six year old could figure that out, don't you?
Has anyone heard or read the discussion based on NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) info...that sans serif typefaces are NOT processed nearly as well by the brain as are the serif typefaces? I have heard that from a few close sources in that arena, and wondered if any of you have. I used to analyze handwriting, and the comments about slant and bold writing all figure in here quite well. Good input, peeps!
Dave
I've heard that san-serif works best for headlines because it is clean and easy to read and serif is best for blocks of text because the serifs give more visual queues for keeping track of where you are in the block.
Personally, since I am rather logically minded ( math degree with physical chemistry and physics as minors) I tend to stick to Times New Roman. It just fits.
Coach Elouise
Thanks...well...Mark, for this insightful piece, the kind of thing you feel is there but never bother to take a closer look until some brings it to the font burner (I'm not in the 'front' mood now!) To me fonts like Times New Roman strains the eyes with extra stuff to look at...you know, all those frills at the corners and tips. My favorite now is "Calibri"...like Arial, but more subtle.
The reason why some fonts are common and some others are not is that not every typeface is embedded on our PCs, hence it is not possible for us to view those typefaces in their original look. All html-based stuff aside, I would invariably use either Letter Gothic or Lucida Sans Typewriter. Yes, these are not really common, but prevalence is not the sole token of merit. From among the commonly used, I would opt for Georgia. By the way, take a look at NYT, even if you do regularly, to see how elegantly they employ fonts, be it in terms of size, color and of course the typeface itself.
Lots of great comments here, and hello to fellow designers!
When I choose a typeface for a client's work I consider:
How much text there will be, serif is better for that.
What type of "personality" you want to show (for example, is it friendly & fun or solid & secure etc.)
If it is for websites it has to be a system font, (one that is on everyone's computer) so that limits your choice drastically.
Typography is a fantastic topic to delve into, you can portray a LOT just by what the text LOOKS like!
Some great advice has been given here by others, and if you want to learn more, hit up your library, or big box book store and check out a couple of books on typography.