There is one visual entity that pretty much sums up a brand's personality. It is also the first thing that most people think of when they think about the brand. Yes, we are talking about a brand's logo. From the first contact a customer makes with a brand in the form of websites, or ads, right up to a tangible experience in the form of packaging design, logos are everywhere.
As a business owner, you know your logo will be that one little graphic design that your customers will see again and again. That's one reason why most business owners spend a lot of time finalizing concepts for their logos and even work with professionals for the actual design component. However, if budget is a concern, online logo creators are great alternatives.
So it should be no surprise that the font in your logo can either make or break your logo design. And that means choosing the best font style can make all the difference to how your logo looks and feels.
Before we get to the details about choosing business logo fonts, let's talk about the most common classifications in fonts to give you a quick backgrounder.
The different types of typefaces
Most font styles are organized into different typefaces. Different typefaces have different traits. Some are meant to make the text pop, and others are intended to offer increased legibility. Some have a vintage connotation, and others look modern and uber-cool. Typefaces can be of so many groups, but the main ones are grouped into the following categories:
- Serif-these fonts have noticeable extensions to the strokes of each letter
- Sans-serif- these are font styles without serifs
- Monospaced - these are non-proportional fonts where each letter is of a fixed-width
- Display - these fonts are what you see in the headings or in the text sections and draw attention
- Script - these are fonts that resemble handwritten text and can be formal or casual
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Serif fonts are noted for their bold character. Sans-serif fonts are the most legible even when scaled down to small. Monospaced fonts, without serifs, look good and are easy to read. Display fonts are great to add visual hooks. Script fonts have a unique personality.
Choosing the best logo fonts for better branding involves understanding your logo's core message to communicate. Your brand's target audience, its origin stories, and a host of other aspects matter too. Let's talk about all these factors that you should look into when you choose logo fonts.
Tips to choose the best business logo fonts
The role of text in the logo
Logos can be of different types like a lettermark, wordmark, abstract, combination mark, or others. The type of logo design determines the role the text plays in the design, and so your font choice depends largely on this as well. Other than this, you should also ask yourself the following questions:
- Will the text in your logo be a protagonist or just an auxiliary detail?
- Should the font add a new dimension to the design or merely complement the predominant symbolic element in the design?
Answering questions like these will make it easier to define the character of the text in your logo. If you want your text to be the protagonist, serif and display typefaces can draw attention to the text. But for logos where the text is just to give additional information, legible sans-serif fonts might work better.
Don't go with the flow
If you have been following the changing trends in graphic design, you will know that font style is one area where there is always something new. Experimental fonts, bubbly text, and a whole lot of other trends come and go. But will any of these styles actually define the personality of your brand? Now that's the one question you should be answering.
Ephemeral styles in fonts might work well in your social media posts and even ads. But your logo is not something you change too often. It is meant to linger in the minds of your customers for years. For such a timeless design asset of your brand, you need a timeless font style.
If you have a logo for seasonal campaigns, you can definitely explore trending fonts. Otherwise, for the main logo, it would be better to stick with a font that goes beyond trends and continues to communicate your brand's message in the years to come. Timeless font styles will also look relevant in your campaigns even as the design trends keep changing.
A font that resonates with your brand's personality
Every brand has a personality of its own. This often depends on the type of products or services you offer combined with the unique processes and ideals of your brand. The font style you choose for your logo should be aligned with the personality of your brand.
For example, if yours is a brand with decades of history or heritage that your logo should reflect, a peppy font like a bubbly style might not exactly work. On the other hand, if your brand caters to avant-garde fashion, something more fun and relatable, like a casual handwritten font, might work. For this reason, most luxury brands stick with vintage fonts or formal script fonts.
Do not be afraid to combine font styles
Not all text sections in your logo have the same role to play. Some logos have the brand name or initials, the tagline, or even a brief mention of the type of services or products the brand offers.
For the primary text, which is the brand name or monogram, you can choose fonts that have a strong visual impact like the ones with thick strokes and serifs. To balance the visual impact of this font, your tagline can be a sans-serif font that is easy to read. This would ensure that even new customers will easily grasp the brand's message. Playing with the kerning or the spacing between each letter is another way to balance the effect of bold fonts.
Script styles for personalization
There is something rustic about the messy-looking scribbles in many script fonts. Customers love seeing a human touch in branding, and adding a handwritten font to your logo can enhance this effect. In handwritten scripts, there are crude ones with thick strokes, as well as some graceful ones like Copperplate script variations.
With script fonts, you can play with the bounce in letters or add swashes or flourishes to the letters for a subtle touch of sophistication. Chic handwritten fonts with heavy flourishes work really well for lettermark logos. If you plan to combine these handwritten scripts with other font styles, stick with ones that have thin strokes and are more legible.
As you can see, there are so many ways in which you can fine-tune script styles to suit your brand's unique traits. So, if you need something unique for your logo font, experiment with script styles.
And for the finishing touches
Remember that along with the font style, the color of each text section and the way these colors all look together will influence the emotions your logo triggers. Minimalism is a safe bet, especially when you have long brand names and taglines in your logo. For a clean and minimalistic look, you can use thin strokes and better spacing between fonts.
All of these supporting aspects come into the picture when you choose a font simply because the chosen font will not create the intended effect if you do not pair it with the right colors. And all of these put together determine how visually appealing your logo looks both in an expanded form and when shrunk. You will also need to have a versatile design that looks on print ads and billboards as well as in watermarks for social media posts and digital ads.
FAQs
How many font styles should I combine?
Ideally, it is better to stick with a combination of up to two font styles in a logo. Too many variations in the font styles might not be visually pleasing. Brand name and tagline are the two main text fields in most logo designs. If you do have more text, try playing around with variations in the font size and colors instead of changing the font styles drastically.
How can you customize your logo fonts?
Not all brands are ready to spend on having a new font created for their visual identity. Some simply buy a font and tune it to suit their brand. This largely depends on the finer details in creative typography.
So how can you customize your logos fonts? Well, you could play with the negative spaces in the letters or alter the spacing between letters, add color variations, or even stroke extensions in specific letters that create a visually appealing logo design. Blending fonts and symbolism is another way to do it.
Which is a better option for logo design, DIY or working with a designer?
There are so many online logo design tools that come with easy templates to let you create a logo in seconds. But, there could be two problem when you go that route:
- Logo design created with standard symbols and fonts lacks originality
- If you end up creating a logo that looks a lot like the logo of another brand, it could lead to intellectual property violation issues
Your logo speaks for your brand in every single place your customer makes a contact with your business. For such a critical piece of graphic design, trying to design a logo yourself, unless you have the expertise in logo designing, would put your brand’s reputation at stake.
So, working with a professional graphic designer would be a better choice. Your logo will mostly remain the same for several years. And the money spent on logo design is an investment for your branding, after all. If you are worried about budgets, unlimited graphic design would be an economical option that gives you a ton of bang for your buck. For the flat monthly subscription rate you pay, you will get to work with professional designers and get a logo design done - revisions, multiple iterations and all. And you’ll also be able to get a whole lot of other graphic designs for your marketing as well.
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