Text Treatment
by Tracy Bardwell

Do you have an urge to scream, a need to shout, or maybe just some words worth whispering?

If your answer is yes, then you are well on your way to understanding the finer points of fiddling with fonts, or rather, typography. By definition, typography is the technique of setting type using different sizes, styles and spacing. By function, it’s the art of creating a document that speaks with an intentional voice and tone.

So, maybe you want to raise your voice to inform a new farm of your presence in the market. Perhaps, you wish to subtly relay information about an elegant open house. Maybe you’ve switched niches and the change must be emphasized. Whatever your rationale, make sure your text is relaying the message. Browse these tips and consider treating text with the respect it deserves:

Headlines are important. It’s important that you have them and that they vary in size and/or width according to their importance on the page. Your largest headline should preside over the most important information on your page. If there are subheads within an article, make sure they are smaller (or at least thinner) than what you’re utilizing for secondary headlines within your promotional piece.

Don’t start a war. Using several different fonts might look like fun, but may actually prove distracting to your intended audience. Consistency in font usage will decrease design chaos and provide a much more professional, intentional piece. Consider using varying fonts within the same font family instead of several different font families (example: using bold, condensed, regular, and expanded versions of Helvetica).

Choose serifs carefully and sparingly. A serif font is defined by the “tail” attached to each letter that leads the eye forward in a line of text (think Times New Roman). Used in print, serif fonts are rarely used on the web for anything beyond headlines, as a serif font can be difficult to read in type smaller than 12pt. If using serif fonts, keep your lines short and concise and your font at least 12pt in size.

Italicize for impact only. Unless you are using a script font to establish a tone of elegance or sophistication, avoid italicizing your fonts. Not only are italics harder to read, but when used in excess, they become visually insignificant. Italics gain power when used sparingly: you get the chance to emphasize a point and your audience will naturally pause over that point.