Just look at your phone, a billboard, your coffee cup, or even the different styles used in this blog post. But that physical piece remains important, even in the digital sphere. Today, thanks to computers, open source fonts, and scalable computer typography, it's a lot easier to arrange letters and characters.
To understand where the importance of arrangement comes in, I like to think back to Johannes Gutenberg's printing press. At one point in time, people practiced typography using printed materials - meaning they were literally taking letters and characters and arranging them in physical space. Notice that it's about more than just the design of letters and characters the arrangement of those letters and characters is just as big a part of it all. That refers to the selection of point size, line length, and spacing, both on a single line and throughout an entire page or piece of work. Typography is the art and technique of arranging type, type meaning letters and characters. But it turns out there's a lot more to it than that. So, what do you say? Are you ready to take your DIY design skills to the next level? Let's get started.Ĭlick on a section header below to jump to that section:īefore taking this course, typography - to me, at least - was more the art of scrolling through a dropdown menu until I found a font that looked like it could work. This is why I wanted to write this post: to share the most important learnings and resources with my fellow marketers. I realized that paying attention to even the littlest details of type can make all the difference in the world when you're laying out an email, ebook, or image for social media. Couldn't hurt to learn how to identify a good font from a bad one, right?
Why typography? Turns out that while the importance of typography is often overlooked, it plays a critical role in strengthening your brand, creating interest in your product, and highlighting your central message. Knowing that, I decided to sign up for a typography course at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design.