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October 28, 2016In a website design, there are few elements that hold the prime importance. Content comes first followed by visuals but one thing that is also of prime importance but many of us tend to miss it is the typography. Typography is defined as the technique and art along with careful arrangement of the typeface so that the written content becomes more readable an appealing to the online visitor. It will be wrong if anyone considers typography as the choice of font or typeface only, because typography has a wide and overall impact on the web page. since, even among a similar typeface there can be graduations which a user can choose from, including the size of the ascender and descender, the serif, counter, the cap height and the x-height, therefore, considering typography as one of the most important elements in the website design is imperative and crucial.
Exquisite uses of typefaces
There are a lot of impressive websites which uses great looking typographic. The advantage that these websites take from this use of typography is that it enhances their quality and beauty and creates the much-needed focus on selected content. Here are a few important factors that you need to consider to take the much-required benefit from the typography on your website:
Few fonts with higher resolution
The main, usually whinny argument against typography is the there are only few fonts available at a designer’s disposal followed by the low resolution of screens. Well, things have changed now. Today, due to the advent of mobile devices, low resolution is a thing of past. Google has also introduced a series of fonts that are suggested to be used on website designs and help in increasing their organic rankings on the search engines.
Just a suggestion
Treat your web content as a user interface. it is part of a web designer’s job to make sure that texts are easy and nice to read on all major browsers and platforms. Correct leading, word and letter spacing, active white space, and dosed use of color help readability. But that’s not quite it. A great web designer knows how to work with text not just as content, he treats “text as a user interface”. Treating your text as user interface informs you how well your users are going to connect with it and aids in identifying loo holes that may lead to an increase in the bounce rate.
Let’s read about some of the impressive websites who have put typography to great work:
Atelier
“Atelier” comes from the French and means “a workshop or a studio.” The website lives up to the namesake definition. The site graphics experiments on the use of the typeface. With various different typefaces in use, lines of different angles, and overlapping colors, the site is bold and aggressive with a youthful vigor. The downside of the site is the large 2560 x 5330 pixel central graphic which is 2.4 MB in size.
Cirq
Deceptively simple in style, the Cirq’s sophistication is in the way the old-style design, looks very modern and updated. The website is for a vineyard and it has lived up to its reputation of being something new, something old, and a totally new technology for graphics. The central design element has a shadow which moves as you move the mouse along the page. There is a price to pay for such craftiness, and that is the 3.4 MB size of the page, and more than 43 https requests.
Max Di Capua
The website is another one which relies on modern sensibilities with a touch of Zen. The front page is sparse, with sans serif fonts, and expounds on the concept of simplicity. The typography is widely spaced, wider than most other websites. However, this allows the design to breathe. It has other supporting text all in the serif font. The font is easy to use, navigate and read. It is playful, as the same time it allows the page to be responsive with the use of overlapping objects and placeholders.
Rijks museum
This is an ambitious rendering of a museum on a page. The name itself is larger than the page or the screen. This gives an illusion that the page is larger than the computer monitor. The main categories are interesting with their innovative use of the navigation system. The page size is less than 1MB, and is well optimized. The page has clean lines, rich typography, and a great understanding of what they want to accomplish with text, copy and typography.
I Shot Him
With a lofty ambition, I Shot Him delivers on the promise to change the world, by changing hearts, minds and habits. What sets this website apart is the innovative use of the design elements, where it hides things but do not necessarily hide them from site. The use of overlapping design may be a bit too much, after a while. However, this coupled with the hand-painted signs, and retro graphic style, makes it visually very strong. The typography is fun and easy to follow.
Conclusion
Typography is an art, that is evolving continuously like the smart technologies. What website designers need to inculcate in their design today is the efficacy that they can drive from the effective use of typography and with the choice of smart type faces. The typography used on any website should be one that aids readability and build focus on the areas where required. There are no such thing as too simple typefaces, all that matters are their choice. Even simpler typefaces work wonders at times if used in the right proportions. To learn more about what kind of type face will fit the requirements of your business websites, tune in to a professional website design agency in Dubai and see how their work can make a difference in our business revenue generation.