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Typography

Typography shapes how your content feels and how easily visitors can read and understand your message. AI Section Builder provides comprehensive typography controls that help create professional, readable, and brand-consistent text across all your content. This guide shows you how to choose and configure fonts that enhance your website's effectiveness.

Understanding Typography Elements​

Heading Font​

Your heading font is used for:

  • Section titles - Main headings for each content section
  • Card headings - Titles within feature cards, testimonials, etc.
  • Major text elements - Important text that needs emphasis

Choose a heading font that:

  • Reflects your brand personality
  • Is highly readable at large sizes
  • Complements your body text font
  • Works well on both light and dark backgrounds

Body Font​

Your body font is used for:

  • Paragraph content - All main content and descriptions
  • Button text - Call-to-action button labels
  • Form elements - Input fields and labels
  • Most text on your site - The primary reading experience

Choose a body font that:

  • Is optimized for readability at smaller sizes
  • Works well for extended reading
  • Loads quickly and reliably
  • Provides excellent legibility across devices

Font Categories and When to Use Them​

Serif Fonts​

Characteristics: Small decorative strokes (serifs) at the ends of letter strokes Feel: Traditional, trustworthy, established, sophisticated Best for: Law firms, financial services, academic institutions, luxury brands

Popular choices:

  • Times New Roman: Classic, traditional, widely available
  • Georgia: Designed for screens, highly readable
  • Playfair Display: Elegant, sophisticated, distinctive
  • Lora: Modern serif with excellent web readability

When to use serifs:

  • Professional services requiring trust and authority
  • Content-heavy sites with lots of reading
  • Brands wanting a classic or traditional feel
  • Academic or educational content

Sans-Serif Fonts​

Characteristics: Clean lines without decorative strokes Feel: Modern, clean, approachable, simple Best for: Technology companies, startups, modern brands, minimalist designs

Popular choices:

  • Arial: Universal, highly readable, safe choice
  • Helvetica: Clean, professional, widely recognized
  • Open Sans: Designed for web, excellent readability
  • Roboto: Google's modern font, optimized for screens

When to use sans-serifs:

  • Modern, tech-focused businesses
  • Minimalist or clean design aesthetics
  • Mobile-first websites
  • International audiences (better for non-English text)

Display Fonts​

Characteristics: Decorative fonts designed for large sizes and short text Feel: Unique, branded, attention-grabbing, creative Best for: Headlines only, brand names, creative industries

Popular choices:

  • Montserrat: Modern, geometric, versatile
  • Oswald: Condensed, bold, impactful
  • Raleway: Elegant, thin, sophisticated
  • Poppins: Rounded, friendly, modern

When to use display fonts:

  • Creative agencies and design studios
  • Brands wanting distinctive personality
  • Headlines and short text only (never for body text)
  • When you need to stand out from competitors

Choosing Font Combinations​

Safe Combinations​

Modern Professional:

  • Heading: Open Sans (Sans-serif)
  • Body: Open Sans (Same font, different weights)
  • Why it works: Consistent, clean, highly readable

Classic Professional:

  • Heading: Georgia (Serif)
  • Body: Arial (Sans-serif)
  • Why it works: Traditional authority with modern readability

Creative Modern:

  • Heading: Montserrat (Display)
  • Body: Open Sans (Sans-serif)
  • Why it works: Distinctive headlines with readable content

Tech/Startup:

  • Heading: Roboto (Sans-serif)
  • Body: Roboto (Same font, different weights)
  • Why it works: Google's font designed for digital interfaces

Font Pairing Principles​

Contrast: Choose fonts that are different enough to create hierarchy

  • Serif heading + Sans-serif body
  • Display heading + Simple body font
  • Bold heading font + Light body font

Harmony: Choose fonts that share similar characteristics

  • Both fonts have similar letter widths
  • Both fonts have similar character personalities
  • Both fonts work well at their intended sizes

Simplicity: Avoid using too many different fonts

  • Maximum 2-3 font families per website
  • Use weight and size variations instead of new fonts
  • Keep it simple for better performance and consistency

Typography Hierarchy and Sizing​

Understanding Text Sizes​

AI Section Builder uses a systematic approach to text sizing:

Section Headings (Largest):

  • Main titles for each content section
  • Should be immediately noticeable
  • Creates clear content organization

Card/Item Headings (Medium-Large):

  • Titles within feature cards, testimonials, team members
  • Smaller than section headings but larger than body text
  • Creates hierarchy within content blocks

Body Text (Medium):

  • Paragraph content, descriptions, explanations
  • Optimized for comfortable reading
  • The most common text size on your site

Muted/Secondary Text (Smaller):

  • Captions, metadata, dates, less important information
  • Uses same size as body text but muted color
  • Provides information without visual competition

Responsive Typography​

Your fonts automatically adapt to different screen sizes:

Desktop: Full-size typography with maximum impact Tablet: Slightly smaller but still prominent Mobile: Optimized for small screens while maintaining readability

Why this matters:

  • Ensures readability on all devices
  • Maintains visual hierarchy across screen sizes
  • Improves user experience on mobile devices
  • Reduces the need for manual adjustments

Font Loading and Performance​

Web Fonts vs System Fonts​

Web Fonts (Google Fonts, Adobe Fonts):

  • Pros: More design choices, consistent across devices, brand personality
  • Cons: Slower loading, dependent on external services
  • Best for: When brand identity is important

System Fonts (Arial, Times, Helvetica):

  • Pros: Instant loading, no external dependencies, universal availability
  • Cons: Limited choices, less unique branding
  • Best for: Speed-critical sites, simple designs

Optimizing Font Performance​

Choose wisely:

  • Select only the font weights you actually need
  • Avoid using too many different font families
  • Consider font file sizes in your choices

Loading optimization:

  • Fonts are preloaded for faster display
  • System provides fallbacks while web fonts load
  • Critical text appears immediately with system fonts

Setting Up Your Typography​

Step 1: Define Your Brand Personality​

Professional/Corporate:

  • Serif or clean sans-serif fonts
  • Conservative, readable choices
  • Focus on trustworthiness and authority

Modern/Tech:

  • Sans-serif fonts with clean lines
  • Contemporary, minimal aesthetics
  • Focus on innovation and simplicity

Creative/Artistic:

  • Display fonts for headlines
  • Unique, distinctive choices
  • Balance personality with readability

Traditional/Established:

  • Classic serif fonts
  • Time-tested, reliable choices
  • Focus on heritage and stability

Step 2: Choose Your Primary Fonts​

Heading Font Selection:

  • Consider your brand personality
  • Ensure it works at large sizes
  • Test readability on different backgrounds
  • Check how it pairs with body font options

Body Font Selection:

  • Prioritize readability over uniqueness
  • Test with actual content lengths
  • Ensure it works well at smaller sizes
  • Verify performance across devices

Step 3: Test and Refine​

Readability testing:

  • Test with actual content, not placeholder text
  • Check legibility on different screen sizes
  • Verify accessibility for visually impaired users
  • Test in different lighting conditions

Performance testing:

  • Check page loading speed with your font choices
  • Test on slow internet connections
  • Monitor for font loading delays
  • Ensure fallback fonts work appropriately

Typography for Different Content Types​

Educational Content​

Best practices:

  • Prioritize readability over personality
  • Use larger body text sizes for comfortable reading
  • Choose fonts optimized for extended reading
  • Ensure excellent contrast with background colors

Recommended fonts:

  • Georgia (serif) for traditional academic feel
  • Open Sans (sans-serif) for modern, accessible reading
  • Avoid decorative fonts for body content

Business/Professional Content​

Best practices:

  • Choose fonts that convey authority and trustworthiness
  • Maintain consistency across all content
  • Use conservative, widely-accepted font choices
  • Focus on clarity and professionalism

Recommended approaches:

  • Single font family (like Open Sans) with weight variations
  • Classic serif/sans-serif combination
  • Avoid trendy or decorative fonts

Creative/Marketing Content​

Best practices:

  • Use typography to express brand personality
  • Balance uniqueness with readability
  • Consider how fonts work with visual content
  • Test fonts with your typical content types

Creative opportunities:

  • Distinctive heading fonts for brand personality
  • Font pairings that reflect your industry
  • Typography that complements your visual style

Advanced Typography Techniques​

Creating Visual Hierarchy​

Size hierarchy: Larger text naturally appears more important Weight hierarchy: Bold text draws attention before regular weight Color hierarchy: High-contrast text appears more important Spacing hierarchy: More whitespace around text increases importance

Font Psychology​

Serif fonts convey:

  • Tradition, reliability, authority
  • Academic credibility, professionalism
  • Time-tested, established presence

Sans-serif fonts convey:

  • Modernity, simplicity, efficiency
  • Innovation, forward-thinking approach
  • Accessibility, universal appeal

Display fonts convey:

  • Creativity, uniqueness, personality
  • Brand distinction, artistic vision
  • Attention-grabbing, memorable presence

Accessibility Considerations​

Font size requirements:

  • Minimum 16px for body text
  • Larger sizes for users with visual impairments
  • Scalable fonts that work with browser zoom

Contrast requirements:

  • Sufficient contrast between text and background
  • Works with your color system settings
  • Maintains readability in different lighting

Reading comfort:

  • Appropriate line spacing for easy reading
  • Text width that doesn't strain eyes
  • Fonts that work for dyslexic users

Common Typography Mistakes​

Avoid These Problems​

Too many fonts:

  • Using more than 2-3 font families
  • Creates visual chaos and confusion
  • Slows down page loading
  • Makes brand appear unprofessional

Poor font combinations:

  • Fonts that compete rather than complement
  • Similar fonts that create confusion
  • Decorative fonts used for body text
  • Fonts that don't reflect brand personality

Readability issues:

  • Fonts too small for comfortable reading
  • Poor contrast between text and background
  • Fonts that are difficult to read on mobile
  • Script or decorative fonts for long content

Performance problems:

  • Loading too many font weights and styles
  • Using fonts that load slowly
  • No fallback fonts specified
  • Fonts that delay page rendering

Testing Your Typography​

Visual Testing​

Different devices:

  • Desktop computers with various screen sizes
  • Tablets in both portrait and landscape
  • Mobile phones with different screen sizes
  • Test actual reading experience, not just appearance

Different contexts:

  • Light and dark themes if you use both
  • Various background colors
  • With and without images/graphics
  • In different content lengths

Performance Testing​

Loading speed:

  • Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights
  • Test on slow internet connections
  • Monitor for delayed font rendering
  • Check fallback font appearance

Accessibility testing:

  • Use screen readers to test font clarity
  • Test with browser zoom at 200%
  • Check contrast ratios with accessibility tools
  • Verify fonts work for colorblind users

Troubleshooting Typography Issues​

Common Problems and Solutions​

Fonts not loading:

  • Check internet connection to font service
  • Verify font names are spelled correctly
  • Ensure fallback fonts are specified
  • Test with different browsers

Poor readability:

  • Increase font sizes for better reading
  • Improve contrast between text and background
  • Choose fonts specifically designed for screen reading
  • Test with your actual target audience

Slow loading:

  • Reduce number of font weights loaded
  • Choose system fonts for better performance
  • Preload critical fonts
  • Optimize font file sizes

Inconsistent appearance:

  • Verify font settings are saved correctly
  • Clear browser cache and test again
  • Check for conflicting theme styles
  • Test across different browsers

Next Steps​

Now that you understand typography:

  1. Choose fonts that align with your brand personality and content needs
  2. Learn about Spacing & Layout to structure your content
  3. Explore Theme Variants for different moods and contexts
  4. Review Colors & Branding to ensure fonts work with your colors

Need More Help?​

Remember: Great typography should be invisible to your readers - it should make your content easy and pleasant to read without calling attention to itself!