Little do we know, the tone and voice of typography we read everyday influence our decisions. The text we read on a poster causes us to buy products, the type we read on a business card leads us to check out websites, and the font on a flyer makes us more likely to attend events.
When designing your custom posters, a picture’s worth a thousand words, but the type you choose can be worth a whole lot more. There are so many opportunities to get creative with type in your poster. However, it needs to be easily readable, aesthetically appealing, convey your message in its style, and make an impact, all at the same time. Simple right?
Luckily, Chilliprinting are here to give you a rundown of the key typography trends of 2020. So you can use type to your advantage to tell your story.
Top Typography Trends Of 2020
1. Pick’n’Mix
Why select just one type when you could have many? A key print design trend of this year is mixing two or more different fonts together to create a scrapbook-like effect. Since different typefaces are associated with different tones, you can shake up the fonts to shift the tone, and to make your design more dynamic. The tricky part is making sure your different fonts work together and don’t battle for your reader’s attention on your poster.
2. Back to the Future
The design world is seeing a comeback of geometric and futuristic typefaces. We saw space-themed types making a comeback last year and this trend is staying put for 2020. Perfect for promoting your band, advertising a tech event, or giving your business card a veneer of digital, future-looking professionalism.
3. The Overlay Way
If you’re wanting to make your poster eye catching, overlaying your type onto an image is a great way to do this. Influenced by memes and the overlaying of text onto social media video, this design staple has overflowed into print in a big way and is sure to convey a hip and artistic feel in your poster. The key is in the contrast: make sure your text pops out by positioning and coloring it appropriately in relation to your image, and make sure the image fits with the meaning and the design of your type.
4. Handwritten and Homely
For a friendly feel, there’s nothing like a typeface that looks handwritten to tell your story. A huge trend we’ve seen this year has been brush fonts: flowing, approachable and personal. These look like they’ve been made lovingly at home just for your audience, and make them feel special. This can be combined with watercolor effect which looks artistic and unique. In particular if you’re trying to promote a wholesome or homely product, these fonts have been proven to put your audience at ease and bring your poster to life.
5. Less Is More
You’re trying to get all the details of your event on your flyer: first there’s the description, then the title, then the images, then the location, the social media links. Before you know you’ve got a clutter of text. Take a step back. Use a small and simple font, cut back your text and surround it with blank space. This means you can draw your audience’s attention to what actually matters. A minimalist type design creates a sophisticated and professional effect, so your flyer packs a punch and doesn’t get put in the trash.
6. Go Green
Every year, Pantone names a color of the year. For 2017, it’s ‘Greenery’: a fresh and zesty light green with yellow hues. Nature is big in design this year: cactuses are making comebacks, trees are turning up across print, and leafy designs are appearing on business cards. This is making its way into typography trends too, with many businesses choosing green text to promote their brands in print. By going with a fresh green coloring for your type you can convey ideas of freshness, health, vitality and calm. Perfect for advertising your yoga class, cafe, cooking course, farmers market and so much more.
7. Old School Style
Vintage look is by no means one of the newest typography trends. But retro fonts with rough, distressed or faux print effects still dominate print designs. Sometimes the modern world can seem a scary place, so invoking the nostalgia of the past in the type on your flyer can be a great way to create an emotional connection with your audience, and make your product seem classic and reliable.
8. Big and Bold
In a world where attention spans are getting smaller and smaller, a fuss free large design is key to making an impact. In particular for brochures like this one, by selecting a large, bold, and simple font like Helvetica you can convey a simple message without the clutter. There’s no in-between, in typography trends these days it’s mini or monster.
9. Feature Words
You have your audience’s focus for just a few seconds. To get messages across quickly and efficiently, a top tip is to select one keyword to display in a different typeface. By giving that single word a different font, color, size or styling, you can make your message ring out loud and clear, and drive the response you want from your customers or audience.
10. Take Two
It might sound straightforward, but it’s proving a design hit everywhere: duotone. This trend simply takes two bright colors. Design your type and poster using only those colors. Make sure they contrast sufficiently to make each other jump out the page. You can use one for text and one for your background, or divide your text between the two colors. And there you have it! Bright yellow text on a hot pink background? That’ll never go unnoticed.
11. Make Your Own
Last year saw a rise in companies designing their own fonts, with Google and Amazon launching their own types associated only with their brands. It’s now easier than ever to design your own custom typeface using online tools which can incorporate your handwriting and a range of variables to create a completely unique typographic experience. While it might be a little time-consuming at first, when all your print marketing has the same unique typeface, it will help strengthen your brand identity and recognition, so you can be a trendsetter yourself.
Your selected typography is an essential part of your poster design that shouldn’t be undertaken lightly. There’s a whole world of typeform options to communicate your identity, set a tone, tell a story, and encourage your audience to action. By making the most of these top typography trends in type, you can make sure your print marketing is on-trend and unmissable.