The Ten Most Overused Fonts Our Branding Agency Suggests to Avoid

From content marketing, display ads to the overall design and branding, you should know certain implicit practices when it comes to typography. As a branding agency we know while many fonts and typefaces exist in the world, business owners and designers often fall victim to repetitiveness. Often by using the same common and good old fonts (you’ve probably seen them over and over again).

And as much as there isn’t a serious cause of concern for using them, there is indeed a problem with using them repeatedly in every situation. These fonts are overused and might not have a sense of uniqueness or a touch of wow-effect on your audience.

Avoid These 10 Overused Fonts : Advice From Our Branding Agency

To help make your work more creative and captivating, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most used fonts and typefaces that you should avoid using as much as possible. Discover the top ten overused fonts our branding agency suggests to avoid.

#1: Comic Sans

Think of party invitations, entertainment, and anything fun; Comic Sans isn’t your professional typeface. This childish font has entirely no room in a professional working environment, apart from a preschool setting. It’s only preferable when handling children’s products. And did you know that there has been a move to ban Comic Sans? Yes, you read that right! That’s how much unwant there is for this font.

Apart from being unprofessional, Comic Sans is one of the most common and undesired fonts that you’d want to stay away from even in dealing with children’s stuff.

#2: Papyrus

With a dull aesthetic appeal, Papyrus often viewed as poor quality and ugly typography. When pointing out overused fonts, Papyrus rightfully deserves to be at the forefront. It’s interesting to note that certain blogs have even emerged to highlight its misuse. All the same, you should avoid using this font at all costs, particularly in the business landscape.

#3: Arial

For many years, Arial was the default font for most Microsoft applications. All thanks to the limelight the Calibri font replaced it in Office 2007. During its prime time, Arial was the go-to font and a preferred alternative to Times New Roman. From publications to websites, this iconic font eventually became a victim of overuse. It is a bygone time for Arial use and a high time to drop it for good in 2021.

#4: Times New Roman

Times New Roman comes from the British newspaper; the Times of London. Having also been a default font in Word for many years, Times New Roman shouldn’t be your go-to sans serif option.

Moreover, due to its usage in the daily newspaper, Times New Roman became a favorite of most printers back in the day. And despite the evolution of most typesetting devices, the once-popular font has remained the same. Nevertheless, as a rule of thumb, you need to stay away from all the defaults, and Times New Roman is no exception.

#5: Helvetica

Helvetica is arguably one of the best typefaces and beautiful sans serif font families. It has widely been used to some good effect by most established businesses like Apple. Consequently, it has turned into a common typeface that no longer drives the creative sense it used to.

Also, Helvetica has, to some extent, legibility concerns, particularly for persons with weak eyesight. Some of its characters are not easily distinguishable, making them hard to read. So yes, Helvetica isn’t only overused but also awful in terms of readability and legibility – it has lost its old disparity.

#6: Impact

Impact is another sans serif typeface that’s universally accepted and overused, mostly in headlines. It wouldn’t take a genius to spot this font in headlines, billboards, posters, and logos. The iconic font is mainly preferred for headlines rather than body texts, perhaps due to its boldness.

However, it is too narrow and thin to grab people’s attention, prompting other high-visibility fonts. Generally, it also falls in the group of overused fonts.

#7: Courier New

Courier, initially designed for typewriters, is another family of fonts that falls on the overused list. Designers and branding agencies avoid this font, primarily due to its improperly measured lettering. Its low resolution also makes it unsuitable for today’s consumers as it portrays an outdated ancient design. There surely exist a dozen alternatives of sans serif fonts to cater for Courier’s illegibility on screens.

#8: Trajan

Loved by Hollywood designers and even illustrators, Trajan has been used in movie posters and other film marketing products. Motivated by Roman architecture, Trajan is one of the most accepted professional fonts that can fit in most official occasions.

While it’s a beautiful font for entertainment and epics, this iconic font is another overused font, mostly in films. Plus, unless the audience calls for it, online content is becoming more and more informal, making it unfavorable for many blogs and sites.

#9: Kristen ITC

If Comic Sans is a rip-off, then ITC Kristen is too. This is another utterly childish script typeface that has no room in the business world. It isn’t practical as it appears in the style of a toddler’s handwriting. Its curved lettering also makes it difficult to space words appealingly. You wouldn’t want your work to be perceived as amateurish or rather unprofessional. The only exception to this font would be children’s products.

#10: Bradley Hand

Based on real handwriting, Bradley Hand is another overused font that has lost the glory it once had. During its heyday, it was used in very many invitations, school notices, and storybooks. And due to its personal touch, it also humanizes the look and feel of the digital text. While it may not be the worst font in the world, there are many better alternatives you can consider.

Conclusion

When handling your next project, stay away from these overused fonts, and most importantly, you should avoid fonts used in Microsoft built-in for your designs. If you want to be taken seriously, you need to take time not to abuse one of these fonts, lest it portrays your brand inappropriately.

The good news is that our branding agency can always help craft a unique and captivating font that’s relevant to your business and industry. If you need any help with branding services, you can reach out to us for a free consultation. We’ll be glad to assist.