Question

Topic: Branding

Title And Font For A Coastal Writer's Web Site

Posted by Anonymous on 8/14/2010 at 4:21 PM ET 125 Points
I'm the author of several books on the North Carolina coast. I'm having my web site redone to modernize and simplify it -- and to make it much easier to use. (Site is RayMcAllister.com. You can see why I want to revamp it.)

The small firm I have working on it is quite good. The header will be a horizontal shot of a waterline (a length of waves coming up onto the beach).

But I'd really like an appropriate font, something that suggests a coastal theme.

And I need a title. Ray McAllister? Author Ray McAllister? Ray McAllister's Books? Ray McAllister's Coastal Books & Gifts? Maybe a two-liner like Author Ray McAllister: North Carolina Coastal Books & Gifts? Maybe something more evocative like: Escape to an Island: Ray McAllister's Books?

I'd appreciate suggestions and any other thoughts.

Thanks.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 8/14/2010 at 8:34 PM Accepted
    Ray, what's the purpose of the website? What are you trying to accomplish with it, and how will you know when it's "working?"

    In order to help you, it's important to know what success looks like for you/the website.

    As for a font, simple is best. Don't try to make too much of a statement with the font. That usually backfires, because when people stop on the homepage they are looking for information, and if they don't see/get what they want, they're gone in a flash.
  • Posted on 8/14/2010 at 8:55 PM Author
    Karen,

    The three domain names I'm using (all of which will point to the same site) are already mine, including my name.

    As to fonts, I agree simpler is better -- but I'd like to get a little fancier than Arial or Times New Roman. If there are any fonts that evoke the ocean, the coast, the beach -- without being over the top -- I'd like to give them a test.

    Thanks so much.

    Ray
  • Posted on 8/14/2010 at 9:00 PM Author
    mgoodman,

    Success will primarily be reflected in the ease and comfort with which users find what they want (mostly books, but also related items like our note cards, island signs and oval stickers) and then being able to buy it.

    The site isn't necessarily to initiate sales, per se. Magazine advertising and social networking drive people to it. I suppose some people do stumble onto it, and I'm obviously happy if anyone spends some time reading about the books, etc. But the goal is simply not to scare off people who come to the site with the intent to buy or at least the intent to check out the products.

    I think you're right: A simple font probably would be a big part of that.

    Thanks!
    Ray
  • Posted on 8/14/2010 at 9:07 PM Moderator
    I think I might leave the choice of font up to your site designer. If the person has any design sense at all, they'll come up with an appropriate one. If you have doubts, ask them to show you a few different options, and then pick one and explain why you prefer it.

    One of the problems here is that it's almost impossible to come up with a tight creative brief for the site, because the goals are fuzzy. They're really subjective, so there's no way to know for sure what will work best.

    In a way, this really isn't a marketing issue; it's a design issue. As marketers, we'd say the best font is the one that generates the greatest success/achievement of your stated goals. But how will you ever know if the font you choose is really the best one ... unless/until you test a wide range of fonts? (Is it even worth it?)

    I'd worry less about the font and more about the images, site content, and your marketing plan. (How will people learn about your site? How will they get there? What's the offer that will grab them? Etc.)
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 8/15/2010 at 9:17 AM Accepted
    The tradeoff that you make with fonts is either the font is a native to most browsers (Arial, etc.) or it's rendered as a picture and use alt-text to have search engines able to read it. Using native fonts allow the website to be zoomed in/out nicely (images don't scale as cleanly).

    As far as ocean fonts go, it's quite subjective. Here are some fonts that might work for you: https://www.fontspace.com/category/ocean
  • Posted on 8/19/2010 at 4:33 PM Author
    Thanks, all. The suggestions on sites, etc., were very helpful. Ray
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