UltraBoard HD™
UltraBoard is one of the best foam core boards that a sign company can buy for great looking signs. Our UltraBoard Classic and UltraBoard White DP foam core boards are one of the top selling substrates for fantastic looking signs. But having a top performing substrate is only half the battle. An effective sign has to have good design as well. And what is a key component to good sign design? Fonts!
Fonts, fonts, fonts. There are a million to choose from for every flavor of sign design. So where does one get something new? Below we have listed some great font resources on the web for sign companies looking for the latest and greatest font trends. Wether you want something besides the standards that come with your OS, or you are trying to match that evasive typeface that is a client must-have, these sign company font resources will get you on your way to the best sign design.
Dafont.com
Dafont.com is one of the simplest and straightforward font resources for sign companies. It features simple categorization of fonts as well as an excellent preview of custom text for hundreds of fonts at once. In addition, fonts are easily filtered by licensing type if there is a concern for usage rights in large commercial sign applications.
Visit Dafont.com (external link) →
Fontsquirrel.com
Fontsquirrel.com is a hip and modern site that features a great what’s hot section to see some of the latest trends in popular fonts. There is also a great tool, powered by Fontspring Matcherator, for font identification where users can upload an image of a select font for generated matches. Note that many fonts are available for download directly from the site; but some may link to a 3rd party site that will require some form of registration or signup for access to download a typeface.
Visit Fontsquirrel.com (external link) →
Google Fonts
Primarily intended as a web designer resource, Google Fonts is also a great place to access fonts for sign companies. With it’s squeaky clean interface and excellent style filtering capabilities, Google Fonts makes it easy to search and preview hundreds of styles.
Visit Google Fonts (external link) →
Behance.net
Not only is Behance the go-to resources for designers to showcase their portfolio, but it is also a great resource for trendy designer-created free fonts. Simply use the search field located at the top of the home page to search for the term “free font”.
Visit Behance.net (external link) →
1001fonts.com
1001fonts.com has a very straightforward interface and almost 40,000 different typefaces for download. As with most font sites, there is a “Trendy”, filter to let you see what’s hot in recent typefaces.
Visit 1001fonts.com (external link) →
Things To Keep In Mind
Read the Fine Print
Always, always, always check the licensing of the fonts that you are accessing. Typefaces that will be used to build customer logos for branding, packaging, or commercial signage for large marketing campaigns should have the proper licensing to avoid potential legal liabilities for both you and your client. While many of the resources listed above provide free fonts, there may be limitations in their licensing for commercial use or number of usage instances. Always read the fine print in the font license included with font downloads.
Save, Save, Save
Always save a copy of the font file somewhere besides your local computer’s downloads folder. If your computer is ever corrupted, it can be a nightmare to try and relocate and rebuild your clients’ design files. Create a folder on your company’s file server (hopefully it is saving periodic backups), or an external hard drive; and save your fonts for easy sharing and future access for reuse and sharing.