Last week, CNN reported a story about a 14-year-old who calculated that US government agencies could save $467 million per year—simply by selecting a different typeface! Incredible, isn’t it? Usually, cost-cutting measures involve using less paper, but this young prodigy figured out how to save millions of dollars in ink alone. By his calculations, changing the typeface from Times to Garamond would result in a 24% reduction in ink. When you consider the cost of commercial printer’s ink or even standard toner cartridges, that savings in ink really adds up. You can read the full CNN article here.
While calculating how much money the US government could save is a novel application, the idea of changing typefaces to save ink has been around a while and comes up every few years. In 2008, the Ecofont typeface was introduced to reduce ink, and thereby reduce the use of chemicals used in ink that are harmful to the environment. In 2010, the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay announced that it could save $10,000 per year in printing cost by changing the default font of campus email to Century Gothic.
What can we, as technical communicators, take away from these studies? Should we rush out to license and start using thinner typefaces? Not so fast. There are several aspects you must consider before changing your typefaces:
- Legibility. Not all typefaces are designed to be read for long periods of time. Some are designed to be more attractive and eye-catching and are better suited for short bursts of text, like headings. Century Gothic, for example, is noted for using 33% less ink than Arial, but is remarkably difficult to read for long periods of time. It also has a silly looking question mark.
- White space. Readers don’t read letter by letter. Instead, they scan the text and recognize word shapes. That’s why you can read “pricniples of tcehniacl comnmuiaction” without much trouble. Using a thinner typeface means that each letter has more white space around it and words begin to look unfamiliar. This slows reading and hinders comprehension.
- Line spacing. In the same vein as white space, different typefaces require different amounts of line spacing depending upon the width of the paragraph and the x-height (height of a lowercase x). Typefaces with a larger x-height require more line spacing so your readers’ eyes can easily recognize the word shapes. The 14-year-old who suggested Garamond was more brilliant than he realized. Garamond has a smaller x-height and therefore requires less line spacing and potentially requires fewer pages.
- Printing. Do you even print your documents anymore? Do your colleagues or customers print your documents? If not, there’s no point in undertaking this exercise that could render your documents less legible.
- Font licensing. Fonts aren’t free. You must be licensed to use the fonts that you’re using in your documents. The license will govern whether you can embed the fonts in a PDF or host them as web fonts that display on your website. Be sure to include the cost of licensing fonts in your decision to reduce ink.
- Reducing ink elsewhere. Look for other places to reduce ink in you documents. Are there superfluous photographs or screenshots? Is there unnecessary shading in your illustrations? Can images be lightened? These are all culprits in using more ink than is necessary. You should adjust these items before considering changing your typeface.
- Identity. Typefaces evoke tones and emotions that your readers identify with. Changing your typeface affects your brand identity and the tone your customer perceives. Remember the uproar when IKEA switch from Futura to Verdana? Don’t take changing your typeface lightly.
In short, remember that your primary objective as a technical communicator is to help your reader make a decision or complete a task. Choose your typefaces first based on how legible they are and then based on how little ink they use.
Post Script: If you're interested in learning why switching to Garamond wouldn't really save the US government $467 million, check out Fast Company's rebuttal.