Outside of the design world, most people don't give fonts a second thought. When designing logos or websites, I will ask clients to decide between certain fonts, and the answer is "I don't know, you choose." Which is fine, because I can take the company's branding, industry, and other factors into context and find a great font. Not every designer will put as much thought into your font choices, however, so it's important for you to be able to pick your company's typography set.
A simple font change can change your whole feeling about a company. Don't believe me? Let's do a little exercise, then. Let's pretend that you know nothing about car brands, but you are in the market for a high-end, luxury vehicle, and you are going to choose the cars you will look at by their logo. You see the logo below. What do you think?
Looks nice, right? Silver emblem, high-class-looking font. But what if the only thing that changed about this logo was the font? How would you feel about the company below?
Not to great, right? Looking at this logo, I imagine that Mercedes-Benz is some sort of funky car company that only sells tie-dye cars. What about the company below?
This font is cool for a band, bad for a luxury car retailer. This makes me think of beat-up cars with 20 bumper stickers on the back. Pass. And last but not least, what about the company below?
Judging only by the font, I would say that this company sells vintage ford trucks that come with a free Johnny Cash CD.
Your font is a huge part of your company's branding, and believe it or not, it can make or break your chance with a prospective customer. So the next time you are getting a new website or logo, make sure that the font conveys the vibe that you want for your brand.