What is the best way to select a font for a client presentation?

Selecting font depends on presentation type, like technical presentation, formal presentation, creative presentation etc. All these categories has their own set of fonts.

Consider the Audience: Guideline: Understand your client's industry and audience. Different sectors may have varying expectations regarding formality and design aesthetics. Maintain Readability: Guideline: Prioritize readability over elaborate design. Choose a font that is clear and legible, especially when projected on a screen. Limit Font Styles: Guideline: Stick to a maximum of two font styles to maintain a cohesive and professional appearance. A combination of a sans-serif and a serif font often works well. Choose Web-Safe Fonts: Guideline: Opt for web-safe fonts to ensure consistency across different devices and platforms. Common web-safe fonts include Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman, and Calibri.

When it comes to choosing a font for your presentation, "Knowing your audience" is usually less important than brand continuity or technical issues (ex. should you use custom or standard/system fonts).

Consider Brand Guidelines: Guideline: If the presentation is for a specific brand, adhere to its established brand guidelines. This includes using the brand's approved fonts to maintain consistency and brand identity. Evaluate Font Size: Guideline: Ensure that the font size is appropriate for both on-screen and print viewing. Titles and headings can be larger for emphasis, while body text should be easily readable. Contrast Headings and Body Text: Guideline: Create visual hierarchy by using contrasting fonts for headings and body text. For example, pairing a bold sans-serif font for headings with a clean serif font for body text. Check Compatibility with Design Elements:

Selecting the right font for a client presentation is pivotal, and prioritizing readability and contrast is key. Opt for a clear, simple, and consistent font, steering clear of complexity or fanciness. Tailor the font size and style to the presentation format—consider larger, bolder options like Arial Black for projectors or smaller, finer choices like Times New Roman for handouts. Equally important is choosing a font that contrasts effectively with the background and other elements; for instance, light fonts on dark backgrounds or vice versa.

Guideline: Ensure that the chosen font complements other design elements, such as colors, images, & graphics, creating a harmonious visual presentation. Test for Accessibility: Guideline: Consider accessibility by choosing fonts that are easy to read for individuals with visual impairments. High contrast and sufficient spacing between letters can enhance accessibility. Avoid Overly Decorative Fonts: Guideline: Steer clear of overly decorative or stylized fonts, especially in body text. These can distract from the content and make the presentation appear unprofessional. Check for Consistency: Guideline: Maintain consistency in font usage throughout. Consistent font choices create a polished & unified look. Preview and Proofread:

Whenever possible, know your venue and technical setup. If you will be presenting on a huge, high-resolution display in a small conference room, you absolutely can use small fonts. 9 pt body copy should not be a problem. Usually this goes for video conference calls as well as long as you expect viewers to be sitting right in front of their computers. However, if you are presenting on an old projection screen in a lit room with thousands of people, you must go high-contrast and use large font sizes.

Your first consideration should always be whether or not you can use custom / brand fonts rather than system fonts. This is mostly just an issue for PowerPoint, not Google Slides since the latter requires an internet connection and renders fonts through the user's browser. If you will be sending the file to anyone that does not have your custom brand fonts installed on their computer, you will need to send those fonts so they can be installed. This might be a hassle for some people. If they don't install the fonts, the text will likely default to Calibri. The same rule applies if you will be presenting using another organization's equipment. Consider using system fonts in these situations.