Typophile

"normal people" buying fonts

cph

A friend of mine who is not a professional in any field that you'd buy fonts for ran across my Typographica article today and said to me:

"I was reading your font article. I like the Snell Roundhand Script combined with Stempel Garamond Roman used in Font of the Week [on the Linotype Library web site]. I'll have to think of something to use it for. I used to buy fonts now and then for my web designs but because I lack organisation, I lose them on old hard drives. Thus, I gave up looking. I'm afraid to start up again ... it would be just like [buying books you like even though you don't intend to read them right away]!"

She also said:
"I consider myself the average user. I would say the average user purchases fonts, especially if they are say in the 25+ bracket. I buy them one at a time. I see one I like, I buy it."

I wonder what the ratio of people like this to font pirates is.

Hrant H Papazian

Define "font pirate".

hhp

Nick Shinn

>I see one I like, I buy it.

All my typefaces can be bought as single fonts or family packages (a much better deal) at MyFonts. Most of them are not out-and-out display fonts. There is a high proportion of single-font sales. I don't believe these are necessarily to graphic designers who need one font for a logo. I would also expect professionals to buy the family. So my conclusion is that there are a fair number of "amateur" sales there, in the single font purchases.

jfp

My first best customer still a non professional (non graphic designer at all), who bought the complete PTF collection in 2000 or so? and buy all new typefaces since. I asked to him what he doing with the fonts. He answered just that he like typefaces and buy them for his own pleasure. A real amateur in all sences.

This experience let me conclude:
I don't think we can set up a clear definition on such subject, because of the web, you've got all this earth as potential customer or pirates.

Nick Shinn

A new marketing category is prosumers. A typical prosumer would be someone who buys an expensive professional camera for their personal photography, but it's not a massive hobby.

bieler

Some folks just buy the best tools. Others seek out the cheapest tools. Doesn't matter; professional or hobby.

Gerald

Stephen Coles

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