Designing Business Documents - Text Matters

1 DesigningBusiness DocumentsAdapted by Chris Burke from the Monotype Desktop Solutionsseries by Alison Black, Paul Stiff, and Robert WallerMonotypebusdocpages_quark 4/6/02 9:18 pm Page 1 Editor Andrew Boag (Monotype Typography Ltd)American consultantDwayne Overmyer(University of Michigan, USA)First published in 1992 Monotype Typography LtdPerrywood Business ParkSalfordsRedhillSurrey RH1 5 JPEnglandCopyright 1992 Monotype Typography LtdAll rights reserved; no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechani-cal, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Business DocumentsISBN 0-900763-25-6 This publication is adapted from the Monotype Desktop Solutions series:Monotype Desktop Solutions: Designing Reports and PresentationsISBN 0-900763-06-XMonotype Desktop Solutions: Designing Forms and CataloguesISBN 0-900763-07-8 Monotype Desktop Solutions.

2 Designing Newsletters and BookletsISBN 0-900763-08-6 SoftwareThe text for this publication was written in Microsoft Word Pageswere made-up using QuarkXPress Illustrations were made in QuarkXPress ,and Adobe Illustrator main text is set in on point Nimrod. Captions are set in 7 on point Arial designRoundel Design GroupText designChris BurkePrinted in England byThe Midas PressTrademarks and registered namesMonotype is a registered trademark of The Monotype Corporation , Monotype Baskerville, Monotype Bodoni, Nimrod, Rockwell, and Times NewRoman are registered trademarks of The Monotype Corporation plc. Century Gothic and Monotype Sorts are trademarks of The Monotype Corporation plc. Microsoft Word is a registered trademark of Microsoft is a registered trademark of Quark Illustrator is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Typography IncSuite 50453 West Jackson BoulevardChicagoIllinois 60604 USAbusdocpages_quark 4/6/02 9.

3 18 pm Page The purpose of typography52 Planning and Designing within your Matching software to documentpreparation Testing out your design Checking93 Content and Access Numbering Using styles and tags to format text124 Principles of Type size, line length, and Text alignment and Paragraphs175 Typography is not Office practice versus printing Aspects of typographic style18 ContentsReports and Page A page grid207 document Cover and preliminary Headers, footers, and page Section headings228 Problems of page Page Placing illustrations and tables239 Making your message Using type to show Using space to show Visual identity2610 Alternatives to Graphs and charts30 Letters, memos, and faxes11 Setting Are grids relevant ?

4 Space after address3413 Points of information3514 Technology and Consider your decisions36busdocpages_quark 4/6/02 9:18 pm Page 3busdocpages_quark 4/6/02 9:18 pm Page 45 Section purpose of typographyTypography is Designing with type in order to com-municate a message. Desktop publishing (DTP) offersyou the facilities to use type in many sizes andstyles to achieve a professional look. You might easily be tempted to jazz-up your Documents withall the special effects you can muster if you dothis, you may end up having more fun than yourreaders. Restraint is essential, so that the content of Documents is clearly understood. Typographyshould not call attention to itself its purpose is to make work easier for the Designing , you should put yourself in thereader s place.

5 Try to think through everything youdo from the reader s point of view. You cannot forceanyone to read anything, but you can make a docu-ment clear, accessible, and adaptable, to help read-ers navigate their way around the text for anypurpose. There are certain principles of legibilityand perception which should be followed to helpachieve this (see Section 4 Principles of legibility).Readers will have preconceptions about the sizeand general layout of a company report, or even anofficial letter, based on their past experience withthat kind of document . Before reading at a word level, they may have started reading on a globallevel, flicking through and picking up begin to identify adocument by its physical appear-ance: format, size, apparent com-plexity.

6 They will already haverecognized different kinds ofinformation before they begin toread the THEWORLDW ednesday 15 July 1992 Manchester and London30pOOH! WHAT A PICTURET here are certain prin-ciples of legibility andperception whichshould be followed tohelp achieve this (seeSAILORS INSCURVYSCARES hiver me tembers and hoist the main-sail! First recorded case in 100 yearsThere are certain princi-ples of legibility and per-ception which should befollowed to help achievethis Readers will have pre-conceptions about the sizeand general layout of acompany report, or evenan official letter, based ontheir past experience withthat kind of reading at a word level, they may have start-ed reading on a globallevel, flicking throughand picking up structural-legibility and perceptionwhich should be followedto help achieve this willThe purpose of typographyTypography is Designing with typein order to communicate a publishing (DTP) offers youthe facilities to use type in manysizes and styles to achieve a profes-sional look.)

7 You might easily betempted to jazz-up your documentswith all the special effects you canmuster if you do this, you may endup having more fun than your read-ers. Restraint is essential, so that thecontent of Documents is clearlyunderstood. Typography should notcall attention to itself its purpose is to make work easier for the Designing , you should putyourself in the reader s place. Try tothink through everything you dofrom the reader s point of view. Youcannot force anyone to read any-thing, but you can make a documentclear, accessible, and adaptable, tohelp readers navigate their wayaround the text for any purpose. How it worksThere are certain principles of legi-bility and perception which shouldbe followed to help achieve this (seeSection 4 Principles of legibility).

8 Readers will have preconceptionsabout the size and general layout of aReaders will quicklypick up the norm ina document . Inreports and propos-als, this is likely to be continuoustext. company report, or even an officialletter, based on their past experiencewith that kind of document . Beforereading at a word level, they mayhave started reading on a globallevel, flicking through and pickingup structural cues and from novels, users rarely readdocuments from beginning to end:they have their own purposes andtasks, which the document mustaccommodate. The pros and coms of doing it yourselfEven in correspondence, like letters,memos, and faxes, where there can-not be much deviation from thenorm, simple graphic features canmark out different kinds of informa-tion.

9 The rest of this booklet gives someguidance on the design of reportsand correspondence. You may wantWhen Designing ,you should putyourself in thereader s to thinkthrough every-thing you do fromthe reader s pointof [joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for ]gwedr] vt(59)[mettre ensemble] join,put together; link,connect ( , to); [relier]~ les mains, join hands|| [ins rer] enclose,annex || ]contacter] getin touch with, contact ||tel. get through to || Fig.~ l utile agr able,combine Business withpleasure; ~ les deuxbouts, make(both) endsmeet vpr se ~ , join(qqn).jockey[joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for [joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for ]gwedr] vt(59)[mettre ensemble] join,put together; link,connect ( , to); [relier]~ les mains, join hands|| [ins rer] enclose,joie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for [joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed.

10 Sauter de ~jump for [joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for ]gwedr] vt(59)[mettre ensemble] join,put together; link,connect ( , to); [relier]~ les mains, join hands|| [ins rer] enclose,annex || ]contacter] getin touch with, contact ||tel. get through to || Fig.~ l utile agr able,combine Business withpleasure; ~ les deuxbouts, make(both) endsmeet vpr se ~ , join(qqn).jockey[joke] mjockeyjogging[dgogn] mfaire du~, go joggingjoie[gwa] fjoy,gladness, delight;avec~, with delight;d une ~ d bordante,overjoyed; sauter de ~jump for Systems7 April 1992memo Production schedule for Aprilto Decemberfrom Jennifer Wells x678toMichael Balcon, Adam Barnes, Georgina Pompidou, AlanTanner, Louis MarseillaiseBrain Perrain fax 071 634 5670 Margaret Anouilh fax 010 1 345 897 0756 Typography is Designing with type in order to communicate amessage.