Cue rant:
Developers and programmers and layout specialists, get a clue! I know it’s trendy and the common thing to put texts in subdued or even pastel shades on white or other subdued pastel shades. It makes for a very artistic look. I get that. The problem is, for anyone who doesn’t have perfect vision–which includes a high proportion of everyone I know–those kinds of presentations are incredibly hard to read due to the lack of contrast.
I’d be willing to bet that up to 50% of the reading public skips over your oh-so-stylish and oh-so-attractive work because they can’t read it–especially if it’s in a miniscule font. I know I blow right by anything like that for that very reason. I refuse to hold a magnifying glass up to a monitor to try and read anything like that.
For example, the information booklet of an older CD I picked up today by an artist I like was printed in kind of a burnt orange hue on dark lavender background. I couldn’t read a single word. I had to google the album to get a list of the tracks! (Which I promptly printed out in black ink on white paper and taped into the booklet. 🙂 )
Your best bet of getting higher readership numbers is to present your text, whether on-line or on paper, in a crisp font with a shade that provides a strong contrast to whatever the background is. The paler the color of the font, the less likely it is to be read by higher quantities of readers.
But, it’s your business, so it’s your call. It’s just sad that you seem to be losing track of the fact that if you desire communication, you have to first connect with the reader.
End rant.
Have a nice evening.
D