A favicon – the small, 16×16 pixel image that appears next to a website name in your web browser favorites list, bookmarks list, and search bar – is an important part of your online brand identity. A favicon can help a website stand out in a list of favorites or bookmarks, and it can become a visual cue that instantly evokes emotions based on the brand promise. It creates a sense of consistency, credibility, and recall of your brand. Your business needs a favicon if you want to look like a big brand to the online audience, and here’s how to create one.
What should your favicon look like?
If you took the time to design a company logo that accurately reflects your brand, then it should be the first image you consider for your favicon. Most favicons are simply a company’s logo design sized down to 16×16 pixels. If your full logo is illegible at such a small size, then consider using just a portion of your logo.
Even if your logo (or a section of your logo design) doesn’t work well as a tiny favicon, all hope is not lost to retain brand consistency. You could pull the first letter (or initials) or your company name and use that as your favicon. Keep that letter in the same typeface that is used in your logo and branded materials to achieve the consistency that you need.
For creative inspiration of favicons that aren’t exact duplicates of company logos, visit websites like Amazon.com, Google.com, and Zappos.com. Google’s favicon is a good example of what you can do with a technology logo.
How do you add a favicon to your website?
Adding your favicon to your website is quick and easy. First, create your favicon and save it at 16×16 pixels in JPEG or GIF format. That’s your original art file. Next, re-save that file using the specific filename of favicon.ico, which is the standard name of favicon files. Finally, upload the favicon.ico file to your website’s root directory (consult with a web designer or developer if you need help uploading files or finding your site’s root directory) and add the following code to your site, replacing “www.mywebsiteURL.com” with the URL of your own site:
<link rel=”shortcut icon” href=”http://www.mywebsiteURL.com/favicon.ico”>
Favicons are fairly standard on websites these days, so your business needs to have one in order to look like a credible business with staying power. In other words, something as simple as a favicon can create a sense of trust in your website and company that might make the difference between customers choosing to buy from you instead of your competitors.