You may or may not be familiar with the word ‘favicon’, but chances are you see these every day!
What is a Favicon?
A favicon, or “favourite icon”, is a file containing a small icon, that is associated with a website. The favicon can be seen in the visitor’s web browser tab and usually is a representation of a brand i.e. their logo or identifying symbol.
For example, you can see the favicon for reddit in the image to the right, which clearly shows their iconic branding.
Why Should I Use a Favicon?
The main reason a website should have a favicon icon is improving user experience (UX).
Favicon’s make a web page simple to identify, whether you have a million web browser tabs open, or if you’re sifting through your bookmarked websites.
Furthermore, Google has also started using these icons in their search results – again, in the aim to improve their visitors’ UX.
How Do I Create A Website Favicon?
Creating a favicon for your website is easy and is something all websites should have! Here’s a couple of options you could use to get you started:
1. Create Your Own Favicon
This icon might be part of your own logo or branding that you resize in a photo editing software program, such as Adobe Photoshop.
Or, you might simply jump onto a free icon website and download the exact size that you need. However, the free icon option will mean that your favicon is not unique to your business (but it is still better to have one, than to not have one).
2. Hire a Professional
Getting a professional to create and upload your favicon is always going to be the best option. Why? You can specify to them what you would like your icon to display, or they can recommend an option that they think would work best for your site.
If you’re a DigitUX SEO Client, we can even create and upload your favicon for you free of charge!
How Do I Upload A Website Favicon?
There are different ways to add favicons to a website, but as always, care should be taken in your decision.
1. Back End Upload
Adding your favicon image file manually to the website involves uploading it to the server and then inserting some code into your website’s header. For details on what this code should include, we would recommend discussing this with your web developer (who may even be able to do the job for you!).
2. Front End Upload
If you’re using a user friendly CMS such as WordPress – great! Uploading your new favicon is as simple as following the steps below:
- Login to your WorPress dashboard
- Click ‘Appearance –> Customize’ in the left hand menu
- Click ‘Site Identity’
That’s it! Once you’ve made it to this section, simply upload your image under ‘Site Icon’ and click save.
Need help with favicons or improving UX web design? We can help! Contact DigitUX today.