Have you ever
asked yourself ‘what is a favicon?‘, or you may have been offered it as part of
your website design. Well, the following will tell you what it is.
A favicon
is a small icon (16 x 16 pixels) which represents your website address recognition.
It’s like a Logo for your website, which other internet users can see as part
of your domain name address for your website. The term favicon is an
abbreviation of ‘favorites icon’. In fact, if you look at your list of
Favorites, you will notice that each favorite has its favicon beside it.
A favicon
is an icon that represents your website. Have a look at the favicon below for the
Telstra website:
Notice
how the Telstra favicon is the same as their logo.
Why a favicon is important for your website
Although
a favicon isn’t an essential part of your website, it is an important part of
your branding. In today’s environment of tabbed internet browsing, where
multiple windows can be open at the same time, your favicon helps to ‘own’ your
tab. This makes it easier for your customers to identify your site from all the
others.
Choosing
not to have a favicon, simply means that you have a generic page icon
representing your website – just like millions of other websites. Make yourself
stand out in the crowd. Having a favicon adds a further layer of
professionalism, contributing to your sites overall trust factor.
And the
good news is, it will not normally cost any more to include it in your website
design (see below for details).
Essential criteria for a great favicon
As your
favicon is small, you need to be really smart about how you use the space. The 3
essential criteria for a great favicon are:
1. Must be legible/understandable: Can the
user decipher what your favicon is? The simpler the shape and the fewer the
colours – the easier and more recognisable a favicon will be.
2. Must have an obvious link to your business:
Is it obvious that the picture shown in your favicon relates to your small
business? Don’t try and be cryptic. Keep it simple.
3. Where possible, must be consistent with
your website logo: Consistency between your business, your website and your
favicon are important design considerations. Remember, your existing website
logo is the key.
Designing your favicon
The
simplest approach is to ensure your favicon is the same as your website logo.
If this is not practical, where for example your website logo includes words or
pictures, a favicon may be a derivative of one or more of the following items:
Your logo
Your
small business name
Your
small business category
Your
primary product or service
Your
mascot
Your
brand colours
The logo
is great, but it has too many words/letters to be suitable for a favicon.
Therefore, the favicon has taken just one part of the logo – the letter ‘D’ in
blue. Fantastic.
Learn from other famous favicons
Stuck for
inspiration? It’s a good idea to look at how other successful businesses have designed
their favicon.
Just as
all brands are different, their representative favicons are different. Favicons
are both unique in nature and need to be adapted for a small space.
Good
luck.
When it
comes to websites, I can offer you a rebate on the cost of having your own
website designed, developed and hosted by a national company based right here
in Melbourne. They develop websites from as little as $495, and offer a no
obligation, no deposit service where they come to you and discuss your
requirements. They will also host your website and provide you with an
easy-to-use ‘Content Management System’ for you to make whatever changes you want
later on, as well as free 24/7 support by phone and email.
I have
negotiated rebates of 20% off their prices and all you
need to do is contact me for further details and information.
For further information, contact me below:
David Haigh
(w) http://google.com/+DavidHaighAssociatesAshburton
(t) +61 (0)3 9885 7688
(m) +61 (0)412 550 020
About me
I have recently retired after 30
years consulting for corporate clients such as NAB, AXA, IOOF and AustralianSuper. My
experience covers website design, social media and business strategies. I am
now focussed on providing consulting services to small business.
My services are provided on a voluntary basis, free of charge, and with
no obligation.
