Too many individuals neglect a small finishing touch that can make a great impact when building a website: the favicon. Don't underestimate the power and impact of the small improvements to your web design; they make a much bigger effect than their actual size. Everything you need to know about favicon specs and how to make a favicon may be found here.
What is a favicon?
Image is taken from Strikingly
A favicon is a small 16x16 pixel icon that is used to symbolize a website or a web page in web browsers. Favicons, which stand for "favorite icon," are most typically seen on tabs at the top of a web browser, but they can also be seen in the bookmark bar, history, and other places. They may even appear on your browser's homepage in some cases, such as on Google Chrome. In other words, the favicon is your website's icon or a visual mark that can be used to identify it on the internet.
Why are favicon specs important?
Despite their small size, favicons are vital to any website, since they improve user experience, branding, and professionalism:
1. User experience
Favicons enhance the user experience of your website by acting as memorable visual cues. They make it easier for users to find your website's tab on their browser and in other programs like the bookmark bar, making it easier to return to the site again and again.
2. Branding
It's critical to pay attention to even the smallest aspects in order to create a truly coherent brand. Favicons help to brand and promote your website by extending your style and language outside the page and into the web browser.
To summarise, there are several reasons to add a favicon:
- Your website will be noticed (i.e. on bookmark lists and tabs)
- Favicons improve branding by helping people to immediately recognize the company and website
- Your website now appears more professional and trustworthy
Favicons provide authenticity and professionalism to your website by making it look sharp and well-thought-out.
How to Make a Favicon?
You wouldn't be here if you didn't want to know what lies beneath the favicons, right? If you've ever wondered what are favicon specs, how to generate a favicon, or what a favicon image is, then paying a visit to Strikingly is one of the smartest decisions you've ever made.
Before learning how and what a favicon image is, you should first understand the standard favicon specs that many webmasters consider. The favicon dimensions should be given a lot of care to avoid conflicts, even though they can be made any way you want them to be.
The most common favicon specs are mentioned here, along with the principal function and purpose that each one serves.
Image is taken from Strikingly
After you've learned about the most frequent sizes and where they're commonly used, it's time to learn how to design and construct your own favicon.
Strikingly has simplified the basic principles for you. You're only a few steps away from creating your own favicon if you follow these procedures.
1. Think about Your Company Name and Logo
Image is taken from Strikingly user’s website
Of all, you can't call your favicon "yours" if it doesn't include any information about you or your company, can you? It is highly recommended that you develop your own logo and name before creating your favicon design. These two will form the foundation for the favicon specs you'll be developing. It will be crucial in ensuring that your customers remember you and your business. So, if you want to catch your visitors' attention, be sure to design an eye-catching design layout that will help you stand out.
2. Create the Image/Design
After you've finished developing your logo and business name, you'll need to generate the favicon's main image. You'll need to use photo editing software or possibly pay a designer for this. If you want to do it on your own, there are a variety of design platforms where you may get support and get ideas. Designers frequently use platforms such as Photoshop and Corel Paint. Even Strikingly can provide you with assured assistance and support in developing that stunning favicon image. Strikingly is the place to go when it comes to professional website design.
3. Convert the Design Template You've Generated
Unfortunately, once you've designed your favicon, you won't be able to stop there. Before you may add a favicon to your website, you must first convert it to a favicon file format. Favicon.ico is the most widely preferred and supported format among all online browsers. You can find a variety of favicon specs or image converters online to help you with this process. Simply upload the favicon image/design, select the right favicon size, and save it in a new favicon file format once you've found one.
How to Add Favicon to Your Strikingly Site
After you've finished developing your favicon template, it's time to put it on your website. Strikingly has outlined some simple tips on how to create a favicon to help you do it correctly. Simply follow these steps, and your favicon adventure is now complete.
- Click the "Settings" menu in the editor of your website.
Image is taken from Strikingly
- Select "Sharing info" from the Settings menu, then click "Upload New Image."
Image is taken from Strikingly
- Don't forget to click "Update" after you've finished uploading your favicon image.
- Select and click "Publish" to see if the changes you've made have been preserved.
Just a tip: if you already have a domain and your freshly modified favicon isn't showing up on your main website, it could be due to a domain set-up mistake. If this is the case, we strongly advise you to send us an email. Please contact us here, and we will make things easier for you.
Designing and understanding Favicon Specs: Some Pointers
Image is taken from Belvg
It may appear that designing something so small is a piece of cake. However, because website icons are so few, you must be extremely precise, as there is no room for error. Here are some suggestions for establishing a favicon that is appropriate for your brand and website:
- Simplicity
The size of favicon specs necessitates precision in your design. Excessive detail, such as fine lines, texture, or shadowing, should be avoided. Instead, go for a big, clear, and basic emblem that people will recognize right away.
• Brand Identity
A favicon should encapsulate the spirit of your website and brand, using the same visual language and color scheme as the rest of your site.
• Little to No Text
Limit yourself to one to three characters if you wish to put typography (text) in your favicon, such as your brand name. Shortening text with initials or abbreviations is a common solution.
• Use of Logos
Image is taken from Google
While some logos appear great in favicon size, most are barely readable when reduced down. If you want to utilize your logo as a favicon, you'll need to make a few changes. Some strategies to make logos function in small favicon specs include omitting the tagline or using simply one initial.
• Color
Keep in mind that based on the context and browser used, the favicon will be shown on various colored backgrounds. As a result, before finalizing the design, make sure to test your favicon on grey, white, and black backgrounds.
Favicon Generators
If you don't know where to begin, making your favicons can be a challenge. These sites may be of great assistance to you if you are looking for the best platforms and favicon generators to make a favicon journey easier.
1. Favicon-Generator.org
You may submit an image file and pick between the normal 16x16 px size for web browsers or a larger one ideal for Android, Microsoft, and iOS with our free favicon generator.
You can keep the existing image dimensions instead of resizing to fit into the favicon specs. Keep note aware that whether you leave this option checked or unchecked, the outcome of your favicon may be skewed. As a result, it's better if your image is already close to being square.
2. Favicon. cc
You may either upload an image to fit into the favicon specs or draw your favicon icon using this free favicon generator. You can use a color picker to select the colors you wish to use, as well as adjust the transparency of the favicon icon.
There's also the possibility of making animated favicon icons. There are further options for making the animation loop, altering, and deleting frames. This favicon generator also offers a preview option, which allows you to see how your favicon will look once it's finished.
3. Favicon.io
You may make a favicon from a word, an image, or an emoji with our free favicon generator. With the text-based option, you may customize the backdrop color and shape, as well as the font family, size, and color. The Favicon generator makes use of Google Fonts, which has over 800 fonts to choose from.
Alternatively, you can upload a file and have the favicon generator convert it to suitable favicon specs. You can also choose from a large number of emoji favicon icons to download.
The produced favicon is compatible with all browsers and systems.
4. Favicon.ico and App Icon Generator
This favicon generator is not only simple to use, but it's also completely free. All you have to do now is submit your favicon and convert it to ICO or PNG format. It also offers a variety of favicon specs from which to choose.
Conclusion
People today utilize websites in more ways than they did in the early days of the internet. Some of us still bookmark webpages, while others add websites to the home screen and utilize them as apps, and still, others use bookmarking sites such as Pocket.
It's critical to stay current on each operating system's icon display needs; if you don't, icons will appear blurry, which isn't very impressive!
