Some digital marketing jargon can be difficult to understand, especially if you are new to the industry. In this blog, we will be dissecting the term ‘favicon’ and explaining what it is, what it is used for and what its benefits are.
What is a favicon?
A favicon is a 16×16 pixel icon that brands your website. It is included in the webpage code and can be seen next to the page title if the browser supports the document interface. Due to their small size, favicons can only be a simple image or three characters of text at most. Favicons are also referred to as tab icons, bookmark icons, URL icons, website icons, browser icons or shortcut icons.
What are they used for?
Favicons might seem like a minor detail, but they are extremely important when setting up a website. Some of their uses include:
Visibility and branding
Favicons help legitimise your website and boost your online branding. They help web users to identify your website when they have multiple tabs open. By associating your site with a certain image, users are able to remember and recognise your website easily.
Bookmarking
Without a favicon, your website cannot be bookmarked on the Chrome browser. Bookmarking is very important in search engine optimisation because Google removes certain ranking signals for all bookmarked websites on the web.
Improve the usability of a website
Favicons are not entirely responsible for your SEO, but they play a big role in ranking your website higher on search engines. By making your site easy to identify on browser tabs, history archives and bookmarks, your users save time, allowing them to browse your website easily. Having a user-friendly website improves interactions and increases the time users spend on your site. This, together with bookmarking and visibility, increases your website’s traffic and SEO.
Why is it good to have them?
A ton of information is added to the web every single day. Unfortunately, we cannot consume all of it, and we, therefore, need filters to help us choose the best sites. With an increase in new websites every day, the role of memorability and recognisability increases. Favicons help narrow down a web user’s search and make it easier for them to remember their favourite websites. Without tools like favicons, using the web would be an overwhelming and chaotic task.
If you’re looking for a digital marketing agency that you can trust, get in touch with our team at CDA today.
