When setting up a website, you cover all areas including; perfect domain name, graphics, hosting and content. The only thing missing now is an SSL certificate and here is why it’s important.

What is SSL Certificate?

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) signifies how your website communicates with visitors so that they can browse, shop and share their data online without any security risk. In other words, it would keep the visitors on your site safe. An SSL certificate will protect your site from digital bugs including man in the middle attacks.

But many small business owners dismiss it as not being crucial for their site. They think their site won’t get attacked because it is just not that big of a deal. But what they don’t realize it is that most interceptions are done electronically. These bugs are constantly on the lookout for vulnerabilities and if your site is vulnerable it will be attacked.

Here are a few reasons your site needs an SSL certificate;

Secure Transactions

If your website accepts major credit cards for online shopping then you are going to need a merchant account, which requires your site to have an SSL certificate. Most web hosting companies require websites to be secured with an SSL before accepting credit cards.

If you are not using an SSL certificate then you are putting your customer’s financial information at risk. This is going to be bad for business.

Password Protection

If your website requires users to log in to the website in order to access it will need password protection. Anything that needs to be secure online needs to be done with an SSL certificate. Just like you need to protect client’s financial info, you also need to secure their passwords and other information.

Web Form Security

If your website deals with real estate or an education counsellor then your website will collect information. This means your site will be having questionnaires asking clients about their employment history, education details etc. If your clients are leaving valuable information with you, it means that they are trusting you with their personal data.

This kind of information can be intercepted by hackers. If you do not want to take chances for your site to be hacked then secure it with an SSL certificate.

You have to secure your online forms with an SSL certificate. If you skip this step it could bring you a bad reputation and clients won’t be willing to do business with you.

Boost Your Ranking

Google has recently announced that going to a SSL ceritifcate will give you a minor ranking boost. This ranking boost will only be considered as a light weight signal, but nonetheless it will help increase your rank. Google states it has an impact on "fewer than 1% of global queries" but said they "may decide to strengthen" the signal because they want to "encourage all website owners to switch from HTTP to HTTPS to keep everyone safe on the web."

So are you convinced or do you need more reasons to secure your site with an SSL certificate? Remember this is your businesses reputation and one small mistake can lead to irreparable damage. In short, SSL certificates keeps your website safe from a number of security risks. It is the greatest responsibility of the website owners to secure the user data as well as make their website completely scam-free.