Having an SSL certificate on your e-commerce website is extremely important. You absolutely need one.
At Growfio, we take website security very seriously and you should too. It’s vital for all small business owners to make sure their website is properly secured. This is especially true if they’re selling products or services online. If transactions are happening on your website, you need an SSL certificate.
In this post, we’re going to look at one aspect of website security, the SSL certificate, and why it’s important to have one on your e-commerce website.
What is an SSL certificate?
SSL stands for “secure sockets layer.” Basically, SSL is one of the ways that your website can encrypt data and send it places. If your data isn’t encrypted, then it’s much easier for hackers to access. When your site has an SSL certificate, you’re essentially broadcasting to anyone browsing the site that any sensitive data will be encrypted.
You can probably see why this is extremely important for some websites. There are some sites on the internet which require you to input sensitive information like your credit card number, social security number, or password. If an e-commerce website doesn’t have an SSL certificate, there are a lot of people who will notice and they won’t enter in their card information. You can’t blame them either since there’s a good chance that their card information will get stolen. At Growfio, our clients have nothing to worry about because our Spruce and Redwood website plans include an SSL certificate.
What does an SSL certificate look like in a web browser?
A lot of websites, especially e-commerce ones, have an SSL certificate installed on their site whether or not you’ve realized it. Different web browsers will display SSL certificates differently, though they usually involve a padlock icon in the URL address bar. For example, here’s how Growfio’s SSL certificate looks on Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Chrome appearance:
Firefox appearance:
Safari appearance:
Websites without a certificate will have “http://” in their web address. On the other hand, those with a certificate will have “https://”.
A few reasons why having an SSL certificate is important
So, now that you have a general idea of what an SSL certificate is, we’ll go over a few of the reasons why it’s important that you get one for your e-commerce website.
It helps make the customer feel at ease
Believe it or not, a lot of customers still feel uneasy about putting important information online. This is especially true when it comes to online shopping, which requires customers to enter in important information like credit card numbers. Did you know close to 50% of people actively worry about their information being stolen when they shop online? Make sure your customers have nothing to worry about.
Most modern browsers will actually warn people if a certain website doesn’t have an SSL certificate. The alert is usually shown in the URL address bar or sometime’s it’s an entire page alerting visitors to proceed with caution. Here’s what Google Chrome, the most used web browser, will display.
Secure
Info or Not secure
Not secure or Dangerous
Over 50% of people will not shop on a website if they get a warning about a site not have an SSL. Plus, you have to imagine that this number will only go up as more people become knowledgeable about internet security.
As a small business owner, these are customers you can’t afford to lose. By having an SSL certificate, you can ensure that potential customers will feel at ease shopping on your site. You can also ensure that you won’t lose any business due to customers feeling unsafe about buying on your website.
Google rank boosts SSL websites
Google, the most popular search engine, favors secure sites over non-secure ones. They announced that websites with a SSL 2048-bit key certificate will see a small ranking benefit. When it comes to ranking higher on Google with SEO, every little thing helps.
It’s required to accept credit card payments
If you plan on accepting credit card payments on your website, then you’ll need an SSL certificate. Many web hosting companies will refuse to set you up with a merchant account unless you have an SSL certificate. Furthermore, in order to comply with payment card industry guidelines, you’ll need to get a certificate.
Protect yourself from bad PR
All it takes is for one customer to have their information stolen from your website and then your business’ reputation will be ruined. Imagine what will happen if that customer goes on Facebook, Twitter, or Yelp to complain, especially if it’s a public review. It won’t be impossible for a customer to make the link between their information being stolen and your site not having an SSL certificate, especially if they don’t do much online shopping. Please make sure your business has an SSL certificate before it’s too late.
Does every website need an SSL certificate?
You may be wondering “Do I need an SSL certificate?” If you run a website that only gives information and customers are not required to put in any information, then an SSL certificate is a low priority for you (although, there are benefits to getting one).
If you run a website that does require customers to input some information, such as usernames and passwords, then an SSL certificate is a top priority. Finally, if you run a site where customers are expected to enter payment information and emails, then getting an SSL certificate should be one of your highest priorities.
SSL certificates are included in our Spruce and Redwood website plans if you’re interested in keeping your website secure. Growfio’s website plans include other forms of website security, since we know you’ll need that too. Do yourself a favor and get an SSL certificate on your site sooner rather than later.
