When your goal is closing an online sale, website security becomes a huge priority. If your client does not feel safe giving their payment details and other sensitive information on your website, it does not matter how great your product or website is, or how good an offer you are making, you will not make the sale. You therefore need to show your customers a visual proof that you are trustworthy and that all sensitive information they will provide on your website will be protected. An SSL certificate makes it possible to do this.
SSL or Secure Socket Layer in full, works by securing by encryption, data that is sent over the internet between a visitor’s browser and your website. It ensures that data sent is confidential and helps to authenticate an ecommerce website and enhance the integrity of data sent when making a sale. It is therefore regarded as an international standard when it comes to website security. There are however different levels of encryption required depending on how complex your business is and also how many transactions you project to process. To help you choose a proper certificate, here are a few tips:
1. eCommerce Website Security
Different vendors offer different SSL certificates that offer different assurance levels. If you are accepting payments online, if would be a great idea to use a certificate that offers the highest level of encryption and assurance. The extra cost of purchasing a certificate with maximum assurance is worth the customer confidence that your store will inspire. Additionally, this added security will translate into increased sales for your business.
2. Issuance Speed
How fast you need your SSL certificate is an important factor that will help you make a decision on the certificate to select. If you want to start receiving payments as soon as possible, you may want to go for a certificate that can be issued instantly so that you do not lose potential sales. You may however decide to go with a temporary certificate that offers a low assurance level as you are waiting for completion of the validation process of a stronger certificate that offers higher security levels for your website.
You should therefore note that the speed of issuance is directly proportional to the validation level that your business gets, and also the security guarantee the SSL certificate offers. Business validation could range from simply checking your domain name against registration information available in the WHOIS directory to reviewing business credentials that could include Dun & Bradstreet ratings, licenses, and articles of incorporation.
3. SSL Certificate Warranty
The amount of guarantee that is included in your SSL certificates enables your visitors weigh how seriously website security is to you. Highly-assured SSL certificates come with a higher guarantee because the validation process of your business is more thorough and therefore gives more assurance to customers. If a fraudulent activity occurs that is directly related to a customer’s transaction with a website having an SSL certificate, the company/authority that issued the certificate will reimburse the customer for amounts between $1000 and $1,000,000. It is possible for visitors to instantly identify the level of security a website has based in the SSL certificate warranty.
4. Price and Number of Domains
Do you want to secure only one domain or are the pages you would like to secure on different domains? You can buy SSL certificates for individual domains or in bulk for domains and also to secure VPNs. You will therefore need a certificate for every domain that is part of an online transaction so as to protect your customer’s information by securing transaction made every step of the way.
You should also remember to renew your SSL certificate to avoid putting your website and business at risk. Security is very important to customers and losing your secure status can lead to huge drops in customer confidence levels. When an SSL certificate has expired, many browsers will usually display an error message to your customer. The time and effort needed to maintain your SSL certificate is therefore worth your while. You can even opt for multi-year options if you plan to have the certificate for a while. When it comes to cost, multi-year certificates are cheaper and you therefore stand to save some money if you buy multi-year or auto renewal certificates.
Your Savings: Up to 35% on SSL Certificate at GoDaddy
5. Website Security Seals
Displaying a security seal is another visual indicator that inspires trust in your customers and leads to them having confidence giving sensitive information on your website. It therefore helps to confirm whether the SSL certificate you are buying includes a website security seal. In most cases, these seals are used on homepages and landing pages so that from the very first interaction visitors have with your website, they are assured of your company’s credibility. It is an integral part of your relationship with your customers to build trust and doing this will convert your visitors into loyal customers. Companies with little brand awareness and who are looking for additional ways of building credibility online stand to benefit most from website security seals
6. Customer Support
When you are experiencing a problem online, especially when it is one related to how your visitors perceive your website’s security, reaching a real person 24/7 to help out is always a life saver. You should therefore check out whether you will have customer support representatives available round the clock via email, phone, or live chat to help you out of a sticky situation. Having someone help you with a problem you encounter in real time is very important for when something actually does happen.
Need Know: The Different Types of SSL Certificates
SSL certificates assure your customers that you are serious about website security. It provides a visual sight that you are what you say you are and that all sensitive information including payment details and personal information provided on your site will be encrypted making them impossible to intercept during transmission. One of the biggest reasons behind abandoned shopping cards is still concerns about security and therefore, installing an SSL certificate and displaying a valid sign instills confidence in your customers and this leads to increased sales for your business.
