When looking to do business with any company these days, the first place consumers go to do their research is the internet, and most likely the first stop is your website. Protecting the information of your customers and site visitors is even more critical in this digital age, especially if there is an e-commerce piece to your organization. With personal data such as full names, credit cards, physical addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses being collected by the hundreds if not thousands, the need to avoid any vulnerabilities is paramount to growing and retaining a strong customer base.
What is an SSL Certificate?
SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer, which in more simple terms means the way in which web servers and browsers communicate to encrypt and protect customer data that is being transmitted. It ensures that the site has been verified and information collected will be secured. This is the basic and most standard type of digital certificate you can have.
How does an EV SSL Certificate differ from the SSL Certificate?
An EV or Extended Validation SSL certificate can drastically take the safety of your site to the next level. When you invest in an EV SSL Certificate, the address bar will become green indicating to customers, and potential hackers, that this website is secure. If collecting data is central to your business operations, then the quantity of personal data you have stored on your server can be immense. This means site encryption should be a top priority of your business due to the amount of personal data you collect – it’s definitely a top priority for your patrons. Keep reading to learn all about the seven major benefits of having a commercial EV SSL Certificate.
Why should I invest in an EV SSL Certificate for my site?
1. Foster Trust with Customers
These days news, especially bad news, spreads publicly like wildfire. With personal data being compromised at major companies across the world, building trust with your customers is key to the success of your business. Don’t allow yourself to be targeted for a breach with detrimental consequences. An EV SSL Certificate provides your site with a visible layer of security that has proven to be invaluable to customers.
2. Deter Cyber Attacks
With the added security, an EV SSL Certificate provides, you significantly decrease the likelihood of a cyber-attack, especially phishing scams. The absence of the green seal in your URL as well as your specific company name is an immediate visual indicator that the site is being masked for a fraud’s, making it virtually pointless for a hacker to even try to spoof your site. When there are much more susceptible sites out there, why spend time trying to breach your protected one?
3. Avoid Bad Publicity
Due to the prevalence of online attacks, almost all 50 states have laws in effect requiring reporting to all customers if specific data has been compromised. The hit to your reputation if attacked can be extremely costly and difficult to dig yourself out of. Many of these laws require remedy depending on the severity of the breach. Your precious money is much better spent on an EV SSL Certificate than on picking up the pieces if your site is hacked.
4. Increase Time Spent on Site
By confirming that your customers have in fact landed on a reliable website, customers can take their time reviewing the various pages of your site. This includes a comfort level with filling out forms, signing up for e-mail marketing, amongst others, giving you the valuable data needed to reach your customers and grow your business.
5. Decrease Bounce Rates
When a visitor reaches the first page on your site, they’ll immediately be able to determine that it’s one they can feel comfortable interacting with. The EV SSL indicators have been proven to keep visitors from getting to your site and immediately leaving, or bouncing, to a different one with better consumer protection. Decreased bounce rates can help improve your website conversions.
6. Stay Ahead of the Compliance Curve
As cyber security continues to be a hot topic due to the importance of online transactions to the economy, new regulations are constantly being written in favor of consumer privacy and reassurance. By purchasing an EV SSL Certificate now for your site, you can stay ahead of the game and save yourself an immense amount of additional work in the long run. Making proactive business decisions instead of reactive ones can also give your company a serious advantage in the cyber space.
7. Increase Your Bottom Line
With so many companies doing business online, customers have more choices than ever when it comes to picking which organizations to do business with. Research has shown that ROIs are significantly higher on sites that have the added security layers an EV SSL Certificate provides. Trust is something that doesn’t come easy, and once you build it, you never want to lose it. By showing customers how much you care about their personal information, you will build long-time loyalty, thus increasing your bottom line and amount of repeat business.
In a global economy, the security of your online presence should be put before all else. Many companies today get a large portion, if not the majority, of their sales from online transactions. The payoff for adding an EV SSL Certificate has been shown to infinitely help the businesses that purchase one in a plethora of ways. These include fostering trust with customers, deterring cyber-attacks, avoiding bad publicity, increase the amount of time spent on site, decreasing bounce rates, staying ahead of the compliance curve and increasing your bottom line. The quote that “there is no advertisement as powerful as a positive reputation traveling fast” rings true when it comes to implementing an EV SSL Certificate, as the more secure your site is, the better its reputation and in turn the more powerful your business can be.
Source: https://www.buyhttp.com/7-major-benefits-of-commercial-ssl-certificate/