The Role Of SSL Certificates In SEO: Why Your Website Needs One

In today’s digital era, cyberattacks are at their peak. So, it’s more mission-critical to secure your website than ever before.

To achieve and deliver a high level of security, you need to install an SSL certificate on your website. This certificate not only builds trust and confidence in your users’ eyes but also improves your SEO performance.

In this blog post, we will discuss the role of SSL certificates in SEO and the role of dedicated servers in SSL implementation.

Let’s begin.

The Role Of SSL Certificates In SEO

Google’s Preference for HTTPS

The first and most important advantage of using HTTPS is that the algorithms for the most powerful search engine today, Google, favor websites with HTTPS. In plain words, this means that websites with HTTPS certification are more likely to outrank those websites that do not have HTTPS certification. Though, when compared to quality content and backlinks, HTTPS may probably not be a significant ranking factor, it still gives a competitive edge that shouldn’t be ignored.

Enhanced User Trust And Experience

HTTPS delivers the most excellent user experience. When the padlock logo is visible next to the address bar, it builds trust and confidence in the website on the user’s end. This way, they will spend more time, get more impressions, see more content, and result in more leads and conversions.

For instance, when e-commerce handles the responsibility of dealing with sensitive user information, this padlock symbol appears with the highest data security level of HTTPS.

Security And Data Integrity

To follow up on the previous point, SSL certificates safeguard users’ sensitive information, including their financial information, login credentials, and critical data, from cyberattacks like Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks, where a hacker impersonates a real person to eavesdrop on, take a peek at, and even steal users’ sensitive information, which could lead to ransomware.

With SSL certification, you are not only ensuring the safety of your users’ sensitive information but also establishing the credibility and integrity of your website. Moreover, search engines also recognize and reward this high level of commitment to protecting users’ data and prefer to rank them above other websites.

Reduced Bounce Rates

A high bounce rate is quite harmful to SEO performance, to say the least. When a user sees the “Not Secure” warning, it triggers a red flag in the user’s mind. As a consequence, the user leaves your website immediately, increasing the bounce rate. On the other hand, a website with an SSL certificate instills trust in the minds of the users and encourages them to spend more time on your website, even explore and interact with more web pages, and decrease the likelihood of bounce rate.

Improved Referral Data

When traffic is driven from a secure website with an SSL certificate to a non-secure website, the referral data is often lost in analytics tools like Google Analytics. That makes it quite difficult to identify the business owners and marketers where the data came from in the first place.

So, the best practice is to implement an SSL certificate and have an HTTPS website to preserve the referral data, which equips you with actionable insights into the sources of your website traffic.

Compliance With Regulations

Complying with data protection regulations is no longer an option but mandatory adherence. It’s particularly critical in times when data breaches and compromise are becoming quite common. Many privacy laws and regulations dictate the implementation of SSL certificates for websites to collect and process users’ data.

Businesses that don’t abide by these regulations may consequently face huge fines and penalties from these authorities. That is not just a monetary loss but also a loss to the reputation of your website and your business. On the other hand, implementing SSL certificates means your website follows these regulations, eliminating the chances of legal penalties and also ensuring a commitment to user privacy.

Better Performance

There’s an urban legend in the SEO optimization world that HTTPS may slow down the website loading speed. However, this statement cannot be further from the truth.

HTTPS can significantly improve website performance. HTTP/2 protocol needs an HTTPS connection and leverages fewer bytes to transfer data from the server to the client. This massively speeds up the loading speed of the website, especially downloading resources.

Not only that but also most of the top web browsers only allow optimization for HTTPS websites, which further expedites the website loading speed.

The Role Of Dedicated Servers In SSL Implementation

Enhanced Control And Security

Installing an SSL certificate requires certain requirements of server configuration. This can only happen through a dedicated server which gives you the entire authority over the server environments.

On the other hand, shared hosting may restrict you from making certain changes to your server. You always need to ask for permission from your hosting provider to modify and configure servers. Dedicated servers allow you to make all the necessary changes you need to make in your server environments to successfully install your SSL certificate, maximizing security.

Customization Flexibility

Every website has its unique challenges and requires solutions accordingly. A dedicated server offers high customization options to configure your server settings to resolve those challenges. This flexibility applies to SSL implementation, allowing you to make changes to server configuration to improve SSL performance.

Easier Troubleshooting

A dedicated server streamlines troubleshooting issues with SSL certificates and resolves them promptly. Whereas, when you utilize shared hosting, you really need consent from your hosting provider to investigate issues without a hitch, which is a huge hassle and takes a lot of time. However, you need a high-speed fiber internet service to expedite the troubleshooting process.

Final Thoughts

In a time where protecting the users’ data is of prime importance for instilling trust and confidence in the minds of your target audience. So, it’s mission-critical to install SSL certificates to reassure users but also improve your SEO performance and help you stay ahead of the curve.

We understand that quality content and backlinks are crucial to ranking higher on search engines. But you shouldn’t forget the fact that providing a secure browsing experience is also essential to encourage users to visit your website.

So, invest in an SSL certificate today and reap the benefits of delivering your users a secure and high-ranking website.