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The SEO Benefits of SSL Certificate, Improve Google Rankings with SSL
1. THE SEO BENEFITS OF AN SSL
CERTIFICATE, IMPROVE GOOGLE
RANKINGS WITH SSL
The SEO Benefits of an SSL Certificate, Improve Google Rankings with SSL
2. DIDYOU KNOWTHAT INSTALLING AN SSL CERTIFICATE CAN
ACTUALLY HELP IMPROVEYOUR GOOGLE RANKINGS?
SEO is a bizarre and frustrating science. People spend
years learning about it, they come up with complicated
strategies and best practices for it, then Google comes
out with an update and everything you thought you
knew goes right out the window.
3.
4. Think about it, major companies, Fortune 500 brands, the
biggest corporations in the world, spend millions of dollars and
devote countless man-hours to SEO strategies every single
year in the hopes of improving those oh-so-important Google
rankings. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t.
SEO can be an inexact science.
That’s why anytime you find a guaranteed way to boost your
search rankings, you take it. No questions asked.
5. And that’s exactly what SSL is. A guaranteed SEO
boost, if done correctly. That’s right, if you install an SSL
Certificate on your website you can see up to a 5%
rankings boost.
That may sound too good to be true, but it’s not. So
what are you waiting for?
6. WAIT, HOW DOYOU KNOWTHIS?
In 2014 Google announced that it would begin using SSL as a search
ranking signal. Soon after, the other search engines followed suit. As
Google goes, so goes the industry.
Now, why did Google do this?
That’s a bit more of a complicated answer. The web browser community,
the people behind popular browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge,
are pushing for universal encryption.
That is, they want to see every single website start to use basic encryption
as a default.This, in their eyes, is the first step towards a more secure web.
7. Obviously Google, the company behind Chrome, is part of the browser community.
And it finds itself in a particularly advantageous position to push this universal
encryption initiative by virtue of the fact it both boasts a browser and is also behind
the world’s top search engine.
Face it, when you want information you don’t Ask Jeeves anymore, Yahoo is failing
and nobody even remembers AltaVista.
No, when you want information or to find something you Google it. The search
engine is so ubiquitous it’s actually become a verb.
And that’s why Google’s search rankings are so important to businesses. They
literally can be the difference between success and failure.
8. So if Google wanted to push forward an initiative that all websites should
encrypt, rewarding sites that do with better search rankings is a great way
to accomplish that.
And that’s exactly what Google has done. Implement SSL, get a rankings
boost. It’s as easy as that.
9. HOW DO I MAKE SURE I MAXIMIZE MY
RANKINGS BOOST?
Well, that all comes down to the way you install and configure your SSL
Certificate. Simply installing the certificate on your web server is not
enough. No, you need to configure your server to serve your website
over HTTPS.
HTTPS is the secure version of the HTTP protocol that the web is built on.
It’s becoming increasingly important as the web shifts towards an
encrypted model.
What you want to do is serve your entire site, every page, over HTTPS. This
is referred to as Always-On SSL or sometimes HTTPS Everywhere.
10. But, it’s not as simple as it sounds. It’s
not just page links that need to be
switched over to HTTPS, it’s also all of
the associated assets that go with those
pages.We’re talking videos, pictures,
files, anything that’s on that page.
If even one asset isn’t pointed to HTTPS,
it will create an issue and the page will be
marked as not secure by browsers.This
obviously would render any SEO ranking
boost moot.
11. Frankly, transitioning from HTTP to HTTPS can be an extremely
complicated process. In fact, doing it wrong can actually create a negative
impact on your SEO in the other direction.
Fortunately, there are a number of excellent guides available online to aid
in the transition. We recommend you seek one of those out before
attempting to move your site over.
12. WHICH SSL CERTIFICATE IS RIGHT FOR
ME?
Ok, so at this point it’s obvious you need an SSL Certificate. For one, the entire
internet is moving towards an encrypted model so not investing in SSL will put
your website behind the curve. But, let’s be honest, you also want that sweet,
sweet Google rankings boost.
So what should you pick?
Well, that’s frankly a fairly complicated question, one that we’ve spent
considerable time and resources answering for you on other parts of our site. But,
who has time to click through all of that? You want answers now. We understand.
Here’s the abridged version:
13. The first thing you need to consider with your SSL Certificate is what level of
authentication you need.
All SSL Certificates offer the same level of encryption. What differentiates
certificates is authentication, or, put another way, the lengths to which the
Certificate Authority that’s issuing the certificate goes to verify your identity.
DomainValidation is the lowest level of authentication.
It only requires you to prove you own the registered domain. For non-e-
commerce businesses and websites that don’t collect personal information, DV
should suffice.
14. For companies or organizations that need to inspire trust in their customers –
meaning, any e-commerce business, medical organizations, financial institutions,
etc. you will need business authentication.
This comes in two forms, Organization Validation, which is light business vetting.
And Extended Validation, which requires more intensive authentication but also
activates the green address bar, which displays your organization’s name and
country of origin next to the URL.
Obviously, EV inspires the most trust in consumers, but it also costs the most. The
best option for you really depends on a number of factors, but each type has its
own advantages and drawbacks.
15. After you decide on validation level, you need to consider what exactly it is
you’re encrypting.
There are single site certificates, and then there are certificates that can
secure your domain and its accompanying Sub-Domains, or that secure
multiple domains.
Wildcard SSL Certificates secure Sub-Domains, and as the name
suggests, Multi-Domain SSL Certificates or SAN Certificates, secure
multiple domains on a single cert.
16. It’s really just a matter of finding the correct fit for your online portfolio.
Once you do, purchase it, get it issued and install it on your web server
making sure to configure your site to be served entirely over HTTPS.
Then, sit back and enjoy a nice Google rankings boost.
17. FOR MORE DETAILS ON
INFORMATION SECURITYTHREATS
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