What Are the Advantages of a SSL Certificates for a Small Business Website?

What Are the Advantages of a SSL Certificates for a Small Business Website?

  August 19, 2020    Olly

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With increasing Internet penetration and the explosion of social media, small businesses are no longer at a disadvantage. They are able to sell their products and services to customers from all over the globe, target audiences in any segment and region and position themselves for growth. While on-ground infrastructure needs to match to achieve success, the Internet has ensured that small businesses have a new avenue of reliable and affordable marketing. They are able to explain their offerings and are assured of an upward trajectory, provided their strategies are right.

However, the lynchpin for the entire operations is a website and all factors revolve around the same. When visitors come to the website of a small business, they should be able to get an intuitive feel and easily obtain what they are looking for. Further, visitors are looking more from a perspective of data security whenever they engage with any one on the Internet. Hence, the security of a website is a very important factor and visitors must be assured of the same, to retain trust and build a bond.

This is where the role of SSL certificates comes in. The term SSL is expanded to Secured Socket Layer and this certificate is a small data file that digitally binds a cryptographic key to the details of the organization. Organizations need an SSL certificate, in order to initiate a secure session with browsers. After installation, the application protocol changes from HTTP to HTTPS and depending on the browser a padlock or a green bar is displayed.

The key advantages for a small business are

1) SSL is important to drive home business credibility

By proactively installing an SSL certificate, businesses indicate that they care about data security. Installation of an SSL certificate is not an off-the shelf operation. A governing authority performs several checks to authenticate a business before the certificate is issued.

2) Data Integrity

With SSL certification, there is encryption of data, files are prevented from being corrupted when they are being transferred and there is protection from malicious attacks. It is thus assured that information only reaches the intended recipients and that it is not intercepted by any third party.

3) Google supports SSL

SSL certification is one of the parameters considered for Google SEO. About close to 40% of organic listings on the first page of Google are HTTPS. HTTPS is also a signal in Google's algorithm since 2014.

All of the above will mean increased customer confidence and conversions, which is the sole aim of a business having a website. It is thus a no-brainer that SSL certificates are vital for any small business website.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10065800

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Factors to Be Considered When Choosing A Web Host

Factors to Be Considered When Choosing A Web Host

  August 17, 2020    Olly

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 Price

Businesses would like a provider they can afford but also rely on. As the saying goes, "you get what you pay for". They should have an in-house support department and not outsource people. In-house support plus high quality hardware can cost a lot. So companies have to make sure to get the best provider for their money. They can compare the features offered by each provider as well as their fees before deciding on one.

Focus on their Specialties

Every website has its own needs that not all web hosting providers will be able to address. So, businesses have to first evaluate their needs whether they are small blog, developing or are already established. It is important to be aware of their present and future needs so that they will decide on choosing the best web hosting provider.

Providers have their own strengths and weaknesses If they have any questions in mind, they should contact the provider to get the answers they need. They should list down their questions and take note of the answers. They should not hesitate to call the provider in case they have other questions. An ideal web hosting provider would be more than willing to answer the questions of their clients.

Features and Limitations

They should determine the things they want and the goal of their site. Those with a simple blog requires fewer features compared to an eCommerce site. Some site features a lot of RAM, sufficient processing power as well as disk space to be able to function efficiently for the company and its customers. Most cheap sites do not meet such requirements.

Companies should list down their requirements and also think about their future needs. They should see to it that the provider they are considering meets their needs or even better, exceed them. They should remember their needs when it comes to additional domains, backups and support, among others. They should see the provider as their partner in growth.

Technical Support

It is important that their provider as well as support department has a good reputation. In this regard they are sure that they can be able to talk to a real person anytime no matter what.

Majority of providers give multiple support levels including email, live chat and toll-free phone, to name a few. They should see to it that the provider has an in-house support department and is not outsourced to another party. They should make sure that the provider prioritizes customer support.

Other things need to be considered in addition to the above mentioned four. The moment they find the providers that meet their requirements, the items below will allow them to narrow down their choices.

Features and Add-ons

When they have shortlisted their choices, it is time to decide on the provider that stands out from the rest. What are the add-ons they offer? Do they make it easy for a newbie to set up a website? Do they give credits to advertise with Yahoo and Google Ads?

Do they come with multi data centers, make use of Green energy and provide regular data backups? Do they let them pay for domain privacy or does it come with a price? At times, the choice of a provider depends on a gut feel or someone else's recommendation.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10264778

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