We recommend that all websites should have an SSL cert. There are a few reasons for this:
- SSL cert allows secure communication between your browser and any web server
- If you are planning on running an Ecommerce website, most payment gateways require one to provide a secure checkout.
- Security is a top priority for Google and they now use the SSL cert as a positive ranking signal in their algorithm
- Google has also began flagging unsecure websites to users before they enter. This could hugely affect the traffic to your website. If I was a customer coming onto your website, I don’t think I would go any further and risk any security breach with my information. If people don’t trust your website, will they trust your brand?
Most of the bigger hosting companies, including our recommended hosting option – Siteground, offer an SSL Cert with most of their hosting plans free of charge.