August is Website Security Month at OurChurch.Com.
While most website security measures are defensive, there is one super-easy security measure you can add to your website that Google explicitly says will boost your search rankings.
Google wrote this back in 2014:
We’re starting to use HTTPS as a ranking signal. For now it’s only a very lightweight signal. But over time, we may decide to strengthen it, because we’d like to encourage all website owners to switch from HTTP to HTTPS to keep everyone safe on the web.
Not only is Google saying this, but research has backed this up. Brian Dean of Backlinko analyzed 1 million Google search results and discovered
HTTPS had a reasonably strong correlation with first page Google rankings. This wasn’t surprising as Google has confirmed HTTPS as a ranking signal.
So, if you want better search rankings, get an SSL certificate.
If you think you might benefit from some professional help with church website SEO or the SEO of your Christian business, school or ministry, let’s talk. Request a no cost, no obligation, no pressure phone consultation to discuss SEO and your ministry goals.
Have you got an SSL for your website? If so, did you notice an improvement in search rankings when you got it?