Trust and Security Online

SSL(Secure Sockets Layer) Digital Certificates (also known as SSL certificates) provide encryption for transferring information over the Internet as well as identify you as an established business.

Having an SSL certificate prevents hackers from stealing sensitive information when customers make a transaction. You should always have SSL encryption on pages that ask for sensitive information such as credit cards or social security numbers.

Most people have become accustomed to making sure their information is secure when making a transaction. Usually the visitor does this by checking for a lock at the end of the address bar in their browser. If this does not appear then you can kiss many transactions goodbye because they won’t happen.

If you do not have an SSL certificate on your site already, you may want to check with your host or try Thawte or Verisign. I would recommend checking with your host first though as they should already have everything set up for you.

It is critical that you have an SSL certificate on your site. Even some website verification services check for this.

NEVER try to get sensitive information from people without having SSL on your website. This is a major security risk, both to you and your customer.

A privacy policy is a document that states how your business will use a customers information. Privacy policies also act as legal documents.

Here are some a few key features of why a privacy policy is so crucial:

Privacy Policies let the customer know how, and for what purposes, you are going to use their information.

Privacy Policies protect you as a seller.

Your competitor already has a privacy policy.

Being a customer, you wouldn’t want your information to fall into the wrong hands would you?

People will do anything just to get a name, address, phone number, email, or anything else they can sell for a few bucks.

Having a privacy policy builds a large amount of trust in this area because:

1.The customer will know what is going to happen to their information once they provide it to a company.

2.The customer will learn what they need to do to keep themselves from getting any unnecessary newsletters, emails, or other unwanted material.

3.The customer also knows where their information will be stored once they provide it to you.

This is where the privacy policy comes in handy. Once people see how you’re going to use their information, and that you’re not going to distribute it across the Internet, they will have a sense of peace in providing you with that sensitive information.

Privacy polices will instantly build trust as creating a privacy policy is easy and can be done in just a few minutes with the help of a privacy policy generator.

Bottom Line – If you don’t have a privacy policy go make one right now. Doing so will increase trust in your business in just a short amount of time.

If you thought this article was helpful, read our post on Trust Seals and how they can increase your conversion rate.