Reasons to Consider an Extended Validation (EV) SSL Certificate

Would you do business with somebody you don’t trust? Neither would your customers. Phishing attacks are at an all-time high, with 1.4 million new phishing sites being created each month, so they have good reason to be suspicious of any website including yours.

When it comes to gaining your visitors’ confidence, the rules have changed. On today’s fraud-filled web it’s no longer who you think you are, it’s who a globally trusted third-party Certificate Authority (CA) says you are.

According to a Phish Labs report, within a 30-day window, 99.5% of HTTPS phishing sites had Standard Domain Validated or DV, certificates that offer encryption only. Thanks to browsers labeling websites with DV SSL as “Secure”, online customers have drawn dangerous assumptions that even phishing sites are legitimate businesses. Going the extra mile with a premium SSL certificate helps your visitors instantly see your website can be trusted.

Recent industry changes have made encryption a must for all web pages to avoid “Not Secure” warnings. All SSL certificates offer encryption and provide basic trust features including displaying HTTPS and the padlock icon in the browser bar. But where they really differ is in the level of validation and visual trust indicators they offer.

This is huge. Why? Because, with online customers mistakenly believing secure and safe are the same thing (which they aren’t), you need to set yourself apart from hackers clearly. That means proving based on what a respected third party has determined that you’re a legitimate business. The best way to do that is with an Extended Validation, or EV, SSL certificate. While EV visual trust indicators may look slightly different depending on the browser, they clearly validate your company name and domain name, plus allow visitors to click and get a necessary certificate and company details.

EV certificates are the only SSL solution that provides a true ROI. That’s why they shouldn’t be considered an expense, but rather an investment in your reputation and your business. Here are five more reasons to invest in EV SSL:

·         Boost Confidence: EV is the ultimate trust-builder.  According to participants of a Tec-ED survey, 77% of participants said they’d be hesitant to shop on a website without an EV SSL certificate.

• Gain a Competitive Edge: With shopping cart abandonment rates soaring as high as 75%, you need to give visitors every reason to “Buy Now” versus clicking over to your competitors. And, by putting EV’s visible trust indicators front and center, you’re showing visitors that protecting them is your top priority. A June 2018 study by Comscore and Netcraft found that 62.2% of online traffic is going to websites that are protected by either an Organization Validation (OV) or Extended Validation (EV) certificate.
• Increase Conversion: EV SSL certificates are statistically proven to increase sales. According to one study, the British shoe store, Fitness Footwear, saw an impressive 16.9% increase in conversions after moving to an EV SSL certificate. Likewise, Canadadrug.com reported that, after implementing EV, 33% more purchases were completed with 27% higher sales per transaction. And, the Comscore and Netcraft study confirms that 66% of eCommerce transactions are completed on OV- or EV-protected websites.
• Operate with Complete Authenticity: CAs only issue EV SSL certificates after they validate your legal, physical and operational existence. Their comprehensive process even includes manual steps to ensure legitimacy. EV certificates provide the highest level of identity proof to your visitors.
• Protect Against Phishing: EV’s identity review is restricted to entities that have been registered with a government agency or to an actual government agency. If the entity hasn’t been registered, it can’t apply for an EV certificate. Most hackers won’t pass the test. According to the Comscore and Netcraft study, companies report it’s much easier to protect their brand reputation and spot fraudulent sites when EV is their corporate standard.

Extended Validation (EV) certificates go beyond meeting the new encryption standard to maximize trust and, ultimately, conversion. That’s why EV is used by the most visited sites in the world, including Twitter, Apple, PayPal and many others. EV gives your customers confidence that translates into revenue. Isn’t that the definition of a smart investment? Start investing in your future today with EV.

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