Secure dental websites make for happy customers. When web visitors see that your website is secured, they are more comfortable just staying there and browsing through different content you have on offer. Website security is important in protecting the integrity of your site and your business. People rarely risk their sensitive and personal information.
Sure, you may not have that enough sensitive content on your website for it to warrant a security certificate. But your potential patients will require this certificate of you. If they are going to use your website to inquire about your services and if you want them to fill out patient forms on your website, you need to put up security infrastructures to make sure your site is hack-free.
A data breach will allow hackers to have access to your patients’ personal and medical information. These are all sensitive information that you don’t want to be on anyone’s hands other than your own. US laws require medical practices to do all they can to protect their patients’ records and health history. You may even be liable if your clients’ personal information was stolen because of your negligence.
Protecting your patients’ information on your dental websites requires an SSL certificate. SSL stands for secure sockets layer. It is a secure layer between your website and the user’s browser that makes sure all the information exchanged is safe from hackers. If you have an SSL certificate, you will see a padlock symbol beside your site’s URL on the address bar. Your URL address will also start with https:// instead of http://.
To get your SSL certificate, you need to contact your host provider. It will cost you extra, but your patients will appreciate the effort you took to make sure their information is secured.
The security of your website is essential to your SEO as well. Google’s algorithm is programmed in a way that it measures the bounce rate of your website and ranks you lower accordingly. If web visitors leave your site immediately after finding out it does not have an SSL certificate, you will have a high bounce rate and that could affect your site’s search engine ranking.
Website security on your dental websites is not a trend. It’s here to stay. The growing risks of being online can be countered by placing security measures on your site. This will make your site more attractive not only to your patients, especially those who understand the implications of an unsecured site but to Google as well.