Using Secure Web Development Practices To Boost SEO Rankings

Your SEO rankings are only as strong as your web security. Imagine losing half your traffic because you do not follow secure web development practices. Search engines flag insecure sites with web accessibility issues that can drop your search rankings.

With over 10 years of experience in web development, I’ve handpicked the top 12 core web development practices to make sure your hard-earned SEO rankings don’t crumble after a single breach.

Let’s kick things off.

How Does A Secure Website Impact SEO Rankings?

Search engines highly favor secure sites. Fortifying your website using the best website development practices prevents security breaches that can hurt your website’s performance and site rankings.

5177% of small businesses say their websites are down for 8-24 hours and don’t have any cybersecurity measures. It’s no surprise that their search rankings keep on plummeting despite investing approximately $2,000 – $10,000 for ads or optimizing their content.

But why is that so?

Search engines prioritize both user satisfaction and data protection, so having a security measure improves your visitors’ trust and lowers bounce rates. These factors help your website be more visible and rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).

11+ Best Web Development Practices To Boost SEO Rankings in 2024

Before you go through each practice, assess your site’s current SEO status so you can choose the right development process that works best for your needs.

1. Establish Secure HTTPS Connections

HTTPS connections encrypt data transmitted between your website and visitors to protect sensitive information and build user trust. HTTPS-powered websites are more likely to rank higher in search results. With Google Chrome labeling non-HTTPS sites as “Not Secure,” over 70% of users do not trust unsecured websites.

To establish a secure HTTPS, here are the steps to take:

• Purchase an SSL certificate from a trusted Certificate Authority (CA) or use a free one like Let’s Encrypt. Provide information about your domain name and contact details to generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR) and secure the SSL certificate.
• Always backup your database and files before making any major changes to your website so you can revert it if needed.
• Replace the absolute HTTP links on your website with relative links to avoid mixed content warnings when accessed via HTTPS.
• Make sure all media files like presentations, videos, and images are accessible through HTTPS. Fix their links to relative URLs.

Once you completed the preparatory steps, you can now start the HTTPS migration process:

• Configure your web server to use the SSL certificate and private key obtained earlier.
• Create and set up 301 redirects from HTTP to HTTPS for all pages on your website to redirect visitors to the secure version of your web page.
• Update any external links on your social media profiles and directories to point to your new HTTPS URLs.
• Test your website to make sure everything works as expected. Check for SSL/TLS certificate errors, mixed content warnings, and broken links.

2. Implement Secure Coding Standards

Think of secure web development projects and coding standards as the safety net under your website’s high-wire act. Without these best practices for website development, your site is vulnerable to threats like SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks, which can compromise user data and the site’s integrity.

Here is how a web developer can follow a search engine’s web standards for security:

• Use established security frameworks and libraries like OWASP (Open Web App Security Project) guidelines to avoid SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS).
• Quarterly review your code with a focus on security. Follow the web development best practices by implementing peer or interim reviews to catch security loopholes.
• Use prepared statements for databases to secure your queries against SQL injection attacks.

3. Conduct Site Audits At Least 2x Year

Just like a routine health checkup, regular security audits can help you stay one step ahead of cyber threats. Cyber attacks occur on average every 39 seconds, showing the relentless threat to online security. IBM found that companies with a fully deployed network security and automation system in 2023 saved nearly $1.8 million in data breach costs.

Conduct regular security checks on your website at least 2x a year. For businesses with heavy data or information, perform audits more often, ideally every 3 months or even once a month.

These are the key indicators that you need to perform security audits:

• Recent data breaches
• Increased phishing attempts
• Outdated security measures
• Changes in website infrastructure
• Increased traffic or unusual activity
• Regulatory compliance requirements
• User complaints or suspicion of malware

If you don’t address any of the above vulnerabilities, it will harm your search engine optimization (SEO) rankings. People are less likely to give out personal information or buy something if they see that your site isn’t safe. A lack of security signals potential customers to leave a website without completing their purchases or subscriptions. In addition to SEO audits, it is important to make sure that your website is accessible to all users. Conducting a comprehensive accessibility audit can help identify and rectify barriers that may prevent users with disabilities from fully engaging with your site. A detailed evaluation will guide you toward compliance with accessibility standards.

4. Use Content Security Policy (CSP)

A content security policy (CSP) prevents cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks and other types of readable code injection. Since 2017, the presence of CSP in HTTP responses increased from 1.5%, showing a gradual but steady adoption across the whole web application development process, with approximately 5+ million web apps currently utilizing CSP.

This is especially the case if your website is required to connect with another quality control solution that keeps your offer highly credible. For example, if you are in the manufacturing industry and you need to create a website that connects with a quality control solution, you need the extra effort to keep your site as secure as possible. 

Here is how you refine your CSP policy:

• Create a CSP header to specify which sources are trusted for scripts, styles, images, and other resources. Implement this step via server settings or meta tags in your HTML.
• Use reporting tools and content management systems to monitor and analyze any blocked content and refine your policy to address potential security gaps.
• Test your CSP policy across your entire site to make sure it doesn’t disrupt site functionality.
• Keep your CSP policy up to date by reviewing and adjusting it to accommodate new content sources and evolving security threats.

5. Encrypt Sensitive Data

Most web developers are unaware that a website is a vault with encryption algorithms that protect sensitive data from prying eyes. Advanced encryption techniques make sure your information stays confidential and inaccessible to unauthorized parties. Alongside strong encryption, incorporating software testing or AI testing can help identify potential security flaws before they become threats, ensuring your protection strategies are both proactive and effective.

As cyber threats continue to evolve, protecting your sensitive information builds trust and credibility with your users. Here is how you can do it:

• Use strong encryption standards like AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) and TLS (Transport Layer Security) to keep your sensitive data unreadable.
• Make sure to encrypt any personal details stored in your databases. Secure user credentials, payment details, and other sensitive information.
• For sensitive data that doesn’t require visibility (ex. credit card numbers or Social Security Numbers), apply data masking techniques to hide portions of the data while keeping it usable for specific operations.
• Encrypt backup files to keep your stolen data protected in case of a data breach or loss.
• Keep up with the latest encryption standards at least every 2 years or as needed to address any new vulnerabilities.

When Google sees that you’re committed to security, they’re more likely to trust how authentic and secure your site is. This is especially helpful if you want to see how your SEO efforts perform well on other developers’ search engines.

6. Apply Structured Data & Schema Markup

Structured data and schema markup can increase organic traffic by 20-30%. Schema markup is the code that you add to your website to implement structured data. When you add schema markup to your web pages, you’re helping Google or Bing understand the meaning and context of your content. 

Structured data also helps make a standardized format for providing information about your web app’s content and gives it a better chance to rank on the rich snippets in search results.

These snippets can boost your website’s online visibility and click-through rates because they take prime real estate in the search results. Here’s a simple guide to help you out:

• Identify the most important pages on your website, like product pages or blogs, that could benefit from schema markup.
• Take Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper to add structured data to your site.
• Use Google’s Rich Results Test to make sure your schema markup is error-free and functioning as expected.
• Keep an eye on Google Search Console to fix any website accessibility issues with your structured data, and update as necessary to keep your site secure and optimized.
• Use content delivery networks to improve your website’s loading speed. Prioritize user experience to improve search engine rankings.

7. Optimize Server Performance To Improve Site Speed

A 1-second delay in web page load time causes a 7% drop in conversions. For mobile users, this number is even higher, with conversions falling by up to 20% for every second of delay. Implementing a CSP will avoid these delays and keep your site running smoothly. 

These are the key factors that impact a website’s loading speed:

• Large image and file sizes
• Too many plugins and external scripts
• Poorly optimized CSS and JavaScript code
• Inefficient server hardware or hosting environment
• Lack of browser caching and use of content delivery networks

But you can optimize page load times and avoid conversion losses when you implement these: 

• Compress and optimize images and other media files like pitch decks
• Optimize server-side performance by upgrading hardware and software
• Enable browser caching to reduce the need to re-download static assets
• Minimize HTTP requests using programming languages like CSS and JavaScript files
• Use Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to serve files from a server closer to the user’s location
• Test and optimize your website for cross-browser compatibility to work seamlessly on different devices

8. Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly

In today’s digital age, mobile responsiveness isn’t just a nice to have when creating visually appealing websites. In 2024, almost 60% of global web traffic comes from mobile devices, and a non-responsive site can deter users and affect your rankings.

Implement these software programs and industry’s best practices to make your web page mobile-friendly:

• Keep your web design at certain breakpoints:
  • 768px for tablets
  • 1024px for small desktops
  • 320px for small mobile devices
  • 1200px and above for larger desktops
• Use a percentage-based grid system that allows interactive elements to resize proportionally rather than using fixed pixel dimensions.
• Make sure buttons and links have a minimum size of 48×48 pixels for easy tapping.
• Implement a hamburger menu or dropdowns that are easy to access without cluttering the screen.
• Use a minimum font size of 16 pixels for body text to make sure it’s easy to read. Display the most important information first, minimizing the need for excessive scrolling.
• Aim for a page load time of 3 seconds or less on mobile devices to reduce bounce rates.

Creating a truly mobile-friendly website that meets all these criteria requires expertise and attention to detail. Jordan Smith can help you with that. To date, we built over 500 websites that function seamlessly on modern browsers and all devices, from smartphones to desktops. We can create stunning responsive web designs to optimize your site for SEO and user experience.

9. Implement Semantic HTML5 Tags

Semantic HTML5 tags help search engines understand your content’s structure while making your website more accessible. When you use these semantic HTML tags correctly, you signal to Google, Bing, or other engines that your site is trustworthy and user-friendly. Sites that use semantic HTML 5 tags have a higher chance of appearing in featured snippets.

Web developers should run these commands to optimize their web application performance more accurately:

• Review a website’s HTML code readability and identify non-semantic tags to replace them with semantic HTML5 tags.
• Use tags like <article>, <section>, <header>, and <footer> to clearly define different sections of your content.
• Use accessibility testing tools like WAVE to assess whether your semantic markup makes your site easier to navigate for users.
• Review and refine semantic tags as your content evolves.

As you start the back-end development process, keep your HTML structure simple. Avoid excessive nesting of elements. Over-nesting makes it harder to read and maintain when you write code. Aim for a clear hierarchy without unnecessary wrappers to enhance the user experience for all visitors.

10. Enable Browser Caching & Compression

Browser caching and compression help your website load faster and more securely. A site that loads in under 2 seconds has a 15% lower bounce rate.

Adjust your server settings to enable browser caching, specifying how long different browsers should keep images, CSS, and JavaScript files. Use tools like Gzip or Brotli to compress your files, ensuring your site loads swiftly.

11. Optimize XML Sitemaps & Robots.txt

XML sitemaps and Robots.txt files are like GPS systems for search engines, directing them on what to index and what to ignore. A well-structured sitemap indexes your content quickly, while a properly configured Robots.txt file protects sensitive areas of your site from unauthorized access.

Sites with optimized XML sitemaps and Robots.txt files can experience a faster indexing rate. Here is how you can do it:

• Use tools like Yoast SEO or Google XML Sitemaps to generate a clean sitemap that includes all relevant web pages.
• Prioritize your most valuable content in the sitemap to boost its visibility.
• Fine-tune the Robots.txt file to carefully block search engine crawlers from accessing your sensitive data.
• Update your sitemap and Robots.txt file every time you add or remove a page to reflect the changes. A technical SEO audit service can help identify any sitemap or Robots.txt issues, ensuring that search engines are crawling and indexing your site efficiently. These audits can also uncover other hidden technical SEO problems that may be affecting your rankings.

12. Review & Update Your Security Policies

The average cost of a data breach for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) is approximately $108,000, while the global average cost of a data breach is $4.88M based on IBM’s 2024 report. If you own an SMB and are considering selling your business, update your security protocols to enhance your company’s value and appeal to buyers.

During the sales process, these security measures protect your sensitive data, like financial records, customer lists, and user accounts, from unauthorized access and potential breaches. Review and update these policies as often as needed to keep your data secure and avoid legal issues related to data breaches.

Install an SSL certificate to encrypt data, then routinely update your software, web servers, and plugins for web applications to protect them against vulnerabilities. Implement two-factor authentication for an added layer of security, and regularly back up your site.

Conclusion

As you get into the best web development practices, consider this: How can you balance the technical aspects of web development with user experience to make sure your site ranks well and provides a seamless experience? 

Consider the unique needs of your site and prioritize the web development best practices that will deliver the most value. Use these A+ strategies to boost your website traffic and keep your site at the forefront of your SEO development efforts.
Need more help? Connect with Hire Jordan Smith today by filling out this form to explore how his expertise in website development practices can transform your online presence.