SSL Certificate Sounds Expensive and Complicated, It’s Neither

I stared at the browser warning on my newly built consulting website, the Not Secure warning sign.

I thought my site looked professional because I had put in the work, invested weeks perfecting the design, writing service descriptions,and creating case studies. Everything was ready to start attracting clients.

Except for that alarming warning making my site look like a phishing scam.

When I googled how to remove the  not secure warning, every result mentioned SSL certificates. 

The articles made it sound impossibly technical: encryption protocols, certificate authorities, public key infrastructure.

I called a developer friend and asked her the cost of an SSL certificate.

“Depends,” she said. “Probably $50-$200 annually for a legitimate one.”

$200? I’d already spent $800 on professional branding. My startup budget was already stretched.

Then I decided to handle it eventually. Maybe clients wouldn’t notice the warning.

And they noticed immediately.

The First Two Weeks Without SSL

My first potential client emailed me: “Hi, I’m interested in your services, but your website displays a security warning. Is it safe to submit my contact information there?”

I didn’t have a good answer. But I knew that I wasn’t doing anything malicious, but that warning made me look unprofessional at best, suspicious at worst and even lost the lead.

Then a second prospect screenshot the Chrome warning: Your connection to this site is not secure. Attackers might be able to see images you’re looking at on this site and trick you by modifying them.

They asked if my business was legitimate and even lost that lead,too.

What I Eventually Learned About SSL

Out of frustration, I dedicated an entire weekend to fully understand howSSL certificates work. Not reading technical documentation or blogs infusing the contents with heavy tech jargon, but searching for simple explanations.

Here’s what I discovered:

SSL certificates don’t cost $200. 

Most hosting providers include them free. FREE. My developer friend was referencing premium certificates that enterprises purchase. Small businesses like mine don’t need those.

Installation isn’t complicated.

Most hosting companies provide a button labeled Install SSL Certificate. You click it and that’s the entire process. It takes approximately 3 minutes.

The Not Secure warning vanishes immediately.

Once SSL is active, the warning disappears. The padlock icon appears and your site looks credible.

I felt foolish that I’d lost prospects for two weeks because I assumed SSL was expensive and technical, when it was actually free and simple to use.

How I Finally Implemented SSL

I accessed my hosting control panel then located a section called SSL/TLS Management.

There was a prominent button: Install Free SSL Certificate and I clicked it.

A progress indicator appeared for roughly 120 seconds.

Then, a pop up message: SSL Certificate Successfully Installed.

That was it. I did not require any technical expertise, or payment. Just one click.

I loaded my website and to my surprise, the Not Secure warning had disappeared. In its place: a small padlock icon and https:// instead of http://.

My website suddenly appeared professional, trustworthy, and like a legitimate consulting practice.

What Changed After Implementing SSL

Immediate changes:

The Not Secure warning disappeared. Prospects stopped questioning the legitimacy of my business.

My website loaded with “https://” instead of “http://”. This minor change instantly improved how my site appeared to the visitors.

Within three weeks:

Conversion rates improved. I can’t attribute it solely to SSL because  prospects stopped hesitating at the contact form. The security warnings that stopped them were gone.

There was a shift in my Google rankings. Google has explicitly confirmed they rank HTTPS sites higher than HTTP sites. I moved from page 4 to page 2 for “business consultant Toronto.”

Within six weeks:

I could implement features previously unavailable. Client portals and secure document sharing require SSL. I couldn’t deploy those without it.

Why I Believed SSL Was Expensive

I discussed this with other entrepreneurs afterward and many of them believed what I had: SSL certificates cost hundreds of dollars.

Here’s why we were mistaken:

We were confused about SSL certificate types. There are different SSL certificate categories:

• Domain Validation (DV) SSL- This is what small businesses need because it’s free, displays the padlock icon, and sufficient for 99% of websites.

• Organization Validation (OV) SSL – Costs $50-$150/year. It shows company information in the certificate. Most small businesses don’t need this.

• Extended Validation (EV) SSL – Costs $150-$300/year. Shows company name in the browser bar. Only large corporations need this.

Free SSL provides the exact same padlock icon as premium SSL but clients can’t differentiate  between them.

We assumed free meant inferior. I thought free SSL must be lower quality but it’s not. Free SSL from Let’s Encrypt functions in a similar manner to paid SSL for small businesses.

Why I Believed SSL Was Complicated

The technical articles made SSL sound impossible:

Generate a Certificate Signing Request. Submit it to a Certificate Authority. Download the certificate bundle. Install it on your web server. Configure your server to redirect HTTP to HTTPS.

That sounds terrifying if you’re not a systems administrator.

Here’s what actually occurred:

• First, I clicked “Install SSL Certificate” in my hosting control panel
• Then, I waited for 2 minutes
•  Lastly, I waited for it to finish

The hosting company handled all technical implementation, I simply clicked a button.

What SSL Actually Achieves in Plain Language

SSL encrypts information traveling between your website and your visitors.

Without SSL:

Client enters their email and phone number on your contact form. That information travels across the internet as plain text. Anyone intercepting it can read it.

With SSL:

Client enters their information and then SSL scrambles it. The scrambled information travels across the internet. But only your website can unscramble it.

For clients, SSL means:

• Their information is protected
• Your website appears legitimate
• They can trust you enough to share information

For you, SSL means:

• Higher conversion rates because clients trust you
• Better Google rankings
• Ability to implement secure features
• Professional appearance

The Cost of Operating Without SSL

During those two weeks without SSL, I lost approximately:

4 confirmed leads who explicitly mentioned the “Not Secure” warning: $4,000 in potential project value

Unknown number of visitors who saw the warning and left without inquiring: Impossible to quantify, but probably 15-25 additional prospects: $15,000-$25,000 in lost opportunity

Search engine ranking position: My site ranked lower than competitors with SSL

Total estimated cost: $19,000-$29,000 in lost opportunity over two weeks

All because I believed SSL cost $200 and required technical expertise.

The actual cost? $0 and 3 minutes of my time.

How to Get Free SSL for Your Canadian Website

If you’re in my former situation, avoiding SSL because you believe it’s expensive or complicated, here’s what to do:

Step 1: Verify if your hosting includes free SSL

Most Canadian hosting providers now include free SSL certificates. Access your hosting control panel and look for SSL or Security.

Step 2: Click the installation button

If your hosting offers free SSL, there’s typically a button labeled Install SSL Certificate or Enable SSL.

Click it and wait 2-3 minutes for the installation to complete.

Step 3: Update your website to use HTTPS

After SSL installation, you need to configure your website to use https:// instead of http://.

If you use WordPress, this is one settings change. Or install a plugin called Really Simple SSL that handles it automatically.

Step 4: Verify it worked

Visit your website. Do you see a padlock icon? Does the URL begin with https://?

If yes, you’re finished. Your website is now secure.

What if your hosting doesn’t include free SSL?

Switch to hosting that does. Most contemporary hosting providers include free SSL as standard. If yours doesn’t, they’re outdated.

Truehost Canada includes free SSL certificates with all hosting plans. They handle installation automatically when you establish your website. You don’t need to think about it.

The Bottom Line

I wasted two weeks losing prospects because I believed two misconceptions:

• SSL certificates cost hundreds of dollars
• Installing SSL requires technical knowledge

Both misconceptions are false. SSL is free and installation takes 3 minutes.

If your website displays Not Secure warnings, you’re losing clients right now because they’re seeing that warning and leaving.

Fix it today, not next week, or when you find time. Do it now.

It’s free, simple, and it’s costly the more  you delay.