URLs

The URL is the “web address”, which specifies the location of a web page on the internet.

It is very important that URLs are optimized and friendly to users and search engines, as this will help identify what content they will find on a page when they access the link.

URLs are usually made up of protocol, domain and subdirectory/path.

Example: https://www.corona.com/plastic-reality 

Protocol: It can be HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, among others.

Domain: It is the address of the server that hosts the content.

Subdirectory: Indicates the location of the content within the server.

What is a friendly URL?

As explained, the URL must contain keywords that specify the type of information that will be found in it.

A bad URL, for example, would be: https://www.ab-inbev.com/qukcmRad46ams 

So the example of an ideal URL would be: https://www.ab-inbev.com/our-brands 

As long as the URL message does not lose comprehension by the user, articles and linking verbs are not necessary when constructing a URL. Therefore, a friendly URL can be shortened. For example:

The URL “what-the-best-kinds-of-beer-to-harmonize-with-fish” can be summarized as “best-beers-to-harmonize-with-fish”. 

Attention: URLs must not, under any circumstances, contain capital letters, spaces, and special characters, this is relevant because we must facilitate the reading of search engines and avoid errors. Therefore, use the words in lowercase, separated by hyphens. Numbers can also be used.

The Number of characters

A URL should be as short as possible, as this way the ranking tends to be better than for longer ones. However, it is also important that it makes sense. Anything between 50 and 80 characters can be used as a base.

Remember to use the main content keyword in your URL. This will also help your page's organic placement. One tip is to build your URL based on the page title.

SSL

In 2018, Google started to advise users if a website is secure through the HTTPS protocol and a padlock next to a URL in the address bar or, when it is not, it displays the letter "i" for information.

SSL protocol is the same as SSL certificate: a digital certificate that authenticates the identity of a website and enables an encrypted connection. "SSL" stands for "Secure Sockets Layer". The lock appears when the website has this certificate. See the example:

This certificate is now required and used by websites and companies to protect their online transactions and maintain the privacy and security of customer information. Therefore, SSL keeps Internet connections secure and prevents criminals from reading or modifying information transferred between two systems. 

The SSL Certificate is a ranking factor, that is, without it your website will have difficulties in appearing in the top positions of search engines.

One option for requesting the SSL certificate for your website is to contact the company hosting your domain and request the certificate.

Also check out this Google support link for using HTTPS on your domain.