In today’s volatile market conditions, having a web presence is essential for businesses of all sizes regardless of their value proposition. However, considering the cut-throat competition in the market, even a well-designed website might not suffice if it is not mobile-friendly. Since a majority of customers would access your website through mobile devices, it is crucial to optimize it for the mobile platform. Nevertheless, developing a mobile app aside from a business website would be an added advantage for sure. Not only does a mobile app help you target mobile users in the best possible way, it lets you edge ahead of your competitors and builds resilience.
Despite the many benefits of a mobile app, several small-scale businesses think of it as an unnecessary expense that would only impose a financial burden upon them. That being said, the best option for these companies might be ‘developing a progressive web app’ that would also deliver native app-like experiences across mobile devices. In doing so, progressive web app development eliminates the need for having a dedicated mobile app since the web app will serve both purposes.
In this blog post, we shall explore the significance of PWA app development with a focus on its benefits to small-scale businesses. Subsequently, we shall highlight the possible challenges that businesses may counter while developing and launching PWAs.
What Is a Progressive Web App?
A progressive web app (PWA) is a type of software application that is accessible via web browsers across both desktop and mobile platforms. As such, it delivers a user experience similar to that of a native app across mobile devices. As opposed to a native mobile app, the progressive web app is built using mainstream web technologies like PHP, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Here, the PWAs adhere to a standard browser protocol, enabling them to run and function seamlessly across web and mobile platforms.
Rather than a downloadable application, the PWA is a webpage or a website that acts and functions as a native app across mobile devices. Therefore, it does not need to be uploaded to an app store i.e users can simply access it via their mobile browsers. As compared to a standard mobile-optimized website, PWAs provide better usability features and deliver great user experiences across devices.
How PWAs Can Benefit Small-scale Businesses?
PWAs can be increasingly beneficial for small-scale businesses that cannot afford to build a dedicated app for mobile users. By leveraging PWA app development services they can engage both web and mobile users through a standalone website that functions as a native app across mobile devices. Let us now explore the key benefits of progressive web app development from the standpoint of small-scale business owners.
Reduced Load Time
As of today, a majority of businesses prefer lightweight apps and websites that are easy to navigate and load faster. That being said, native mobile apps are generally heavier in size as they consume more storage space (upto several megabytes). In this context, developing PWAs could be your best bet as it significantly reduces the website load time. Progressive web apps are lightweight and load quickly than ordinary websites across both web and mobile platforms. As a result, it improves the overall user experience and drives maximum user engagement across mobile devices as well.
Cross-platform Compatibility
One of the main benefits of PWA app development is cross-platform compatibility as it simultaneously supports both web and mobile platforms. Here, a single website caters to the needs of both web and mobile users by delivering native app-like experiences across mobile devices. That way, you do not need to develop a dedicated mobile app and thus, it helps you save a significant amount of money. All things considered, cross-platform support is an important characteristic of PWA app development that makes it an ideal solution for small-scale businesses.
Improved Responsiveness and Accessibility
Understandably, progressive web apps are increasingly lightweight and more responsive than their native mobile counterparts. Moreover, the app performs consistently well across both web and mobile platforms with optimum responsiveness and usability. Besides, PWA app development provides better accessibility as the apps are easily accessible across a wide range of devices including desktops, smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches.
Also, Read Testing The Waters For Progressive Web Apps In 2021-22
Closing Remarks
Despite the many benefits that PWAs have to offer, there are also a couple of setbacks of PWA app development. Below are some common drawbacks of progressive web app development and implementation.
- Unlike native mobile apps, progressive web apps seldom run in an offline mode. This means you must have a stable internet connection at all times to access PWAs.
- With PWAs, it might not be possible to access many of your smartphone features such as Bluetooth, camera, media, and contacts.
- Progressive web apps offer very limited scope for technology integrations, thereby keeping users devoid of many interesting features like GPS and NFC.
However, despite these few possible setbacks, one cannot undermine the importance of PWA app development services for small-scale businesses. Developing and launching progressive web apps, is therefore, an ideal way for startups to strengthen their web presence at a reasonable cost.
Why Choose Oodles ERP For PWA App Development Services?
We are an ERP software development company that provides end-to-end enterprise solutions to cross-industry businesses. Our developers are proficient at building high-quality PWAs with custom CSS to deliver great user experiences across web and mobile platforms. We excel in providing PWA app development services to help small and medium-sized businesses strengthen their web presence. Our team has a proven track record in building and customizing feature-rich progressive web apps that are easy to scale. To learn more about our PWA app development services, write to us at [email protected].
