Web App Development: Benefits and Types
Do you remember the days when web pages used to be static with some images and videos to look attractive? The concept of web app development was still a dream back then. It was around sixteen years back when Ajax (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML), a set of web development techniques, brought a significant revolution creating faster, well-performing and more interactive web applications in 2005.
It might be surprising to know that although web apps are so popular today, we overlook them because of their commonness. However, we are still using them all the time. But why? Because these apps function smoothly and quickly like native apps, and you can easily access them on a web browser from any device.
Today, several renowned organizations like Facebook, Mailchimp, Basecamp, etc., have their web applications to offer their users an interactive, personalized and mesmerizing experience just like what they get from the native applications and that even directly from their web browsers. This nature of web apps makes them a sought-after choice for developers to enhance their skills and an ultimate solution to all kinds of businesses, such as e-commerce, entertainment, educational sectors, banking sectors, and much more.
If you are a business owner and looking for a tutorial to get an insight into web app development, you are in the right place. In this article, you can learn about all the aspects related to it from the primary level. So, let’s dive right into web application development.
Web app development: A brief overview
In a simple definition, web app development is the process of planning, designing, and developing a web application. A web app is like an application software that runs on remote servers, and users can access them through the website using the internet. The web development process involves both client-side and server-side programming essential for developing an application that will be accessible over the browser. The developers design a basic structure of the app, select a framework, use specific tools, insert the required programs, test them and eventually deploy the application on the server.
Web app vs Website: What’s the difference between the two?
Well, the line of difference between a web app and a website is paper-thin. However, the real difference between the two is that a website is mostly a static page that only provides information to the users that may or may not have the options to enter inputs. On the other hand, a web application is dynamic that can respond to the information users enter and allows them to perform specific tasks over the internet. In simple words, any website that enables a user to carry out an activity using the client-side components is a web app.
Web app vs Mobile app: What makes the two different from each other?
As the name suggests, mobile apps are applications developed to work on mobile devices. Mobile apps can be Native or Hybrid. Native apps are the platform-specific ones. It means an android app can not run on a device that supports iOS and vice versa. These apps are available separately in their dedicated app stores (Android apps in Google Play Store and iOS apps in Apple App Store). Although these applications offer a top-class, more personalized experience, their building cost is relatively higher than other types of apps. Also, these apps take up the storage area in the user’s device.
Hybrid apps are not platform-specific and show decent performance too, but they also occupy space in the user’s device, and the user needs to download them in order to use them.
On the contrary, a web application user can use it on any device as the app needs a browser, and it does not matter on what device the browser is available. Besides, a web application does not take up the memory space in your device, and the cost of developing an app is pretty low compared to native and hybrid apps.
Benefits of web app development
In the present scenario, when the competition in business is at its peak, having a method through which you can reach the maximum users is a must. Web application development is one such technique that will help you spread information about your business to your target audience. Below are some of the points that will tell you how web app development can be advantageous for you:
- A cost-effective and profitable solution for your business: In web apps, the programming languages that a developer generally uses are JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. These languages are easy to understand, and hence no higher expertise is required in writing codes and making programs. It saves hiring experts’ expenses, and thus, web applications become a pretty affordable solution for your business requirements.
- Platform-independency makes it available for everyone: One of the best things about web applications is that they are not platform-specific. Due to this, the users can access these apps on any device, no matter whatever operating system they use. This nature of web applications cuts the cost of developing separate apps for different platforms and devices.
- Requirements of web apps, even having native apps for the same purpose: Some users do not use mobile native apps to access any particular service or platform. Therefore, the organizations require an equivalent well-performing web app for such users who only access websites. It helps the businesses reach out to the maximum target audience available on both websites and specific mobile apps.
- Advancement in technology makes web apps better and better: Web app technologies are growing immensely day-by-day. The developers are constantly working on the web apps’ User Interface (UI) and UX (User Experience). In fact, over the last few years, web apps’ performance has been almost the same as that of native apps.
Types of Web Applications
There are various types of web applications that are different from each other based on how they appear and what they do.
Static Web Applications
As the name suggests, static web applications are the less flexible ones. These are like a collection of static pages on which all the visiting users get the same information.
- Interactivity is pretty less in these applications compared to other types.
- There is no room for personalization for the users since interactivity on the client-side is less in static web apps.
- Changing or updating a web page is an arduous task. One needs to reload the whole web page to observe the changes.
Dynamic Web Applications
A Dynamic web app includes two-way interaction. It means when you enter some information in a dynamic web application, you can get different results accordingly.
- These are interactive in nature.
- It contains both server-side and client-side programming.
- Users can interact in many ways while using a dynamic web app. For instance, they can search for something on the webpage, make a user profile, submit feedback or comments, and much more.
E-Commerce Applications
E-Commerce web apps are helpful when you wish to sell or buy anything through online mode. These apps are business-oriented and bring web app development to the next level.
- E-commerce web apps can help businesses manage orders, govern transactions, and update the available products’ databases.
- These applications offer an interface resembling the native apps to provide a smooth experience to the customers.
Portal Web Apps
Portal Web apps are the type that redirects you to a secure area from the home page where users need to log in for payment or transaction-related matters. For example, when you use a shopping website, you might be searching for your required products on an e-commerce web app, but when you proceed to make the payment, the system will land you to another payment web portal for safe and secure transactions. Those portals in the form of a web application are known as portal web apps.
Content Management System (CMS) Web Apps
If you are a non-technical user and want to create content online, this web application is for you. A CMS web app will help you in developing content and updating it online. It is a system software that creates and manages the digital content of a web app. A CMS web app can also assist a business in its Web Content Management (WCM) that plays a major role in reaching out to your target audience.
Progressive Web Apps
Progressive Web Apps (or PWA) are not precisely a classification of a web app. In fact, these are the transformed versions of web apps that use the best and latest in the market frameworks and web technologies to produce apps that perform somewhat similar to native apps.
- A ready-to-access web app that you can save on your home screen without even downloading them.
- You can access them whenever you want, just with a click.
- PWA has a large pool of plugins, web development technologies, and tools to compete with the best-in-class native apps. However, the development cost of PWA is much lesser than that of the native apps.
Wrapping Up
In the upcoming time, when the competition in the market is rising, hiring web app development services can prove to be a business advantage for you. The advanced features in the web applications are giving a solid contest to the native apps. However, in contrast to them, developing a web app is much cheaper and more manageable. As already mentioned, the most significant advantage of having a web app is that it does not occupy space in your device, is easily accessible, and is platform-agnostic. These exciting features and superb performance make web app development a sought-after option in the forthcoming time, both for the developers and product owners.
