What are progressive web applications (PWA)?
Progressive web applications (PWA) are a combination of standard website and mobile applications that offer various functionalities that were previously only available in an application-only version. Progressive web applications (PWA) can be installed on your desktop computer or even on mobile devices and convey the same user experience and impress with the same aesthetics as clean applications.
A progressive web application is an application based on the web technologies we all know and love, like HTML, CSS and JavaScript, but with a user experience and functionality that rivals an actual native application. Thanks to some smart additions, our web developers can turn almost any homepage into a progressive web application. This means that in relation to a native application, which is quite difficult to develop, you can create a PWA quite quickly. You can also offer all the features of native applications such as push notifications, offline support and much more.
Progressive web applications can help companies improve conversion rates, bounce rates, page views and session durations. This is done simply by improving the user experience of the mobile application.
Renewed user interaction – Excellent performance improves user interaction, and features such as system notifications sent when users are not in the browser contribute to renewed user activity.
Divisible – Each PWA is associated with an individual URL. They are not published in the official application store.
Findable – Progressive web applications can be found using a search engine.
Installable and low memory demands – Users can add an application icon to their home screen. You don't even have to visit the application store for this and the application itself requires little storage space.
Independent of the network – PWAs use sophisticated APIs and work on various operating systems, including Chrome OS, Mac and Windows. Furthermore, they are not dependent on a connection to the network and also function in offline mode.
Responsive – PWAs have user interfaces that are suitable for all screen sizes from smartphones to tablets and desktops. This is made possible by technologies such as media queries and viewports.
Secure – PWAs are delivered over HTTPS and are therefore both reliable and secure.
Cost-effective – The implementation of PWA projects takes up to four times less time compared to native application development for iOS and Android, which also leads to a significant decrease in development costs.
App-like use
Advantages of progressive web applications1. No installation required
The biggest challenge with mobile applications is that they need to be downloaded and installed on multiple devices, potentially taking up a lot of storage space. In fact, 25% of application users say they delete applications because they need more storage space on their smartphone. With progressive web applications, this effort is a thing of the past. Progressive web applications work just like applications, but you can access them from any device via a web browser. This reduces lengthy download times and storage problems. Users can also add the web application to the home screen of their mobile device for easy access.
2. Improved performance
More than half of all users (53%) leave a homepage if the loading process takes longer than 3 seconds. Since progressive web applications drastically reduce load times, they drive up conversion rates and provide users with an incredibly positive customer experience. The web developers of our app development company enable dynamic caching and create progressive connectivity independent of web applications. This means that you can provide a great user experience, even with poor network speeds. Most progressive web applications offer instant load times and optimised images that work smoothly on any device.
3. Reduced data usage
Since progressive web applications consume less data volume than a conventional website, they even work with poor network reception. Today s mobile world is also used by users from developing countries. There, internet connections are still of poor quality and relatively expensive. Most users there access the internet via 2G or 3G networks and cumbersome websites with long loading times then create negative customer experiences. Progressive web applications can help increase the international customer base and generally provide a more customer-friendly user experience.
4. Responsive and application-like use
Consumers generally rate mobile applications as more engaging than websites, and progressive web applications offer application users the same rich and user-friendly customer experience as mobile-only applications but directly in their browsers. Progressive web applications include features of an application, such as push notifications and updates, and thus ensure user loyalty and return visitors. For faster access, users can also pin progressive web applications directly to the home screen. This also allows them to customise the icons on the home screen, the screen orientation and other properties of the progressive web application.
5. Findable via search engines
Progressive web applications may look like applications, but they function like websites. This means that they can be called up via URL and, accordingly, can also be found in search queries via Google or Bing. This means you can also optimise your progressive web application to appear higher up in search results just like a website. In principle, progressive web applications even have SEO advantages. They are fast and customer engaging two factors that search engines rank highly.
6. Lower costs than a mobile application
Companies that want to invest in a mobile application should consider the cost of developing the application for both Android and iOS. Developing an application that is suitable for both Android and iOS requires a correspondingly large budget. Progressive web applications work across platforms and can easily be accessed via the Internet. This means that their development is cheaper than the development of traditional mobile applications. Therefore, they are ideal for businesses that do not have the budget to develop a mobile application, but still want to offer their users an engaging, application like user experience.