Ecommerce is one of the fastest-growing industries. From shopping for clothes to buying groceries, people prefer buying everything online as it saves a lot of time and effort. This shift from the traditional shopping method to online shopping has increased the demand for a proficient eCommerce website development company to create highly interactive and attractive eCommerce websites.
Talking about the shift, more than shopping from an eCommerce website, customers these days prefer using their favorite eCommerce store via a mobile app which is developed by top mobile app development companies.The market for mobile eCommerce is continuously increasing and changing too. It is estimated that in the coming years, the market for mobile eCommerce will see immense growth and is estimated to account for $ 3.5 trillion by 2021. Ecommerce apps such as Amazon, eBay, and Walmart are some of the most popular mobile eCommerce apps. Around 80.64% of mobile users accessed the Amazon app, as of September 2019, followed by Walmart with 46.08% users.
Talking about technology and innovation, the latest entry to mCommerce business is the Progressive Web Apps (PWA). And today, in this article, we are going to discuss in detail about PWAs, the benefit of using Progressive web apps for the eCommerce business, and how you can implement these apps into your eCommerce business. So, let’s begin.
What Are Progressive Web Apps (PWA)?
Okay, to explain what PWAs are, let us begin by asking you a simple question. What do you do when you want to buy anything from Amazon via their phone app? The answer to it is quite simple.
You go to the respective App Store and download the Amazon app on your phone. Once the app is downloaded, you register or login into the app, and start using it. I’m sure this is the process that we all follow, isn’t it?
In today’s time, when there is so much to do around, users do not like to wait. They do not like to wait for the time an app takes to download, and this is where the concept of PWA step in.
Progressive web apps or PWAs are those apps that can be directly used without downloading them. Not just in eCommerce, these apps are quite popular, and every business is getting them developed. The demand for PWAs is constantly increasing, seeing the sheer number of benefits it offers. Some of the best examples of businesses using PWA apps are WhatsApp, Skype, AliExpress, Flipkart, and many more.
Talking about some of the key advantages that these progressive web apps offer:
- Increase in conversion rate
- User retention
- Higher user engagement
- More page visits
- Increase in total time spent on a website
In simpler words, PWAs offer a native-app like experience on the web server to the users using them. These apps facilitate web surfing and have various other features like push notifications, add to cart, buy now, just like a mobile app. Progressive web apps are known to use all the characteristics of a mobile app, improving user retention and user engagement. And all you need is a skilled and proficient team of progressive web app developers who have immense experience in developing such apps.
Top Features in a Progressive Web App: PWA vs. Native Apps vs. Websites
PWA is one of the best things that has happened for users who are really tired of downloading too many apps and cannot remember the URLs of their favorite websites. PWAs are the best combination of mobile apps and websites as they offer everything they can, and in some cases, they are even better.
Here are some of the top features of both mobile apps and websites that PWA offers:
| Features | Websites | Native Apps | PWA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installation | No | Yes | No |
| Offline Mode | No | No | Yes |
| Home Screen Access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cross platform Compatibility | Yes | No | Yes |
| Indexed by Google | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Requires Updates | No | Yes | No |
| Push Notifications | Yes | Yes | Yes |
These were a few features that PWAs offer, which may or may not be found in mobile apps and websites. These are also a few reasons why users prefer using progressive web apps in comparison to native apps.
Why you Choose Progressive Web Apps for your eCommerce Business?
Now that we have spoken so much about these progressive web apps, you might be wondering about the benefits of implementing them into your eCommerce business. Talking about benefits one of the main advantages that these apps offer and every entrepreneur must consider is cost-effectively. Since PWAs are independent of OS, you need not get them developed differently for different platforms.
Apart from being cost-effective, here are some more reasons to choose PWA for your eCommerce business:
- No Installation Required
- Increased Conversion Rate
- Cross-platform Compatibility
- Reduced Cost and Time of Development
- Easy to Maintain
- Faster Loading
1. No Installation Required
One of the main benefits of using a PWA is that it does not require any installation. For users who always struggle with the storage space on their device or those who do not like giving those extra minutes to the app to download, going for a PWA is the best option.
It is often said that most apps lose 1 out of every 5 users as they find the whole process of finding and downloading the app too complex. But this is not the case with PWAs. Not only they are easy to find but also easy to use.
So, if you are an ecommerce entrepreneur you must surely work on reducing the process of finding your store. The ease in finding the store results in a better user experience and better brand visibility.
2. Increased Conversion Rate
PWAs are known to increase the conversion rate. This is because these apps are too easy to use, they do not require too many steps like installing and finding the app, and are also faster to load. As per the analysis most eCommerce entrepreneurs prefer opting for progressive web apps for their business as it increases their rate of conversion, which is an important metric to track the success of any business. Not only these apps are visually appealing, but they also offer a better user experience too.
So, for those who think PWAs have a different user interface than that of a native app, this is not the case. PWAs can be as attractive as a native mobile app. All you need is a good set of mobile app developers who can work on your project just the way you want. And for an ecommerce business, it is very important that you present your store really well in front of your users, and PWAs help you in fulfilling your objective.
3. Cross-platform Compatibility
As discussed above, PWAs are irrespective of the OS. So, these apps offer cross-compatibility across Operating Systems, browsers, and even devices. One can easily use the same app on their mobile phone or tablets, on Chrome or UC Browser. Also, there is no separate app for Android and iOS users. Hence, getting a PWA developed with the help of top mobile app development companies saves a lot of money as you need not have to pay for separate apps.
Being an entrepreneur, all you need is to reach a wider section of people for your business, and this feature of PWA lets you target more people at a time. Since the same app can be used on various devices and browsers, more and more people can easily use them, thereby, increasing your brand reach.
4. Reduced Cost and Time of Development
There are a lot of things that one has to consider while getting an app developed from best mobile app development company. App development is a complicated process, and a lot of things go behind the development process. If you are into an eCommerce business, to target a large section of people, you will surely need a website or mobile app.
On the other hand, PWAs are easy and faster to develop, as the code once used can be reused. And as they offer cross-platform compatibility, you need not get them developed separately for different platforms. One app fits all needs.
5. Easy to Maintain
PWAs are easy to maintain as compared to native apps. If you plan to have separate apps for your eCommerce business, you will have to hire top mobile app developers to maintain them. But in the case of PWA, updates work like a simple website update, wherein the whole process takes place at the server-end enabling users to always use an updated app. Also, instead of hiring too many developers, all you need is a proficient progressive web app developer who can work on your project.
6. Faster Loading
Loading speed plays a major role in making your app a success. Many web development companies believe that a user tends to leave a website or an app if it does not load within 3 seconds. The loading speed of a PWA is much faster as compared to the native apps. This is because of its caching ability. Progressive web apps can handle cache efficiently to prevent shaky interactions and poor performance. They can store the repetitive elements and later when required, inject them into the browser, making your website responsive and user-friendly.
Also, PWAs can load even when your internet connection is poor, which is an added advantage as users who finds apps difficult to load due to poor connection, can use these web apps.
Conclusion
According to a survey done in October 2019, approx. 24% of the top e-commerce companies are planning to reach out to a progressive web app development company and get a PWA developed for its business in 2020. Not just that, 11% of the total eCommerce companies stated that they are already using a PWA seeing the sheer number of benefits it offers.
Investing in PWAs is definitely a good option as not only it offers around 36% higher conversion rates than a native app but it also saves the total mobile app development cost. Many big giants are already using progressive web apps for their business, and if you do not want to lose on to the opportunities, going with progressive web app development is a must.
