Progressive Web Apps - Did you mean Responsive Web Apps or Something New?

"Progressive Web Apps" - It is not "Responsive Web Apps" but an extension.

As we all know Mobile application or Web Application  has become THE  core components of any online business. Customer interact through mobile applications downloaded from the app stores or through web apps.

I will not talk to you about Responsive Web Apps (RWAs) in this article as I already touched it in my previous blog post.

Lets start on .... Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)

What is a PWA?

For me it is the NEXT STEP  of Responsive Web Apps. Rather it is the next version of web apps which is capable of providing the user experience of native mobile applications.

The drawbacks of RWA which have become a reality with PWA. Below are the features of  PWA which are extensions of  RWA-

Offline Mode :- 

PWA will work in Offline Mode - With the advent of HTML5, a feature called Application Cache was introduced. This allows websites to store significant amounts of data offline, and as a result function similar to a  mobile applications. They can cache the whole website and the content so the user don’t need an internet connection to use it.

Speed :-

Progressive Web Apps are highly reliable and efficient when it comes to speed. This allows PWA to load instantly, regardless the speed of the users internet connection.

The capability of caching the information in the app and browser allows PWAs to work faster. They have smooth scrolling, animations, and navigations, allowing users to perceive it as a native application.

Native Features :-

PWA with HTML5, has enabled features such as push notification, native video playback, native video and audio, contacts, alarm, calendar are among other things.

Add Icon to Home Screen :-

RWA is an extended web app. PWA is a web app as well as a mobile app.Therefore users can add an icon to the home screen. This was earlier provided with mobile applications though with PWA, users now can set an icon of any web app in the home.

Full Screen Mode :-

Full-screen mode offers shoppers an immersive experience without the distraction of the URL bar.

Customer Engagement via Push Notifications :-

Immersive experience offered through Progressive Web Apps keeps customers engaged. Web push notifications also provide a channel to engage customers in real-time based on their behavior or location.

Below are some statistics to prove the success rate of PWAs:

Progressive web apps provides a user experience similar to a mobile app which bring more conversions. Many companies have introduced progressive web apps to replace their traditional mobile app experience.

Pinterest saw a 44% increase in user-generated ad revenue, a 50% increase in ad clickthroughs, and 40% increase in users spending. Twitter saw a 65% increase in pages per session and a 20% decrease in bounce rate as compared to the traditional mobile app. AliExpress also saw 2 times more page views, 74% increase in time spent, and 82% more conversions as compared to native apps.

With 20% reduction in bounce rate for Twitter, 53% increase in mobile sessions and 17% more conversions for Lancome, and 160% increase in the shopper sessions for MakeMyTrip, it is time to start building Progressive Web Apps now.

So it is pretty obvious that PWAs has provided much benefits over Mobile Apps, hence has  become a technology trend. Therefore businesses need to stay updated with upcoming tech trends to achive a competitive advantage in the market.

Responsive Web Apps vs. Mobile Apps

Hello Again !!! Here comes another article after some time.

The reason for  this post  was pure confusion and the struggle I went through to  to understand  the difference between a Responsive Web App and Native Mobile App in deciding the best solution for a project I worked as a Business Analyst.
Here you go- below are  my  findings and conclusion -

To begin with a Responsive Web App is a type of Mobile Web  while  Adaptive Web - creation of multiple versions of web pages to better fit the users device, being the other. However the article targets to comprehend responsive web apps and mobile apps along with its pros and cons.

What is a Responsive Web App-
Responsive web apps  is a normal website which fits in to the screen size of the device which it is viewed. The technology used in implementation makes the site looks fabulous on every device its viewed - desktop or mobile - Phone/ Android or tablet.

Ex: As the business owner I believe that the investment would be much higher if I am to develop a mobile application - hybrid/native , web application  and a mobile web application separately. However  without spending much I would pay and get a responsive web app implemented which caters all types of devices and users.
However I cannot expect my customers to use the application  when there is no internet which is a drawback in a very competitive market.

What is a  Mobile App-
Mobile App is a software product implemented with a specific purpose to achieve a specific goal- ex: online purchase/ loyalty/ manage purchase, downloaded from Apple Store or Play Store and installed in to the mobile application. Targets should be achieved in few clicks.
Mobile applications can be either native or hybrid - native applications serve one operating system where as hybrid serves multiple.

What is  my business requirement and the customer behavior? It is  always to conduct a survey and understand the possible customer segment as at the end of the day  responsive web application or mobile application or anything else serve your customers.

It is less expensive to implement a responsive web application then a  mobile application which requires much effort and time though responsive web applications cannot function without internet connectivity. However mobile applications function well in both online and offline regardless the internet connectivity.
A mobile application provides the ability for the application developer to use native features of the mobile (GPS, Camera etc. or most latest voice recognition, AI, QR codes  or Augmented Reality) and generates sophistication.

Below grid explains more-

However Google recommends Responsive web apps over mobile apps, as google considers it as a best practice.

Lastly if you ask me to select the best out of the two, I would rather say  - it is your business requirement , no hard and fast rule in selecting one,  further the energy and money you are willing to spend on the demand for technology  in the business.