Mobile commerce continues to grow in popularity, accounting for 72.9 percent of all web traffic. Unreliable bandwidth, smaller screens, and less powerful devices have not compromised the user experience. The tie between iOS/Android platforms and the mobile world keeps getting stronger.
Nevertheless, a third formidable player known as PWA (Progressive Web Application) technology has entered the market. But what is PWA? This article will discuss what PWA is and what you need to know.
What is Progressive Web Application (PWA)?
Progressive Web Application (PWA) refers to a particular web application that functions as a mobile app and a web page on any device. It is an excellent solution that has done wonders by improving poor conversion rates and mobile User Experience (UX) in eCommerce stores.
PWA technology aims to deliver a native-like and top-notch user experience with cleaner browsing and faster conversion, even if users have a poor internet connection.
How are PWAs created?
Progressive Web Applications are written in CSS, JavaScript, and HTML. They behave and even look exactly like regular or standard website pages. This makes them searchable in most internet browsers.
However, PWAs deliver functionalities identical to what mobile applications provide. Progressive web apps can operate offline fast, utilize the features of user devices, and even send push notifications. You can upload PWAs to popular app marketplaces like Google Play and App Store.
What is the primary purpose of PWAs?
PWAs were developed for the primary purpose of enabling mobile-first eCommerce transformation. Mobile-first eCommerce has remained the standard for several years and continues to gaining more traction daily.
For instance, for the first time, global users of mobile devices eclipsed those using desktops in 2014. Up to 80 percent of shoppers accessed the interior of a brick-and-mortar store via a mobile device. They did so to compare prices, check product reviews, or locate alternative store locations.
Mobile commerce sales are estimated to reach up to $728.28 billion, accounting for up to 44.2 percent of retail eCommerce sales within the United States alone. This shows how important PWAs are in the mobile commerce universe.
Is there any difference between PWA and native apps?
Native apps such as those you download from the Google Play Store and App Store are usually built using programming languages specific to those platforms.
This means iOS apps are built using Swift while Android applications are created with Java. You will need to know the specific technology to build an application for those platforms.
But PWAs offer the best of both worlds, as they run on browsers – when you save them on your home screen – and function like native apps. A PWA accesses the underlying software and hardware that browsers can’t even access for safety reasons.
Conclusion
PWAs can be excellent additions to your business’s mobile toolkit. They are super-fast, work efficiently offline, and even function effectively like native applications. Users will have fantastic experiences, and will constantly be happy to interact with your online store. This guarantees more conversions since happy customers are engaged customers, and engaged customers lead to massive sales.
