In this article, we will talk about progressive web apps (PWA) . For that, we will first define what a progressive web application is, then we will consider its advantages and disadvantages. Finally, we will show you a successful example of PWA.
What are the progressive web apps?
When we talk about progressive web applications, we are not talking about a new structure or a new technology. It is a set of practical improvements that make a web application work in a similar way to a desktop or mobile application. The goal is to have a similar or similar experience to a native application so that the user does not notice the difference between a native application and a PWA. .
First of all, you have to distinguish between websites accessible from a mobile browser and applications that are downloaded from a store. On the one hand, we have mobile websites, responsive websites and web apps . On the other hand, we have native applications and hybrid applications.
The progressive web apps can be defined as a kind of mix between web apps and native apps. It is important to note that the fundamental difference is that a PWA can be installed from a browser window without having to go through an App Store.
Pros and cons of progressive web apps
You may be wondering why it would be more interesting to choose a web app that mimics native apps, rather than a native app directly? Discover the advantages and disadvantages of PWA.
Advantages
Progressive web applications offer many benefits for developers and users.
- PWAs usually work faster than a website.
- They are accessible offline.
- They are responsive and therefore work with any operating system and any electronic device format.
- PWAs work like a native application: the icon appears on the phone like any other application, push notifications can be sent and they have access to certain phone features.
- PWAs are found in search engines and Google’s algorithm highlights them.
- They capture the attention of the user because they allow sending notifications.
It is not necessary to install it via an app store. This is a plus for the user and the owner. For the former, this is advantageous because it does not need to go through the application store and the second does not need to comply with the rules of the app stores.
They take up less space in the device’s memory because there is no need to download it.
disadvantages
Although PWA is an innovative application and has several beneficial features such as those mentioned above, it also has some weaknesses.
- It does not benefit from app store traffic : Listed as an advantage, it is a double-edged sword because many users search their apps exclusively on app stores.
- They consume a lot of battery : the PWA consume more energy than the native applications, because the code is much more complex. The devices have more difficulty interpreting it.
- They do not have access to all the features of the phone: This can be considered as an important weak point for PWAs compared to native applications.
- Some features are not compatible with iOS : Although most users use devices with an Android operating system, PWAs are not optimized to be compatible with iOS and this represents their great weakness.
An example of a progressive web app
Lancôme is a French luxury brand renowned in the world of cosmetics and belongs to the group L’Oreal. Despite the increased use of smartphones, they noticed that there were fewer conversions on mobile devices than on computers. That’s why they decided to invest in a PWAto reduce the bounce rate of mobile devices. The result was very positive:
- Increased conversions by 17%
- Increased baskets conversion rate with 8% push notifications
- Decrease of 15% in the bounce rate
- 51% increase in the number of sessions via mobile device
- 84% reduction in time required for page interactivity
Would you like to develop a progressive web app?
The impact of progressive web apps has been demonstrated in terms of performance and conversions. In addition, it is a practical alternative and more economical , since it is not necessary to go through a specific developer for each operating system.
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