With all businesses moving online and capitalizing on strong, sustainable platforms to sell and market their products and services, it is imperative that you keep your game strong. Being aware of how fast the digital world is transforming will help you be proactive and stay ahead of the competitors. According to Bizop, here are all the major trends to look out for this year.
1. Embracing Progressive Web Apps
Even though Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) have been around for quite some time, it is their functionality that has rendered them popular among most developers. They provide an unparalleled user experience and act like Native Apps without the extra time and effort.
In 2019, most of the online ordering was done through mobile devices which makes it crucial for companies to develop mobile platforms so as to not miss the opportunity. One strength of PWAs is that it makes it possible for users to browse their favorite websites and online shopping portals without the need to installing an app. Users have limited space on their phones and would rather not have multiple apps on them. PWA makes mobile adaptive websites a smooth experience for them.
PWAs also allows for push notifications which are an app-type feature. This along with allowing users to consume content offline with cached content makes it a viable form of making Web Apps. PWAs are modern but use conventional programmings such as JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. They also use additional languages such as React and Angular.
If your company falls under the category of an e-commerce business, publication, has limited budgets, or has a goal of reaching a large audience, then PWA is your answer. You can lose the audience if they have to install your app to access your company’s services. Why not give them something that is equally convenient and easy to navigate as an app? To learn more about these apps visit this website.
2. The Ability to Send Push Notifications
In an age of information overload, it is likely that you don’t have time to check on your favorite businesses and what they have to offer. In such a case, push notifications are an important reminder to gauge the attention of the users and let them know the updates and the latest news about your company.
Push notifications are not just a feature of mobile apps but also work with Web Apps. Apart from them being highly useful in gaining users’ attention, they can be instrumental in retaining your customers and provide even desktop users with an experience akin to mobile.
There are plenty of global organizations that use this feature to keep their users updated. From Social Media giant Facebook to Google Mail, all have successfully implemented this feature to benefit their audience. We expect small and medium enterprises to follow suit and include it as a feature on their respective portals.
The Push Notifications are not only convenient but if you think about it, they can most likely replace the traditional emails businesses send to their clients to keep them informed. If you own a business, this is one trend that you need to look out for and possibly add as a feature on your website.
3. Artificial Intelligence and Bots
A lot of businesses employ community managers who are assigned to the dreary task of answering customer queries. The job is repetitive, redundant, and wastes time which could be put to better use. We have seen some organizations especially those who require customer service install bots and artificial intelligence to deal with this task. Bots are not only fast and effective but also learn over time with information exposure.
Bots eliminate the need for resources to be online 24/7 and also save costs for companies. We know that they cannot completely replace human interaction but for tasks that don’t require strategic decision making, they make an excellent case. Your resources can move to more useful tasks for improving the overall business than being involved with the job of being in touch with customers online and dealing with commonplace queries.
Chatbots are slowly gaining ground and we predict, given the need to work remotely at present, will catch on in no time. There are plenty of B2C companies that make use of chatbots on platforms such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Skype to answer customer questions and concerns. They can also be integrated into websites and e-commerce portals.
The popularity of bots will see a revolution in how wed platforms are made. Web design will have to take into consideration the need for virtual assistants and artificial intelligence bots, especially in terms of user experience and product serving algorithms.
AI-based bots not only solve problems but also offer a human-like experience and have the ability to gather consumer insights over a period of time and define actionable patterns.
4. Accelerated Mobile Pages
To make mobile browsing more convenient and easy, a lot of companies make use of Accelerated Mobile Pages. This is an optimized form of web design with only the most basic features and content that is readable. As the internet is becoming more accessible and easy to use, AMP plugins are extremely helpful is cutting costs on user experience and yet provide them fast usability whatever the internet speed may be. Since it is cheaper to implement than developing a full-fledged Native App, smaller businesses can use it and compete with bigger competitors in the market.
5. Single Page Applications
Single Page Applications are web apps that dynamically update without the need for refreshing the page. Apart from being user friendly, they also help in making a responsive website. From a security point of view as well, Single Page Applications provide data protection and show better page performance.
The response time of SPAs is faster and works without server-side code. This makes them a preferred choice among developers.
6. Automation Testing
Automation testing is a web technology that helps developers compare the actual outcome with an expected outcome. Artificial intelligence helps us create complex projects with limited resources whereas product automation testing lets us know if that project is even ready to be launched or not.
According to deviqa.com, automation testing is quickly becoming an integral part of how projects are created as they detect problems and reduce development costs by assisting the developers with test cases and learning.
7. JavaScript Frameworks
The JavaScript has been here for quite a while and is expected to develop further. With UX, UI, beta testing, product tech management becoming an integral part of the web experience, the evolved JavaScript frameworks will include them and allow high efficiency and fast performance.
8. The Rise of Blockchain technology
With the rise of Blockchain technology, we saw the advent of cryptocurrencies and its trading. This digital asset is used globally and employs both software and hardware support. Blockchain technology is likely to spread and as soon as its usage becomes common, we will see people using it to pay taxes, interact with government services, and build a professional network.
9. Internet of Things
It is forecasted that there will be around 30 billion internet devices operating worldwide by 2025. In such a scenario, having interconnected devices not only reduces user effort but also gives them useful results. This system of interrelated computing devices is known as the Internet of Things (IoT). From the ability to transfer data to unique identifiers that make human life easier, IoT is here to stay!
10. Voice Search Optimization
With Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Google Home, Voice Search is the latest trend to gain popularity. Users are moving away from texting and depending on their smart devices to provide them with a personalized AI-based experience.
If most of your work is dependent on online channels, you need to keep a lookout for all the latest website trends. Staying updated provides value to your customers and eases how you do business. If you’re looking for getting your website developed or renewing it, then multi-programming.com is a good option to consider.
