What is a PWA? Progressive Web Apps for New FoundersTom Green, Co-Founder @ Verticode
December 11, 2024, 2 min read

What Are PWAs? Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) are websites that look and function like mobile apps, offering a combination of web and mobile experiences. Unlike native apps, PWAs do not require downloads or app store installation. Users can access them through a browser, ensuring a fast and seamless experience.

PWAs work across all devices, eliminating the need for platform-specific development. This universality allows for a smooth, responsive performance.

Why Are PWAs Important?

PWAs eliminate the need for early stage entrepreneurs to develop native apps for their initial launch. PWAs deliver a better user experience by combining the seamless interactivity of an app with the accessibility of a website, leveraging responsive design to adapt to various devices. PWAs merge the advantages of websites and apps by utilising standard web technologies to deliver secure, fast, and accessible experiences. Key benefits include:

Low-Network Functionality: Operate without a strong internet connection.
Web Push Notifications: Engage users with app-like alerts.
Home Screen Integration: Allow users to add the app to their home screens, bypassing app stores.

Core Features of a Successful PWA

To deliver an effective PWA, the following elements are crucial:

Device Adaptability: Responsive design for all screen sizes.
Native-Like Experience: Intuitive and sleek app-like functionality.
Offline Capability: Reliable performance even with low or no connectivity.
Seamless Updates: Updates can be deployed instantly without requiring approval from app stores or additional downloads by the user.
Security: HTTPS hosting to safeguard user data.

These features ensure that PWAs provide an enhanced, user-friendly web experience, whether for browsing products or completing transactions.

PWAs for Minimum Viable Products (MVPs)

Progressive Web Apps are well-suited for MVPs for several key reasons:

PWAs allow faster iteration. One of the most important aspects of an MVP is being able to iterate fast (based on your customer feedback). PWAs do not require approvals for publishing and, therefore, can be updated in real-time. Alternatively, app stores mandate approval for each update and the time it takes to get approval can vary massively (sometimes taking weeks). Over the course of 2 or 3 iterations, founders could lose months waiting for app store approval while their users want to see progress and recognition of their feedback.
They don’t need to be downloaded from an App Store. One of the biggest and most unexpected barriers that early stage tech founders find is that downloading an app (with no existing ratings or downloads) is a huge barrier for users. Often they can’t locate the app and often, even if they can, it feels like an overcommitment to download it.
You don’t need to pay the App Store royalties. In the early stages of your business, it’s advisable to keep as much cash in the business as possible. Something that many founders don’t realise is that the app stores take big fees off any revenue you generate in-app! By starting with a PWA, you’ll avoid these unnecessary costs in the early days

Verticode specialises in building MVPs that are fast, affordable, and tailored to your needs. Our team leverages cutting-edge, proprietary technology to create MVPs that will align with your vision and drive results. If a PWA aligns with your vision, we can help bring it to life.

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