Web Application Development Trends

Web development has grown for the past few decades and is still growing rapidly, as you read this line. Nowadays, as an aspiring website owner, you should clearly know what kind of tech stack you should use to develop a web app for yourself. You should stay current on web development trends and, at the same time, be ahead of the future of web development, which is not an easy task.

Failure to stay up with emerging trends may have a negative impact on the performance and user experience of your website. The risk of falling behind your market competitors and losing significant amounts of traffic does sound devastating.

Thus, developing your website according to the current trends in web development is the right approach to keep your business alive while gaining a competitive advantage. Therefore, let’s take a deeper look at the latest web development trends that our app developers for startups have prepared.

One of the most anticipated trends in web development that every human is witnessing as of right now is a voice search, which has been very relevant in recent years. Each mobile phone and even a PC has a pre-installed digital speech assistant. It could be Siri, Google Assistant, or it can be an app-based digital assistant. The AI that is in command of the voice search understands what the query is and looks it up for relevant results. It is an extremely smart example of how a simple microphone inside your phone can gain so much popularity. Another reason why this trend is booming as of right now is the voice search.

Digital assistants are not something completely new, as they have been on the market for a long time. What is truly new is the smart speakers, which are similar to the mobile assistant, but the opportunities that they have are much wider. This is especially true if you have any smart devices in your home. However, they are not widely available, but a price of $50 is an excellent starting point for your home expansion.

Voice search is one of the most significant e-commerce trends since the majority of queries are focused on online stores. However, this web app trend is not only limited to small and medium businesses. It is also applicable to enterprise companies as well. Thus, if you want to make your web application discoverable, you should optimize it for voice search keywords.

WebAssembly is here to disrupt the market segments of web applications. The main reason is that the new format intends to provide online applications with native-like performance. WebAssembly compiles the code written in any programming language to run inside a browser. It’s a similar technique when compared to the SPAs. However, in this case, WebAssembly can compile any programming code.

As a result, you can create the components for increased performance in your application with the appropriate programming language (like C# or Kotlin, for example). WebAssembly handles the browser execution, and thus native applications can run directly in the browser.

Artificial intelligence, or more specifically machine learning, has been already integrated as a part of our daily internet activity, thus having already impacted without any distinct changes whatsoever. The primary aim of machine learning is to deliver experiences natively, as one of the core web application trends.

Machine learning is a software's ability to increase an app’s performance without any human effort required. This technology analyzes incoming data, looks for patterns, and continuously improves the performance of an app it was integrated into.

For example, Airbnb used machine learning to personalize search results for its users to maximize the likelihood of a host accepting their request. Each request acceptance is analyzed using new machine learning technology. Depending on it, the search results in the relevant listing will rank higher. As a result, the conversions have increased by 3.75 percent. All Airbnb users are now treated similarly, resulting in increased customer satisfaction.

Another awesome example comes from Netflix, as it has taken a step further. They took a predictive content personalization strategy by implementing a powerful machine learning algorithm. So instead of targeting a broad category of consumers, each consumer is recognized individually. Instead of past searches, the algorithm provides information and search results based on the objectives of its users.

Enhancing the user experience by enabling machine learning and personalizing the content in your web app is possible. The ability of a computer to make rational decisions and automate the content process can be done by machine learning.

Machine learning is becoming a critical component of any web app. Thus, you should definitely try to incorporate it into your application! Analyze the activity of your visitors and make relevant adjustments to the content. Your visitors will never know you are using an algorithm, but their satisfaction level will increase, as well as their engagement and conversion rates!

Machine learning, natural language processing, and various techniques directed at automating processes are predicted to be integrated deeply with AI chatbots. Exactly this factor will allow them to satisfy the requests and match the behavior of users.

Apart from supporting businesses in automating various manual processes, AI chatbots can significantly improve the consumer experience. For example, instead of annoying calls or a mindless dialogue to collect the necessary feedback, they can collect data, respond to common questions, and complete other small or medium tasks. That allows businesses to provide a solid experience for their customers.

There are a lot of companies that have already integrated AI chatbots into their websites. And a lot of these AI bots were integrated into social messaging apps, such as Whatsapp, Telegram, and even Skype. In the upcoming years, users may see a rapid increase in adopting AI chatbots, as it is one of the latest trends in web application development.

In 2015, Google introduced accelerated mobile pages (AMP) with the single goal of providing mobile consumers with a fast digital experience. While delivering a consistent user experience and lowering bounce rates, the AMPs can assist businesses to improve major metrics like the number of conversions on their web apps, for example.

Although AMP is slightly off the trending charts as of 2020, it still remains one of the most widely used mobile techniques used globally. More than 35% of all websites incorporate AMP mobile technology, with more than half of the top 10,000 websites using them.

Single-page apps (or simply SPAs) are one of the most significant advances in web development. These are JavaScript-based web apps that load a single HTML page on a user browser and dynamically update the content without refreshing the page. A lot of modern companies are using such technological advancements along with such huge corporations as Google, Facebook, and Twitter.

More than that, SPAs are very popular due to their cost-effectiveness and development simplicity, thanks to the AngularJS framework and other trending web frameworks. They take up very little space and offer visitors information on a single page without the need to crawl the entire website in search of a specific page or a piece of information. These advantages allow companies to easily choose SPAs as their primary development choice since online users continue to demand faster and simpler app experiences. Thus, one can certainly state that the SPA trend is likely to continue and will grow even further.

Another significant web development trend is the transition of typical CMS web applications to headless ones. A typical CMS represents a body of a specific web page and a predetermined header with a footer displayed on every page.

This approach is very primitive due to the low development time and development skills since developers have to dig through the code and make relevant changes, resulting in various delays. A headless CMS, on the contrary, will easily remove the head of a website and replace it with the new ones, so you can mix and explore desired variations. With headless CMS, web developers can use solid technologies for the app's front-end and back-end parts, which means that the web app will be more robust and have a solid user experience.

Another significant benefit of a headless CMS is the ability to display the same information in high resolution across different devices. It is simpler, less expensive, and less resource-intensive if compared to the traditional CMS websites.

One of the most unexpected web app development trends is the data security of your web application. You see, the more personal data you store, the more security you require, as there are a lot of candidates who may want to acquire it. Such malicious people aim to steal your users' data or any sensitive company data. That can potentially cause serious damage to your reputation and cost you quite a lot.

As one of the major web application development trends, your web app security should be your top priority. Thus, to be completely confident that your data will be secure and safe, implement these tips.

1. Testing neglection - testing for the security of your web app can be conducted during the development stage and can prevent any leakage or breaches. Even the slightest change in your web application should be tested.
2. Website-monitoring tools - a service that can constantly monitor all activity and every packet sent to your server is a vital part of any web application server. Along with that, if you configure it to notify you about any malicious activity, your team will be able to react in time and protect your online resource.
3. 3-party services - SaaS software products enable the fast development of your web app while requiring no excessive technical knowledge. However, make sure that the provider you choose to work with is trustworthy.
4. Encrypt sensitive data - one of the approaches to save your data when there is a possibility that an attacker can get access to your database is to encrypt it. They won’t be able to extract any sensitive data stored there.

Along with these suggestions we’ve highlighted above, you should also implement some of the latest trends in web development to keep your app and data safe. Here are some of the core components that your app should have.

Artificial intelligence

Digital computers are getting more intelligent compared to the past decade. Although they have both pros and cons, everyone should pay close attention to the advantages at first.

Researchers expect AI technologies to become helpful in terms of data security. Pretty much every user has already experienced the most recent improvements: an AI biometric system that scans fingerprints is not an element of science fiction anymore, for example. Web systems of many large companies demonstrate similar features.

Any malicious activity is now easier to detect with AI security software, as large companies now educate and program their AI systems to analyze behavior patterns within a network and react to any suspicious activity.

Artificial intelligence can also become an adviser. It can literally be a security consultant whom you can ask questions. Artificial intelligence will learn more as it gets to interact with people more proactively, and it will be there, and it won't forget what's being taught. Thus, one can inspect any particular knowledge segment of an AI system and make a more accurate decision as they’re looking at what's going on in terms of threat detection.

Blockchain

For several years, bitcoin and other blockchain topics have occupied the top places in tech blogs. It is recommended to inspect them more closely as a tool for web solution security. For example, NASA has already implemented blockchain technology to protect data and prevent cyber attacks. That’s a good point to start with. If such big companies use this web app trend to protect their services, why shouldn't you try it out?

Database safety

By storing the data on one server, a person makes a perfect place for hackers. By implementing blockchain, you can decentralize your data (as we mentioned previously), which means that there is no single person or location where the data is stored. Every user is responsible for data verification, and none of the changes can be made unless everyone approves it.

DNS protection

There are a lot of companies that suffer or experience DDoS attacks practically every single day. The answer to this dangerous vulnerability is DNS decentralization. Basically, what this means is - that the data that you store is distributed among numerous nodes. Thus, making it practically impossible for a malicious person to find sensitive information and attack your web app.

All in all, no matter what web app you plan to develop, the security should be on top. Keep an eye on the most effective approaches and make sure your team has enough knowledge and experience in security aspects to keep important data safe.

Another web app trend that is worth mentioning is progressive web applications. Google loves to prioritize apps that load quickly on any device, especially mobile ones.

A progressive web app or PWA is a web page that practically imitates the experience of a native mobile app. It’s fast, it is able to operate online or with a bad internet connection, and its development cost is low. A PWA supports interactions, allowing users to enjoy a high-end experience without ever realizing that they are still using the browser. E-commerce web apps are a very common example of this technology. That is the reason why so many companies are currently leveraging PWA trends. They are truly unique techniques that reduce the load time of a website.

We’ve already covered AMP above, and since both of these terms are relatively similar, companies choose which technology to choose, as it depends on your specific case. However, do consider these new web application technologies right now, as you will have a chance to improve your SEO rankings.

There are tons of companies that are actively using PWAs. One of them is Twitter, and it has more than 330 million active users. So if you plan to build a web game, a lifestyle, sports and entertainment, or a news web app, you should consider the PWA approach.

In other cases, AMP websites would fit perfectly if:

• most of your users access it via mobile devices;
• page load speed is so low;
• SEO is important to you.

The app development journey for pretty much any human began with smartphones, and PCs (later adopted to laptops), which are now so common that anyone cannot simply imagine a day without them. Other smart devices and components of IoT systems are gaining striking popularity as time goes on. Mobile-friendly applications should be a top priority right now; however, this is one progressive web app trends for app development that came unexpectedly unique. Welcome multi-experience – an approach for your users to use your app wherever they want to and on whatever device they have. Be it a tablet, smartwatches, Tesla car, etc. The multi-experience provides not only a quality app that looks good, but it also brings value to any smart device that you have in the same engaging manner.

In more short and concise terms, a multi-experience is an adaptation of trending web applications for any screen available. It is considered to be one of the top technology trends according to various researches. The traditional idea of a person interacting with a software application via a PC or a phone drifts towards a multisensory, multitouch, multiscreen, multi-device experience. Customers expect to use web apps filled with AI chatbots, digital assistants, AR modules, etc., on any device.

It was estimated that more than 25% of mobile and progressive web apps at enterprises would be built on a multi-experience development platform. Thus, you should carefully plan what you want to add to your app to go beyond the limits and run it smoothly on any device and any screen. One piece of advice - focus on user experience via a single web app. Thus you will gain an opportunity to become one of the best businesses in your niche.

One of the rather unexpected web development industry trends of this year is motion design. A motion design is basically a minimalistic design that combines various modern interactions that totally hook up the attention of the target audience.

To describe this new trend, one can imagine a dynamic transition of a page header, a mouse hover that changes the image below it, or even different charts animations. As you can see, the motion design is deeply connected with the concept of animations, and with such components, it will easily represent the style of your company brand. Each of them can potentially improve various user factors and help your web app rank higher in SEO, as per the updated Google Guidelines.

It was estimated that in about five years, the number of mobile devices would be more than regular PCs. Presently, mobile devices occupy around 54% of all Internet traffic, so it's unsurprising that web applications are focused on mobile screen resolutions rather than standard desktop ones.

Such focus on mobile development is a new notion where developers focus on thinking about their product from the perspective of the mobile screen and other mobile hardware elements. In other words, the development does not by default from the desktop web app, and then it gets converted for mobile resolution. Instead, you begin with a light and intuitive product designed and developed for mobile users.

The latest progressive web app trends for mobile-oriented websites include: delivering content devoid of meaningless decorative elements, reducing page count, incorporating triggers with mobile-friendly calls to action, vibrant colors, simple geometric shapes, and illustrations. Additionally, you should never forget that Google has its own SEO algorithms directed at mobile devices. So keep that in mind when you develop a mobile version of your web app.

Web application development is a truly dynamic process that continues to evolve and fulfill the demands of digital consumers. Lots of the latest web application development technologies aim to improve the user experience on mobile devices.

Others will be directed towards improving the user experience on smart devices and other gadgets that people have yet to see and try. Maintaining an awareness of web development trends and the modern web application architecture of your project will assist you in ensuring that your website continues to attract and satisfy your online users.