Mobile apps or responsive websites?

At first glance, it may seem there isn’t a big difference between those two, but let’s dive a little deeper into it because responsive websites and mobile apps are very important, connected and yet.. a bit different.

Businesses will need to understand the main difference between mobile apps and responsive websites. With this knowledge, a business will be able to choose what is more preferable and more appropriate for their business activities.

Responsive websites has special design based on CSS media queries. It allows the website’s content to fit into any type of screen both 17’ laptop or 3’ phone. Those queries nonetheless have few imperfections: not only they require more developer’s work and attention but also such website most probably would download slower.

Why do you need that responsive websites at all?

Well, did you know that quantity of mobile phone users is increasing worldwide from 4.01 in 2013 to 5.07 billion in 2019?

In 2016 almost 63% of the world population already owned a mobile phone. During next years this amount will grow in particular thanks to China and India.

Many businesses today have responsive websites in order to make their information, brands, goods or services available on various platforms and devices. This is especially crucial for businesses looking for new client or generally represent your business in the web for brands awareness.

Features of Responsive websites

1) Responsive website is available for all users.
It doesn’t require downloading or installation. Regardless of operating system, you can easily use a responsive website on your smartphone. But don’t forget one important detail – internet connection. Websites can’t work without it.

2) The website is easy for updating, supporting and bug fixing.
On opposite to mobile apps, a user doesn’t have to install the new version to see the enhancements on the website. For the most part, users don’t even notice the process of updating. They can simply enjoy the renewed product. At the same time, it is easier and cheaper for the business owner to update their responsive websites.

3) The responsive website is less expensive.
You don’t have to create native apps for each type of mobile phones and tablets when you have one responsive website. It also makes maintenance cost lower and working with SEO gets easier. However responsive website can’t satisfy all the needs and you still have to pay for domain and hosting.

The Pros of Responsive Websites

The benefits of responsive websites encompass two critical areas:

Time: Launching a responsive website is a faster process than designing an application. Nearly all businesses these days need responsive websites to stay competitive, so creating a responsive website is the least that developers can do.

Cost: Responsive websites are comparatively cheap when measured against the costs of designing native mobile apps from the ground up.

The Cons

As they say, you get what you pay for. Responsive websites, while necessary in today’s business climate, aren’t as fast or as functional as native mobile apps. It takes a long time to navigate to a responsive website through a phone’s browser when compared with the convenience of mobile apps, and once users are there, the platform usually performs slower.

Mobile apps, on the other hand, are specific applications customized to each Operating System (OS) that feature unique designs and codebases. In our mobile-crazed world, native mobile apps are becoming a popular choice for many websites that want to offer users a top-shelf experience.

So, what is a mobile app?

It is a software product that can be installed on one’s smartphone or tablet. Mobile Apps are developed for different operating systems, the most popular of which are iOS, Android, and Windows Phone.

Mobile apps work differently than responsive websites. They don’t run on all devices and need to be installed separately but what they give is a unique user experience. While your website is aimed at attracting new or occasional clients, your mobile app works with regular clients.

A mobile app is notably good when a person needs to complete some goal. The well-designed mobile app must give your client all opportunities to perform it just in few taps or scrolls.

So don’t make a common mistake and don’t turn your app into the clone of your website. Instead, you should pick up features and functions that reflect the main idea of your business, develop them, make the usage as simple and straightforward as possible and bring that all to your regular clients. Oh, and you can include push notifications!

Features of mobile apps

1) Focusing on special features and functions. Mobile apps doesn’t have to fully duplicate features of the responsive website. Some app functions are not always applied on the website (even due to technical reasons) and vice versa. For example, Instagram users can watch photos on the website but still, they can’t upload them without application.

2) Mobile apps work differently. Apps require downloading from specific popular types of apps (Google Play Market, App Store, Windows Market and third-party stores) and installation, as well as they can require access to your personal information or third party services. At the same time, mobile apps can guarantee bigger safety than browsers.

3) Mobile Apps can work offline. Depending on app’s functions, you can download information or content and use it even without Internet access. For instance, most features continue working offline in applications like BBC news or Spotify.

4) Special user-friendly design. When it comes to design displaying — mobile app tends to be more resistant to the variety of screen sizes that might appear on the various phones and tablets. Also, design for a mobile app is typically more holistic and user-friendly as it is done for a specific platform. Pictures usually upload faster and the app itself uses less mobile data.

5) Using of mobile phone components. Mobile app works better with hardware sensors like microphone, camera, GPS, etc., that improves acting with a device and makes user’s life easier. So that you can get access to different phone options like calls or geolocation just with a few taps

The Pros of Mobile Apps

Mobile apps take longer to create and are more expensive, but they feature several advantages in other areas:

Functionality: Apps feature greater functionality than mobile-oriented sites can allow due to the way each is custom built into the device’s OS. This means that apps can easily integrate with other features and tools in a device as well as support functions that aren’t possible with web-based HTML5.

Speed: Mobile apps are designed top to bottom with efficiency in mind. Apps usually have faster loading times than web pages as they aren’t cluttered with unnecessary site elements. The user experience is optimized.

Brand Recognition: Nothing beats a native app for brand awareness and marketing. With handy desktop shortcuts, mobile apps put you front and center on each user’s phone, and the custom code used to create apps can relay information back to businesses about user behaviors to inform future development decisions.

And the Cons

Depending on who you have on your development team, designing mobile apps is tough. Building an application requires a different set of skills than modifying a responsive website. When done poorly, the great brand awareness present in native apps can work against businesses: If consumers see a shoddy app, it makes the business seem amateur.

To combat this, most businesses pay top dollar for native app development that takes longer than building a responsive website. These are the two drawbacks of native app development: Investing the time and investing the money.

But make no mistake, mobile apps can be powerful for brand awareness, marketing, and creating a quality user experience. Examine your budget and your business’s goals to determine whether the investment in mobile app infrastructure will pay off in the long run.

A mobile app is not always better than the responsive website and vice versa. To choose one of them you must understand the purpose of the product: who will use it and how often.

From the point of view of money saving, responsive website development is a better option. In this case, the content is more important than the visual expression of the app. The mobile app is likely more preferable to a responsive website if your plans require high performance.

In addition, the offline/online availability is an essential issue. Mobile apps do not depend on the Internet access as responsive websites so that many operations can be performed in the offline mode.

Which is Best For your business?

Most businesses need, and already have, mobile-optimized pages these days. And while native apps generally perform more efficiently, not every business needs one to be successful. If cost is an issue, businesses can leverage their web platforms to feature as many mobile benefits as possible to avoid the financial investments of a native mobile app.

Of course, there is no clear answer to what business needs: a responsive website or a mobile application. The main thing is to think about your clients as users of mobile devices and make their life as comfortable as possible.