Many people in the world are walking around with mobile devices with more power inside than the computer systems used for the moon landing and the Manhattan projects rolled into one. In the early years of the World Wide Web, text was the dominant content available because of the capabilities of the browsers available back then. Today, the web is dominated by graphics, video and sound and is already the next medium for entertainment, educational and news content among others. Companies have established a major web presence to facilitate business to business, business to customer and other relationships. The mobile device is now the most dominant platform in the world by giving mobile app developers the biggest chunk of business opportunities in the tech industry. Mobile websites and apps have become the key portals to access content on the web because everyone is on the go.
It is true that mobile sites and mobile web dominate the online space. Internet business strategy has become an entire professional career on its own because of the dependence of businesses on the internet for practically everything. Billions of dollars in transactions occur over the internet on a daily basis. Apps and mobile websites are doing everything from financial transactions to selling millions of products to performing enterprise applications for resource management. There are also the big data applications that drive thousands of online games, entertainment content delivery platforms and advertising systems. The web is the new television and the mobile device is its biggest user base.
Most digital devices run either mobile sites, which run out of a browser, or mobile apps that run as native applications on the devices themselves. On the surface they are not any different because one can achieve just about the same results with both, but apps tend to be more comprehensive and are designed to interact specifically with the host device, making it possible to process heavy duty tasks without needing to go online. So basically, mobile sites are websites formatted for mobile devices and are mostly for information purposes while apps are like desktop apps built to perform complex tasks.
As the use of mobile devices increases around the world, companies and organizations have a dilemma as to whether it is better to have a mobile site or an app. The thing though is the purpose of going online for one company might just be to give their customers another way to access information about them. And building a web app for such purpose may be overkill. But if, for instance. the company’s entire business logic is based on web technology, then a web app is the solution as it not only serves the purpose of giving information to the clients but they being able to access the company’s services. As businesses move from brick and mortar operations to strictly internet based models, the debate between mobile sites and apps will continue to rage on. But what is important is that a business needs the right professionals to advise it on the best possible route to take when it comes to making the choice on which of the two technologies best meet their requirements.
Sandcastle Web Design and Developments helps businesses navigate through complex web space and advises on the best solutions for businesses. For information on our mobile solutions visit our website at www.sandcastle-web.com/services/mobile-solutions.