Top 10 Essential Features to Include in a Web App: A Detailed Guide!

What is a Web App?

A web application is a computer software program that utilizes web browsers and web technology to perform tasks over the internet. Also, they can be launched on any device such as a mobile device, tablet, or desktop computer. 

Modern online applications are designed to mimic the look and feel of native mobile applications. But really, all you're doing when you "install" a web app on your phone is making a shortcut to it on your home screen. Instead of requiring you to save the complete app on your device, it serves as a direct link to the content.

To utilize the online application, all you need to do is use any web browser, like Google Chrome. Firefox, or Internet Explorer. 

Popular examples of web apps include Google Docs, Netflix, Pinterest, Spotify, and Gmail. 

Let’s see how it works:

For any user to access the web app, they need its URL and can just start the app through their browser. Also, they need to be connected to the internet. 

Why Does Your Business Need a Web Application?

You definitely might be wondering: does your business need a web application and why? – It’s because as a business owner, you need to attract an audience to your business. 

For that, you need to build a web app where you can convert visitors into leads and retain them into long-term customers. 

If you want to build a brand, you must produce engaging and approachable media that will help you establish a strong reputation in the competitive market. 

Web applications certainly have a larger user base because of their adjustable features, which are typically more advantageous to users.

10 Must-Have Features in a Web App

Following, we’ve listed the top 10 essential features to incorporate in a web app. Let’s check:

1. Mobile-Friendly Interface

In today’s digital world, users want a smooth and amazing experience. For that, it is important to have a mobile-friendly interface for your web app. Developers must focus on components such as

• Responsive layout
• UI adapting to different screens & sizes
• Readability
• Loading speed
• Easy Navigation
• Avoiding Pop ups..and so on. 

Ensuring a seamless and visually pleasing experience across smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers is crucial. This impacts user engagement and satisfaction and plays a pivotal role in determining the success of your web app. 

A sluggish design can have detrimental effects, leading to higher bounce rates. To prevent this, prioritizing a mobile-friendly interface becomes crucial.

2. Analytics & Reporting

A business web application's strong analytics capacity is one of its most valuable built-in features. Businesses may obtain critical insights into user behavior patterns and thoroughly assess the overall performance of their web-based applications by incorporating analytics with ease. 

With the abundance of data at their disposal, business owners can enhance user engagement, optimize web apps for higher conversion rates, and make well-informed decisions.

Any business leader who is interested in promoting evolution must-see gathering user data as a strategic necessity. The importance is not only in gathering data but also in using it as a powerful instrument to learn a great deal about user behavior and be aware of new trends in the industry.

According to recent studies, businesses that use analytics see a significant improvement in their ability to make decisions. 

In a Deloitte survey, 49% of participants said analytics helped them make better decisions, 16% said it better enabled important strategic projects and 10% said it helped them strengthen their bonds with clients and business partners.  

This demonstrates the revolutionary power of analytics in improving processes for making decisions and strengthening their connections. 

3. Social Integration

Web apps that incorporate social media elements can greatly increase user engagement and brand recognition. Approximately two-thirds (68%) of participants believe that social media facilitates their interaction with brands and businesses. 

Sounds good, right? – But there’s something you must implement to avoid losing your new users. For that, you must streamline the registration process. If the registration process takes longer time – your user will bounce. So, social media integration will allow users to quickly log in with their preferred social media. Also, make sure to avoid providing any lengthy forms to users. 

Consider integrating your company's web services with the social networks that your users choose to increase user engagement. Customers may share wishlists, reviews, and orders with your business, fostering valuable interactions. 

Social integration techniques can improve user experience, expand your app's audience, and boost interaction with your web application.

4. Live Chat

Incorporating a live chat feature into your web application is a terrific approach to enhance user experience and provide immediate support. 

Customers want businesses to provide round-the-clock customer service. It wouldn't be feasible, though, to always have staff on standby. This is the point at which technology becomes crucial.

According to recent studies, businesses that use live chat have a significant boost in customer satisfaction, with users ranking their experience as 73% satisfied.

Furthermore, artificial intelligence advancements have made it possible to create a chatbot to answer questions from users and offer 24/7 customer care. These chatbots can assist consumers in navigating your web application and making product recommendations in addition to answering questions.

Furthermore, keeping customers engaged and strengthening their relationship with your company depends on well-built chatbots. Some marketers employ chatbots to conduct interactive campaigns that convince consumers to provide personal information that could be hard to get through traditional channels.

5. Security

Security is without a doubt one of the most crucial responsibilities for any company. Using the HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) certificate is a crucial first step in enhancing the security of your web application. 

Developers need to give the security of data flow between users and the server top priority to guarantee a safe connection between online users and their web apps.

Using HTTPS is essential. Customers who abide by this approach may feel comfortable knowing that their user accounts are secure, their identities and conversations are secured, and their transactions are kept confidential. 

Additionally essential to search engine results is HTTPS. Google does not promote websites or apps without an HTTPS certificate, and those that do receive significant search engine optimization.

6. Push Notifications

Web push notifications are useful and personalized when trying to connect with customers. With this feature, you may communicate with customers in real-time through a very personal channel.

Users may opt-in with just one click from the web app, making it effortless for businesses to send customized push notifications depending on user behavior or location. The fact that these notifications function similarly to native app notifications—even when the browser is closed—adds to their attraction.

Case studies reveal that push notifications are incredibly popular with users, potentially increasing app retention by three to ten times. This emphasizes how important and successful it is to use push notifications for both employee- and consumer-focused online products.

Push notifications are a vital tool for informing customers about upcoming events, promotions, messages of importance, and canceled appointments. The notification system becomes an essential tool for informing individuals as they go about their daily activities because it notifies users outside of the app.

7. Web Payments

If you want to give users of your web app an easy and quick way to make payments, you must have web payment capability. 

A user-friendly interface streamlines the procedure with a one-step checkout that combines shipping, billing information, and payment options, ensuring a quick and easy payment transaction.

Businesses can improve their payment processes by utilizing Google's most recent API, Payment Request. The goal of this cutting-edge API is to improve internet users' entire payment experience. To develop a web app, you need to build a solid strategy to accept a variety of payment methods essential for business. 

The Payment Request API makes it easier to integrate several payment methods by responding to user preferences and the ever-changing demands of the business sector. This creative strategy guarantees a flexible and user-focused online application payment procedure.

8. User Rights Management

A web application will probably attract a broad spectrum of users, regardless of its target user demographic. Enabling equal access for all users could lead to devastating consequences. 

User rights management is therefore used in this scenario to control what types of data users can submit to the software and to categorize users according to their degree of administrative access.

This function is essential for controlling data entry and keeping sensitive information out of the hands of unauthorized users. User rights management is a common tool used by businesses to limit employee access to their systems, preventing internal data theft and allowing users to focus on their assigned tasks. This feature is especially crucial for web applications that communicate with users. 

User Rights Management is essentially a vital security feature that simplifies user responsibilities for better focus while protecting user data and the business's integrity from external and internal threats.

9. Search Engine Optimization

Web apps face inherent challenges when trying to be search engine friendly, thus proactive optimization is necessary to gain more visibility and customers. Important SEO best practices include the following:

• Canonical Tags for Content Consistency: Address content duplication with canonical tags to guide search engines on the primary source, avoiding potential SEO issues.
• Utilize the Fetch as a Google Tool: Evaluate Google's indexing of web applications using the Fetch as a Google tool, gaining insights for adjustments to enhance indexing and visibility.
• Implement Schema.org Metadata: Enhance search engine result displays by incorporating Schema.org metadata that aligns with your content, aiding search engines in better understanding context.
• Avoid Fragmented Identifiers: Optimize web app pages by steering clear of fragmented identifiers, as Google tends to disregard them. Clear and concise identifiers improve visibility in search engine results.

Enterprise web apps can overcome SEO obstacles by strategically implementing these techniques, ensuring a stronger online presence, and assisting in efficient consumer acquisition.

10. Face ID or Touch ID Login

Keeping customers happy and satisfied is the key to making your business a huge success. Therefore, it is important to provide convenience to them. It's wise to take advantage of smartphones that offer hardware capabilities like fingerprint scanning and facial recognition, even though not all of them do.

By using touch and face IDs, users may quickly access their accounts in a matter of seconds, which lowers the possibility of login failures caused by typos or forgotten passwords.

Touch and face IDs can be integrated into online apps that focus on the client or the business. But first, a word of warning is necessary. Using these login choices exclusively is not a smart idea, especially for web programs connected to credit cards or e-wallets. Multi-step factor authentication is a must-have for strengthening the security of your web application.

Build Amazing Enterprise Web App with Apptunix

A web application would be the best option for businesses of all sizes. Maintaining everything in one place allows you to operate your firm more efficiently. It's also an excellent way to stay up to date with the latest technological advancements. Creating a web app to build an online presence for your business is a must. Thus, if you're a small business owner or a corporate provider, a web application is the finest choice for you.

Get in touch with Apptunix, a custom web app development company, and our web app developers will take your business to new heights. Our web app development team can help design a special solution that meets your specific needs. 

To allow you to customize your web application to your exact specifications, we also offer an abundance of functionality and customizing options. So give us a call and let's discuss how we can help your business succeed online!