The explosive growth of native apps temporarily halted the development of progressive web apps (PWA), but now we can see the resurrection of this technology. This is primarily because progressive web apps for retail are highly profitable for both medium- and small-scale businesses. In the same segments, they are the most popular, since they are much cheaper than developing native applications for 2-3 platforms (Android, iOS, and Windows Phone). Based on these factors, Emerging Research predicts that the global PWA marketplace will grow in value up to $10.4 billion by 2027, up from just $1.13 billion in 2019.
What are the major benefits of progressive web apps in retail?
From native apps, PWA in retail example differs in that they do not require installation, they can be easily found and opened directly in the search bar, and then simply added to the main screen of a smartphone or tablet. It can look exactly like a familiar native application. Yet PWA is a more convenient option for users who, for various reasons, do not have stable access to a good Internet connection, lack space on their device, or simply have no desire to devote time to downloading the application.
Progressive web apps case studies in retail show how an organization's costs for creating an application are reduced (as it no longer needs to develop applications for multiple operating systems). At the same time, the profit is growing because it is now much easier for a potential buyer to visit the site, get acquainted with the offers, and become an active client. With that being said, let's move on to progressive web apps in ecommerce examples.
Garbarino
Garbarino opens the top of progressive web apps for retail. In 2017, Garbarino, an online hardware store, used professional services to create a dedicated PWA. At that time, 80% of their mobile traffic went through Chrome and there was no stable Internet in Argentina. The speed of Garbarino PWA had the most positive impact on user behavior: the number of pages viewed per session increased by 35% for the same session duration.
Alibaba
Among the vivid PWA eCommerce examples, Alibaba.com is the first to be remembered. The main tasks of this company are online retail and B2B sales. Initially, Alibaba developed a native app, but many users preferred to stay in the browser, so the company was faced with the task of solving this problem. The best solution was to create an Alibaba PWA.
The result – a 76% increase in conversions and a 44% overall increase in the number of active users. A significant achievement was also the increase in the number of users who returned after the first visit – it was boosted by almost 4 times.
How to Turn WordPress into PWA
Pure Formulas
Pure Formulas is another great PWA website example of revenue growth. The company specializes in the delivery of food, dietary supplements, sports nutrition, and various body care products. The main problem that Pure Formulas faced prior to creating its PWA was the long site load times. Pure Formulas PWA has enabled the company to increase its order value by 9% while its conversion rates increased by 14%. It is worth noting that the increase in revenue for Pure Formulas after the introduction of PWA in retail totaled almost 23%.
Aliexpress
This is another giant in the global market whose solution can be safely called a great example of progressive web app success in retail. AliExpress is one of the most popular online stores where you can buy anything from clothes to household appliances.
Seeing that users were reluctant to install a native app and rarely reopen it, the company decided to take a step towards PWA. According to benchmarking analysis, after the creation of Aliexpress PWA, the conversion rate increased by as much as 104%! Users were able to see twice as many offers in the same time due to an increase in the download speed, and the time that users stayed on the site increased by 72%. This is perhaps the most inspiring experience for anyone looking to implement PWA in eCommerce.
Flipkart
A successful PWA example is the experience of creating a PWA Flipkart. In 2015, the company made a mistake – they closed their online website, limiting themselves to only the native application. This approach caused a lot of inconvenience and a drop in the number of users. So Flipkart started thinking about creating their own PWA. After its implementation, the company achieved a 40% increase in user engagement, active time spent on the site increased by a little more than 3 times, and the conversion rate increased by as much as 70%.
Flipkart's PWA is one of the best PWA site examples in terms of loading speed. 63% of users at that time had access mainly to the 2G network, so the reduction in download speed and optimization made it possible for customers to use the site with much fewer restrictions.
