Providing information to your guests on their own device

The evolution of Web App's

If you don't yet know what a Progressive Web App (PWA) is please do read on - while new to the market, Web App's are about to become an industry standard in the way businesses create and distribute digital content to their guests and visitors.

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Features and Benefits

Speed and reliability
Feels like a native app
Cost effective

Accessible via a link
Offline mode
No need for app stores

Introduction to Web App's

What is a Web App?

In short, Web App's are web applications that are regular web pages which appear like an App Store app to users.

When you publish a Web App using Criton, you receive a URL link that you can send to your guests/customers. When they access it, they will be offered the option to install it on their home screen – without ever having to go to an App Store. Once installed your users can access the app by clicking the icon, like a regular app, and the majority of features will work offline.

Is it for Android and iOS?

Yes and no! At the moment, Google is ahead of Apple regarding this technology. For our next update, the PWA will be on Android, while we will still have a regular web app on iOS devices. However, Apple is catching up with this technology and they have announced a release date of April 2018. We will update Criton to have the PWA on Apple devices as soon as possible after that.

Learn more about progressive web apps on Google Developers’ page

Why use a Web App?

Apple’s criteria for actually publishing an app on the app store is becoming ever more stringent and for our operators who are looking for a digital repository of their guest information and a more mobile-friendly way of presenting their information, a PWA is a quick and cost-effective way to present the information without having to build an all singing all dancing app that meets with Apple’s criteria.

Why use a Web App?

This app can be distributed via a URL and guests don’t have to download it from the app store making it more accessible for guests who are not as technically savvy as some.

Because much of it works offline it is great for places with a poor signal when guests are out and about.

It also saves money because you don’t need an Apple developer account which saves you $99 per annum and that helps us stick to our mission of making hospitality tech affordable.

Can I just use a mobile optimised website?

A mobile-friendly website won’t work offline and the way that information is displayed in an app maximises screen space, therefore enhancing the user experience because it doesn’t need the navigation bar at the top of the small screen.

Speed and reliability

Progressive web apps are very fast at loading the content. This is essential because many users are proven to close anything that takes longer than 5 seconds to load. The PWA caches the information on the user’s phone memory, meaning that it works well even with bad network conditions.

Feels like a native app

A PWA feels like a native app. As the PWA will sit on the user’s device home screen and work well in any conditions, it will feel like a regular native app, with an immersive full-screen experience and a very smooth navigation.

No need for an app store

As the PWA works with a link, like a regular website, your guest will not have to look for your app on any of the app stores. They can simply click on your link and access or install the PWA on their mobile devices. It makes it more accessible for your guests and makes the process of publishing an app faster and easier as there is no need to send the app to Google Play or the Apple App Store. It also uses storage on the users phone, which is great if your users have older devices.