Choosing the Right Low-Code & No-Code Platforms Can Be Transformative for Businesses

The Benefits of Low-Code Platforms

Low-code methodology is being accepted now as a key part of mainstream development. A good low-code platform offers an easy-to-use process, so companies can use existing staff to design and create mobile apps simply by using drag-and-drop and point-and-click techniques.

With many such low-code platforms now available, there is no large upfront capital outlay. For very little initial cost, companies can embark on app development without having to endure lengthy authorisation and sign off procedures. In addition, these platforms can be used by groups of people working in different locations on a single (or multiple) app at the same time.

Designers, developers, business users and management can work together online at all stages of the development cycle and review their work. With many firms now embracing remote and hybrid working, this technology is ideally suited for our modern reality.

Choosing the Right Platform

There is, however, a good deal of understandable skepticism from companies before committing their future to a low-code solution. The main concern is that implementing a low-code platform could potentially lead their companies to become reliant on (locked in to) a platform that is not capable of meeting all their future requirements.

Also, many low-code suppliers will promote the possibility of creating apps for multiple devices, environments and browsers from the same design. The speed and ease of development, which is often the driving force, can see apps being created and released in days or weeks rather than months or even years, which is often the case in more traditional methods of development.

But the main issue for CEOs when trying to select a platform is that low-code products are far from all the same.

Although they may appear, on the surface, to meet the initial goals of using familiar techniques to quickly build an app, many can present their users with severe limitations as requirements evolve or change, either because of growth, re-organization or dynamic business conditions.

Therefore, doing a thorough investigation at the start is key before signing up to a platform.

CEOs need to understand how flexible and easy-to-use the platform is, and how much the app can be customized to their unique business requirements.

What happens in the future, for instance, once the app is built and generated? How can it be adapted to future needs? These questions need to be asked and answered early and clearly.

CEOs should also establish if the platform can produce native apps that are installed directly onto a smartphone, as well as web-based apps They need to be confident from the offset that there is absolutely no limit to either the degree of customization or the potential and scalability of the apps created.

Visual Studio-Capable Low-Code Platforms: Best of Both Worlds

A small number of platforms, including our low code platform ‘Evoke,’ are designed to generate all the code into structured Visual Studio (inc. Xamarin) solutions which provide a route to development outside of the low-code platform, as well as unlimited scope for customization.

This is particularly beneficial for CEOs using their own staff to develop the app. If they are not technical, they need never touch the generated code, and can follow a no-code development and deployment approach. However, if in the future this situation changes, and it’s needed, developers have the generated VS code delivered on to their computers and always have full access to it.

This means that the platform can be employed both as an entirely no-code solution or as a genuine low-code platform that can easily incorporate a customer’s existing code, new code, library routines and third-party software as needed. It’s also possible to have the choice of generating a web app or native app from the same app design.

The benefits of being able to generate a native app from low code should not be underestimated. A native app is not only able to make full use of the integrated technology of smart devices such as increased security, location-based communication, GPS, Bluetooth, web services etc. but is also capable of being deployed through the major app stores and will offer a great deal more flexibility when compared to a web app.

Not every company requires this degree of flexibility at first, but it’s important that CEOs investigate and evaluate the options available to ensure it meets their needs, now and in the future. But choosing a cheaper, short-term solution can create more costs later. Not just in the cost of the platform but in training staff, plus the lost opportunity costs when the limitations of an incorrect choice of platform are discovered.