From Prototype to Production: Accelerate Your Project with Low-Code

Low-code software development platforms are revolutionizing the way developers build and release applications. Currently, 39% of businesses are using low-code platforms outside of their in-house IT teams for good reason. By minimizing the need for manually writing endless lines of code from scratch, low-code environments allow businesses to launch secure applications faster and at a lower cost.

 

Salesforce Lightning, Kissflow, UI Bakery, Quickbase, Microsoft Power Apps, Bubble.io, and Appian are just a handful of low-code platforms becoming popular among development teams. While many developers have the skills to create applications from scratch, that’s not always necessary. Depending on the project, sometimes a low-code platform is ideal.

 

Low-code platforms support flexible app development while maintaining quality throughout every stage of the development cycle. However, unlike no-code platforms, developing an application in a low-code environment does require a basic level of technical programming skills.

 

The basics of low-code software development

 

Before diving into how low-code accelerates projects, it’s important to understand what low-code software development is and how it differs from traditional development models.

 

Traditional software development requires programmers to hand-type a large amount of code to create each application. Although developers typically have a repository full of code snippets and utilize frameworks that speed things up, no-code takes rapid development to a whole new level.

 

In a no-code environment, developers have access to a visual interface that uses drag-and-drop components to design applications. While it’s possible to customize the code at any point in time, it’s not necessary to create a working application. And thanks to the visual interface, developers with varying levels of technical expertise can contribute to the project.

 

Key features of low-code platforms:

 

Pre-built elements. Access a library of pre-made, reusable elements for fast integration and enhanced efficiency.

Drag-and-drop visual interface. Using graphical tools is intuitive for developers – even experts. A visual interface streamlines the entire development process from start to finish.

Integrations. Low-code platforms support seamless integrations with existing databases.

Scalability. It’s easier to increase the complexity of a low-code project without having to rework the code extensively for each iteration.

 

By using a low-code platform, businesses can speed up the development cycle, make fast changes, and avoid the high monetary cost of traditional software development.

 

The role of low-code in rapid prototyping

 

During the application development process, prototyping gives teams the chance to get user feedback and visualize concepts in the real world. Prototyping an application makes it easier to fix issues and improve features before officially releasing the final version of an application. While prototypes are part of every development cycle, low-code platforms make prototyping especially easy.

 

Rapid prototyping. Low-code environments support quick component assembly, which supports faster iterations during the prototyping phase.

Lower cost. With a visual coding environment, there’s less need for resources during the initial stages of development.

Early feedback. Since prototyping is faster with low-code platforms, businesses can get fast and frequent feedback from stakeholders and users that will guide the rest of the development process.

Flexibility. Making changes based on user feedback is easy with low-code platforms.

 

Using a low-code platform is a great way to save money on development while meeting the needs of users.

 

Transitioning from prototype to production

 

Here’s how a low-code platforms supports the transition from prototype to final production:

 

Easy iterative development. Iterative cycles to refine an application are easy in a low-code environment. Iterative development is required to gradually enhance performance and functionality and is part of an agile development approach.

Incorporate security from the start. DevSecOps in low-code environments is easy. Basic security is built into every component and can be customized by configuring settings, validating data inputs, and implementing proper access controls. Combined with periodic security checks, low-code platforms make it easy to identify and resolve vulnerabilities prior to the final release.

Performance tools. Low-code platforms come with tools that monitor and improve application performance to ensure it can handle increasing user loads.

 

At the end of the day, scaling an application from a prototype into a final product is a faster, smoother process with a low-code platform.

 

Overcoming the challenges of low-code environments

 

While low-code platforms offer a variety of features that make development fast and easy, there are some drawbacks. For example, customization is sometimes limited and it’s harder to implement complex integrations. However, it might be worth the sacrifice if launching your application fast is your top priority and those complex customizations won’t be deal-breakers for your users.

 

3 Low-code use case examples

 

1. Basic mobile apps

 

When all you need to develop is a simple mobile app with basic functionality, low-code is perfect. For instance, you don’t need an entire team of software engineers to build a cross-platform app that provides users with a calendar or an exercise plan.

 

2. An online community

 

There’s no need to reinvent the wheel and try to build a Facebook copy from scratch. With a low-code platform, you can create a custom social network that allows users to connect with each other for a variety of purposes. This can include social communities, dating apps, restaurant locators, and event meetups.

 

3. A customer portal

 

Many businesses offer self-service customer portals to reduce the strain on customer support. By offering self-help resources, like a knowledge base and a generative AI chatbot, businesses receive fewer help tickets and customers get their issues solved right away.

 

Industries that benefit from low-code applications

 

Businesses that benefit from this development approach vary, but the following industries commonly use low-code applications.

 

1. Finance

 

Financial institutions often use low-code solutions for simple processes, like calculating credit scores, processing loans, and creating interactive user dashboards.

 

2. Healthcare

 

In the healthcare industry, development teams use low-code platforms with HIPAA-compliant frameworks to create simple patient-facing apps, like appointment scheduling and management.

 

3. Logistics

 

Inventory management with real-time tracking, route optimization, and task automation are easy with low-code platforms.

 

4. Education

 

Educational organizations use low-code apps for automating administrative tasks, getting real-time feedback, and facilitating distance learning. For example, it’s common for online educational institutions and e-learning platforms to use low-code solutions for tracking attendance and performance.

 

When low-code development is not the right solution

 

Although building a low-code app offers numerous benefits, it’s not ideal for every situation. Low-code should be avoided if the following are important:

 

High security. In a low-code environment, most of the code will be pre-made and/or automatically generated. Even when using a secure framework, you’ll need to put your app through rigorous cybersecurity checks. In the end, you might find it to be impossible to secure your app without hand-coding from scratch.

Accessibility. When using low-code platforms, you’ll spend a lot of time optimizing your app for screen readers and voice input.

You need heavy loads. Performance can be lacking with low-code applications. The pre-made code won’t be optimized out of the box and it may take too much time to manually fix.

 

Best practices for low-code development

 

In addition to standard development best practices, there are a handful of additional factors to keep in mind when using a low-code platform.

 

1. Learn your platform well

 

Even though low-code platforms don’t require as much work compared to traditional development, everyone working on your projects will need to master the basics of the platform. The better you know your environment, the better apps you’ll produce. Make sure everyone involved in app development understands basics, like integration, API generation, and UI design.

 

2. Implement frequent releases

 

Like you would with any development cycle, release your apps frequently instead of waiting for perfection. Frequent releases are the key to getting fast user feedback that can be used to make changes.

 

3. Prioritize UX/UI

 

Not all low-code platforms are created equal. It’s important to vet each option to make sure it follows UX/UI best practices. It’s a big investment of time and money to build a custom user interface. Finding the right low-code solution and involving UX professionals is the key to deploying your app faster and at a lower cost.

 

4. Make use of pre-built components

 

Easily available pre-built components are there for a reason. Start each project with pre-built features and build your app from that foundation. Only the features that will make your app stand out need to be hand-coded from scratch. This will save you a significant amount of time and money.

 

5. Stay connected to your platform’s community

 

If you have an issue with one your projects, chances are, there’s someone out there who has already resolved the same issue. By staying connected to your low-code platform’s community, you can get fast solutions and great troubleshooting advice.

 

6. Don’t hire inexperienced developers

 

Just because a platform doesn’t require much coding doesn’t mean you should cut corners and hire an inexperienced developer. While people with a variety of technical skills can use a visual low-code interface, technical skills are only part of what makes a developer good. The other part of the equation is being able to thoroughly understand the behavior of each element, comprehend the implications of changes, and visualize the right path to completing the project. All of this requires experience, and that’s why you should hire a skilled developer.

 

How to Choose the right low-code platform

 

With so many options to choose from, it can be hard to know what platform will work best for your needs. Here are some considerations to help you make the right choice.

 

Identify the problem you want to solve and your ideal outcome. Are you trying to save money, make security easier, or get applications to market faster? Identifying your specific goals will help you choose a low-code platform based on non-negotiable features.

Consider how your chosen platform will integrate into existing workflows. Some platforms may not work well with your existing workflows and development methods. Think about the potential impact before making your decision.

Understand who will be using the platform. Will your in-house development team be the only people using the platform, or will your social media marketing team with no coding experience be helping out once in a while? Some platforms are better than others for people with little to no technical experience.

Identify other tools you’ll need to use. If you’re going to use additional tools to develop your applications, see if you can find a low-code platform that consolidates all of your needs into one.

Hire a professional developer. If you don’t know what platform to choose, hiring a pro who specializes in no-code and low-code application development is your best bet. Once you explain your project, they’ll know exactly which platform to use to bring your vision to life.

 

Choose Dev.co to build your low-code applications

 

Whether it’s for mobile or the web, if you’ve got an idea, Dev.co can bring it to life. Our team of professional developers will build a custom user-friendly app for your business that meets all of your needs.

 

Reach out and tell us about your project – we’d love to partner with you!