As we move into Q2 of 2023, many of you are still making decisions on which software development projects and initiatives will grow your business the best. The majority of you want to see measurable results from your project by the end of Q4, but to get there you need to start implementing technology initiatives ASAP.
Need some software industry insights and maybe a little inspiration on which solutions to pursue? Let’s take a look at the latest 2023 software development trends.
But let’s go one step further.
Instead of just providing you with a list of the trends like everyone else, we want to give you a few more data points:
- Industry Impact — which industries are most impacted by a particular trend.
- Business Readiness — ways to verify if your business can handle a particular trend.
Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) Dominating the App Market
PWAs have been around for a while, but major companies are starting to prefer them over some traditional app development.
There are many benefits to PWAs. First, there’s no need to download anything, which means no friction for customers tired of downloading everyone’s app. Next, PWAs are significantly cheaper to develop in comparison to traditional apps.
But one of the leading reasons many mainstream businesses are pushing toward PWAs has to do with their size.
For example, the coffee giant Starbucks is already leveraging a PWA that they claim is more than 99% smaller than the Starbucks mobile app found on iOS. Starbucks company research monitored customer behaviors and found that the PWA increased the number of web users twice over.
- Industry Impact: Ecommerce businesses are investing heavily in PWAs, as are other online retailers and B2C businesses, such as banks and insurance brokerages. Businesses with both a brick-and-mortar as well as an online presence are also leaning toward PWAs to deliver faster customer service at a cheaper cost.
- Business Readiness: For businesses who have not invested in app development, verify that an app, native or PWA, makes sense for your customers’ journey and experience with your brand. Determine what customers can do on the app compared to the current way you do business. Is that a better experience for them? If so, then you may be ready to work with a software development company to build a PWA.
Microservices Architecture Scaling the Industry
In the old days of the internet, software developers used monolithic architecture in which all the feature modules were held within a single platform. But the way we do business has changed, and we no longer want to be dragged down by these lagging monoliths.
Thanks to microservices architecture, the feature modules can be separated and run on their own as autonomous processes. Each module will communicate through APIs and additional services, allowing users to access what they need without the monolithic lag.
For example, within an online portal, the feature modules may include items like users, knowledgebase content, and posts. As autonomous independent services with a microservices architecture, these feature modules can move at their own speed and be updated individually without risking other modules.
- Industry Impact: Current industries relying heavily on microservices architecture include most streaming services, rideshare businesses, and ecommerce companies. Several sectors of the tech industry, including SaaS providers, are also heading toward a microservices architecture.
- Business Readiness: Before you decide to switch from a monolithic architecture to microservices, be sure that you have the right technology resources in place. Whether you use an on-site IT support team or outsource these services, there will be some operations overhead. You’ll need experts to manage the APIs and other aspects of this distributed system.
Software Development Services Outsourcing on the Rise
A study conducted by Commit, a global services tech company, indicated that outsourcing for software development services would grow by 70% throughout 2023. The majority of companies have chosen to outsource software development and IT services as a cost-cutting strategy, but they are also doing so to increase speed to value and to access the global market of technical resources.
Furthermore, the “as a service” market to manage infrastructure (IaaS), software (SaaS), platforms (PaaS), and other IT services has made outsourcing easier than ever. Whether your business needs full custom software development services, IT support, or security maintenance, there is a company out there ready to support your needs as a trusted partner.
(If you have never outsourced software development services before, we highly recommend you read this article).
- Industry Impact: According to researchers at BairesDev, some industries that have the most to gain from outsourcing software development and other IT services include ecommerce, healthcare, government projects, tech, and retail businesses.
- Business Readiness: Outsourcing is not just for enterprise-size businesses. Small and medium businesses (SMBs) have a lot to gain from outsourcing, especially since they often do not have the expertise or budget to hire full-time tech resources. Whether an SMB or enterprise-size business, you know you are ready to outsource if leveraging the right size software solution will significantly benefit your business and help you to achieve short and long-term goals.
Software Development Languages, Frameworks, and Platforms to Leverage
Several software development languages are getting a lot of attention in 2023, including Python, JavaScript, and Rust.
Python made a big splash in the tech scene back in 2020 and has been gaining more support from software developers every year since. It’s one of the most favored languages for developers building solutions related to AI and machine learning.
For web app development, JavaScript is still going strong and is one of the most popular programming languages for this type of development due to its wide range of frameworks and libraries that are necessary for versatile application development.
For .NET developers, many of them have become highly enthusiastic about learning and leveraging Rust. Some of the big-name tech companies, including Amazon, Facebook, and Dropbox, have been using Rust in their production sequences.
For framework development, TensorFlow, an open-source deep learning framework, has become incredibly popular due to its ability to support multiple programming languages, work seamlessly with different operating systems, its built-in intuitive APIs, and its deployment capabilities. Furthermore, this framework has been the go-to for AI development.
Lastly, Web 3.0 has been getting loads of attention in 2023, especially as blockchain’s decentralized technology has become more accessible to the masses. Web 3.0 still has a ways to go before it’s fully embraced, but with decentralized servers and applications (DApps) promising increased security from hackers, Web 3.0 may be closer than we think.
- Industry Impact: The benefits of these particular programming languages, frameworks, and platforms will be most noticeable in the ecommerce, retail, and financial industries. Many sectors within the tech industry as well as education and research will also be heavily invested in several of these languages and frameworks.
- Business Readiness: Businesses who already have tech resources on staff would do well to promote professional development in these languages, frameworks, and platforms if doing so will provide a benefit to the business.
AI & Blockchain Getting More Accessible for the Masses
For more than a decade, AI and blockchain technology have been the poster children of emerging tech, yet they have seemed somewhat out of reach for regular folks. Now, the two have stood the test of time, and have proven to have real-world applications that can be easily adopted.
Research gathered from Exploding Topics indicated that over the past five years, people searching for “AI software” has increased by 566%, with the biggest bump in search growth occurring between 2022 and 2023. Open-source AI tools like ChatGPT seemed like a novelty at first, but now bloggers and experts alike are showing how regular people can use this tool to automate a lot of mundane tasks and get more out of their day. Similarly, other AI tools are helping software developers build programs with more speed than before.
Blockchain-oriented software (BOS) systems are enhancing data security with robust systems based on decentralized databases that significantly decrease the risk of theft or hacking. As a result of having this decentralized database, BOS systems are also getting a lot of attention from Web 3.0 investors.
- Industry Impact: Industries with a greater need for automated customer services and cloud-based infrastructures, such as retail, financial industries, healthcare, and ecommerce, have been investing in AI for chatbots and database management, per information from Grand View Research. Blockchain technology was fairly big in the finance sector for crypto, but moving away from crypto, blockchain technology has become more advantageous for healthcare industries looking to safeguard patient data. Other industries, such as agriculture, logistics, automotive, and data science research are also investing more in blockchain-based applications that offer enhanced security.
- Business Readiness: While AI and blockchain technology can solve business problems related to customer service, database management, and security, not all businesses are ready to implement these advanced tools. It is recommended to work with software development consultants to assess your business needs and make recommendations on whether your business is ready for these technologies and how best to implement them.
Low Code/No Code (LCNC) Programming Gains Momentum
LCNC offers the use of drag-and-drop methods for platform and application development. With being able to take prebuilt software components, software developers and non-technical people can quickly place commonly used components where they need them and connect them to build web and mobile apps. This greatly simplifies and speeds up certain types of app development.
While LCNC can be a game changer for building apps at speed, note that not all applications work with LCNC. There are limitations, including a limited number of application types. Additionally, if you need to build a more complex app, LCNC is simply too restrictive and a bit too rigid for your purposes.
Additionally, just because you have the building blocks to put an app together with LCNC platforms doesn’t mean you’ll get the app you want. Beyond limited functionality, the look and feel of the app (UI/UX) are essential for user adoption. Without the expertise of trained UI/UX professionals, you risk building an app that looks thrown together rather than carefully crafted for your specific users’ preferences.
- Industry Impact: LCNC platforms can be used by novices and software developers alike, as they allow for simplistic application building at speed. Data from TechTarget.com show that the industries that have become most interested in LCNC include healthcare, finance, education, retail, and ecommerce.
- Business Readiness: If you plan to build an application that does not require a complex design, trying out LCNC platforms may be a cost-effective way to start investing in app development. This type of app development may also help some entrepreneurs design a basic version of what they want to eventually build out with skilled developers. The LCNC app becomes a sort of prototype you can take to software development companies to show off as a starting-off point.
AltSource Supports Businesses Investing in Software Development Trends
Whether you’re thinking of investing in the above software development trends, or if you’ve been reading our other article on industry-specific software trends, we are here to answer your questions on how best to implement these solutions into your business plan. Send us an email today and let’s set up some time to talk about your goals and what a right fit software development solution looks like for your organization: sales@altsourcesoftware.com
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