Innovative organizations don’t just create apps, they create user experiences. This is a small, but significant difference between average companies and great ones. According to Gartner, improving customer and user experience is a top three business priority for 41% of innovation leaders.
However, creating a seamless user experience doesn’t just happen out of thin air. It’s a complex process. For example, even the alignment (or lack thereof) of your technology stack can bleed into your user experience. When things aren’t flexible, application leaders are burdened to create apps in a way that sacrifices user experience.
Thankfully, there are tools to help. Multiexperience Development Platforms enable application leaders to build one-of-a kind user experiences by bringing together development activities across all digital touchpoints.
What is a Multiexperience Development Platform?
In essence, Multiexperience Development Platforms (MXDPs) provide developers with an integrated set of front-end development tools and back-end services that enable scalable development of fit-for-purpose apps across digital touchpoints. Multiexperience refers to the various permutations of modalities (for example, touch, voice and gesture), devices and apps that users interact with on their digital journey across the various touchpoints. This can include progressive and responsive webapps, custom mobile apps and more.
To better illustrate how MXDPs work, let’s look at the process of ordering a pizza. You can grab your phone, open your favorite pizza app, place your order and pay for it all at once. But, what if your phone dies before you’re done? Simply use your laptop to open the app and go through the same steps to get your pizza. The experience is exactly the same. No need to input a credit card or address. The mobile version saves it. The hungry customer doesn’t need to relearn or re-enter any information. The seamlessness of the experience ensures an order can be placed with minimal hiccups.
By utilizing MXDPs, application leaders unite development activities across apps so that the user experience is seamless and engaging. This is only becoming more important as app development continues to evolve. New advances in technology like conversational, wearables, IoT and more are all experiences that application leaders must now factor into their app creation.
Why You Should Use MXDPs?
Quite simply, successful application leaders must develop experiences for an increasing number of touchpoints to better serve their customers. In today’s world, consumers want to get things done with as little effort and issues possible. They want whichever touchpoint or device is the most convenient. MXDPs ensure that all touchpoints throughout the organization are consistent and that customers can seamlessly transition through them.
Just as big companies can have deep functional silos that limit interaction across divisions, organizations can also have siloed app creation. Meaning that an application does not interact with other applications or information systems. Siloed app creation is not only impossible to scale, but can also lead to inconsistencies when it comes to user experience. By using MXDPs, application leaders can enable fusion teams to build and manage digital products across the same platform. Thereby removing silos.
Additionally, application leaders who adopt MXDPs enable business development and IT teams to improve collaboration throughout the organization. This is especially important when designing, building and managing apps and experiences as part of a continuous modernization strategy. MXDPs allow these experiences to traverse multiple devices and various channels efficiently and rapidly. They help guide development and ensure teams stay consistent and productive.
As mentioned above, conversational app development is becoming more commonplace. According to Gartner, client adoption of conversational user interfaces and chat boxes increased by 120% in 2019. As its popularity increases, MXDP adoption is also growing. By using Multiexperience Development Platforms to build these voice apps, they are also publishable on Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home platforms. This allows a seamless experience for customers across multiple apps, without creating additional work for developers.
Adaptive Integration Fabric Aligns Legacy and Leading Edge
As technological advances continue at breakneck speed, application leaders must prepare for even more interaction across digital touchpoints. Adaptigent’s MXDP, the Adaptive Integration Fabric, uses standardized tooling to align API development practices and technologies across the enterprise. Developers can build APIs that work across CICS apps, IMS apps and more using a common development methodology and IDE. This ensures API creation happens at the speed of business, while providing full functionality, consistency, and efficiency across all legacy systems.
Additionally, a common complaint from application leaders is that it is difficult to find programmers who have the requisite skills necessary for certain projects. Some MXDPs are very focused on a certain class of developer. However, the Fabric is a powerful tool that both citizen developers and more skilled developers can utilize. Its intuitive drag-and-drop, no code model allows skilled developers to create simple to complex APIs, while masking technical idiosyncrasies that may intimidate those who are less experienced.
Click here to find out how the Adaptive Integration Fabric can unite your company’s development activities.