Future of Web Development - 8 Trends to Consider in 2022

Mobile-first indexing

The way we design our sites should accurately reflect how users interact with them. This condition means that web developers must extend this interaction to all devices and platforms — from desktops to mobiles phones and even wearables like smartwatches.
This trend started when Google announced its AMP project back in 2015. They wanted to create a standard format for loading pages quickly. Since then, many other companies have followed suit by creating similar projects.
Google’s AMP stands for Accelerated Mobile Pages. These are HTML files that load faster than normal ones. That said, you can still make your website responsive if needed. The idea behind this is simple: most people access webpages through their phone or tablet these days. By having mobile-first websites, they’ll see them more easily.
There’s also an element called ’responsive images’ where instead of using one large image, smaller versions come into play depending on screen size. As long as the page loads fast enough, most people won’t mind waiting for a photo to download!
An excellent example of this would be a gallery of photos. Small thumbnails are loaded first instead of loading every picture at once, making it easier to scroll around. And since mobile networks aren’t nearly as powerful as desktop connections, downloading lots of data isn’t necessary either. It just makes sense to do things this way.
You might notice some differences between the two examples above. In both cases, the content takes longer to show up because it preloads before page opening. However, in the second case, the browser had to wait until the entire file finished downloading. If you open up the same link while connected to Wi-Fi, however, everything shows up instantly.
So why does this matter? Internet users today leave slow-loading pages and move to those giving fast results. Focusing on mobile-first indexing is a smart investment for businesses that want to reach a massive audience in 2022.

Progressive Web Apps

These days, most browsers support PWA out of the box. A progressive app loads instantly without any need to download anything. You open up the URL, and everything happens right away.
One vivid example of a PWA is Twitter. Once you click on the Tweet button, the browser downloads the necessary code and starts working immediately.
Although the concept is not new, it will still be relevant and preferred in the coming years. With PWAs, users can enjoy all the services available in the native apps. So, whether a person is working online or offline, the service won’t fail because, for example, an app component was unable to download.
This concept was started in 2007 by Steve Jobs and continues to be popular due to its ease of use. Businesses hoping to reach a broader audience in 2022 should embrace this trend. Currently, people are more attracted to services that are only one click away because they do not want to spend a lot of their time evaluating different app features. They want to get right down to business, and PWA does precisely that.

Voice Search

Voice search has already taken off over the past couple of years. Some experts claim that voice searches increased by nearly 300% between 2016 and 2018 alone!
As such, SEO experts believe that optimizing content for voice search would help improve rankings.
Also, companies with voice search options will attract more people to their sites in 2022. According to Adobe Analytics, people prefer this feature on a website to the traditional typing search option. According to the report, these web visitors find it easier to search for what they are looking for as they perform other tasks.
A good example of a voice search is Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa. These AI applications are also incredible for people with visual impairments. Web developers are also working to ensure the feature is inclusive so that users with speech and hearing impairments can benefit from this trend.

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is one of those terms that every industry has cast an eye on or two. Although the applications are numerous, not everyone knows exactly what AI is.
In simple words, artificial intelligence refers to machines learning tasks usually done by humans. We’ve seen examples of AI in action before. Take Siri, for instance. She answers questions and helps us complete specific tasks. Chatbots are also an everyday use of AI.
With artificial intelligence, businesses can make more accurate targets in their marketing efforts. How? Artificial intelligence will help them target their ads to customers depending on the type of content they consume.
With AI, they can analyze this information and target quality leads for their business, leading to high conversions. It means they will not be marketing their businesses blindly but to a targeted market that is more likely to convert.
In 2022, businesses are going to keep embracing the use of chatbots. Although they are no longer hyped like before, they are not likely to be outlooked. These will help in reducing the cost associated with paying the support staff. Chatbots work 24/7, which means customers will always get help even after the working hours are over.
The best thing about these bots is they keep evolving. They offer customers more accurate and practical answers, which is a great revolution in the business realm. Unlike before, where the bots used to give the same answers to nearly all questions from different customers, they are currently learning and offering custom responses.
If you are keen, many eCommerce websites are using these chatbots. It is true to say that the trend is going to continue as most people seeking custom web development services from providers such as AppKong.com want this feature included in their sites, too.
So, to say that we fully maximized the effects of Artificial Intelligence is an understatement. Since AI uses intuitive learning, there is much to be unveiled in 2022, and it is worth watching.

Serverless Computing

Serverless computing refers to applications that run without any servers at all. You don’t need to worry about managing infrastructure costs anymore because everything happens automatically.
A serverless app runs completely independent from other apps, and it has its runtime environment. The only thing these apps need is some API Gateway service with incoming requests routed to another function (called handler). These functions are written in JavaScript using NodeJS. They take input parameters and return something.
The serverless approach is based on the idea that you can use cloud services like AWS Lambda, Google Cloud Functions, and Azure Function App for your application logic instead of running an actual server or having one yourself. This tech allows developers to focus more on their business logic than on setting up servers.
The trend is a thing to look out for in 2022. Businesses use it for different reasons, such as cost savings since they don’t have to pay for servers but still control them. Another reason is scalability. Since each function doesn’t depend on others, you can quickly scale them independently.
A third advantage is flexibility. With serverless architecture, you can quickly add new features while keeping existing ones stable. Finally, security becomes more manageable since you don’t have direct access to databases or files.

Machine Learning

Machine Learning is another buzzword that keeps popping up everywhere. Essentially, ML involves teaching computers to do something automatically.
For instance, Amazon uses machine learning to recommend products to shoppers. Other popular applications include image recognition software and speech recognition tools. It will continue in 2022 as a web development trend as businesses are already starting to use it for their business needs. Here’s why:

Machine learning provides a better customer experience

The more data about your customers you gain, the easier it would be to provide them with what they want at the time they want it. This readiness to provide the right thing means that your conversion rate will improve because the product or service will match precisely what they need.
For example, if someone searches on Google for “best laptop under $500″, they should get an answer from sites that deal with notebooks, e.g., Amazon rather than somewhere else. The same goes for online retailers who sell clothes – their best is based on past purchases of similar items.

It helps companies save money

Companies like Netflix have used machine learning to improve their recommendation engine. As a result, they could reduce costs by cutting down on the human resources needed for content curation.
Machine learning is crucial to business models that Netflix has been focusing on it for nearly 20 years. Between 2006 and 2009, the company offered US$ 1 million to the team or individual that would help it improve its previous movie recommendation by 10%.
In 2022, businesses will continue using and investing in machine learning for their business models to make more sales and increase their profit margins.

It makes things faster

Another benefit of using machine learning is speed. Unlike humans, machines don’t take days to process information. Instead, they work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, without any breaks. That’s how we end up getting results within seconds instead of minutes or even hours.

It allows Businesses to Make Predictions

It doesn’t matter whether these predictions turn out true or not; what matters is that they help build models which allow businesses to predict future trends. If this prediction turns out true, then it becomes easy to identify patterns and create strategies accordingly.

Augmented Reality

The term “augmented reality” was coined by Ivan Sutherland in 1968 at Harvard, where he developed one of the prototypes of head-mounted displays. He described his work as having two parts: seeing through the computer interface and interacting directly with the physical environment around him.
In 1979 Apple introduced their product named VisiCalc, which allowed users to view data overlaid on top of 2d models. This event marked the beginning of modern-day Augmented Reality. Since then, numerous other products have been released that incorporated similar concepts into them, but none were able to gain much traction until recently, when smartphones became affordable enough to be widely adopted.
According to global statistics sources, sales of mobile phones reached 1 billion units in 2016 worldwide. With this increasing number of smartphone owners comes a growing market opportunity for developers looking to capitalize on the emerging trends in consumer electronics. As more consumers adopt these technologies, so does the potential for growth within the software industry.
Augmented Reality (AR) allows us to see virtual objects superimposed onto real-world environments. AR headsets include Microsoft HoloLens, Magic Leap One, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Samsung Gear VR, Sony PlayStation VR, etc.
While the concept of Augmented Reality is not new, it has gained popularity due to its ability to provide an immersive experience that applies to various other purposes such as gaming, training simulation, design visualization, education, medicine, and more.
There are several reasons behind companies choosing to implement Augmented Reality solutions into their business models in 2022. Some obvious benefits include increased efficiency, better customer service, improved employee productivity, to name a few.
But perhaps the most compelling reason to utilize this type of solution is that ARprovides customers with a unique interactive user experience. Such experience is unique and impossible to achieve otherwise. Here are just a few ways businesses can take advantage of AR technology in 2022:

Improve Customer Experience

For example, imagine taking a stroll down the avenue and seeing a billboard advertisement pop up next to someone wearing Google Glasses. That person wouldn’t have any clue whether they were looking at an ad or simply another human face passing by them.
They could also walk around an object and get additional details about it without having to touch anything. Communicate face-to-face and demonstrate the skills required to resolve any issues that arise during the process.
When shopping, customers can use augmented reality to try different clothing, for example, without actually going to the store. This exciting trend is something that most businesses will be eyeing, especially after the current pandemic where most people have been used to online shopping.

Provide Better Training & Education Opportunities

There are countless opportunities available for individuals to learn something new. For example, students attending college often seek tutoring sessions before exams or after hours for extra help preparing for tests. Similarly, teachers can benefit significantly from utilizing AR-based learning tools since they would no longer require expensive textbooks to teach lessons.

WebAssembly

WebAssembly is an emerging technology that allows developers to write code once and run it anywhere. This tech has been around since 2015 but has only recently started gaining traction.
WebAssembly brings the performance of compiled languages down to JavaScript with a compilation step at runtime, making development faster than ever before. It also enables cross-platform compatibility between desktop browsers and mobile web applications.
With this technology, web developers do not have to rely on JavaScript to write their codes. But, they can use other programming languages, which load faster and improve customer satisfaction. It means businesses using this technology in 2022 will promote themselves as their platform’s speed will be good.