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No company in Russia has been immune to multiple disruptions in IT processes brought over by 2022. With no access to Western software, businesses began searching for alternatives and developing products of their own.
There is certainly no shortage of potential discussions about what works and what does not, which is why we’re launching this Business in Search of Software series to talk about software development in the context of a complete market overhaul. Our first article in the series is dedicated to the low-code/no-code (LCNC) concept.
Do we really need code?
From landing pages to data management systems, creating a new IT service is traditionally associated with coding. Which means one would need competent IT people with relevant skill-sets. LCNC, on the other hand, is a way to democratise development. No-code and low-code platforms open the doors to website building and application development to practically everyone.
In essence, an LCNC program is a construction kit – or a visual editor, if you please, – with ready-to-use modules and scripts. Users can choose from a selection of pre-made headers, footers, image fields, text boxes, feedback forms, etc. and fill them with their own content. The algorithm would then generate an html code for each element and string them together with other components of the website.
Among the most popular website-building LCNC platforms are Wix, Tilda, WordPress. Aside from these, there are LCNC platforms that help to create mobile apps (Adalo, BuiildFire, Glide), online games (GameMaker, Buildbox), online stores (Dzumba, Ecwid), and chatbots.
The difference between low-code and no-code is in the name. Low-coding would require the user to have at least some programming skills, but enables them to create more complex and customised services. No-code solutions, on the other hand, are more standardised, but universally available.
There’s always a catch
Naturally, if LCNC could provide IT solutions of any complexity, coding in its traditional sense would have become extinct and effectively remain to serve just one purpose – developing no-code and low-code platforms themselves.
In reality, the range of tasks that can be performed with LCNC solutions is quite limited. Yes, you could create a multi-page website or even build a fully working online store, but managing the platform would soon leave you grasping for a larger toolkit. Data analytics, SEO, integration with external resources, advanced functionality – all of this would become a serious issue.
This is not to say that no-coding development is useless per se, but rather that it is intended for a different set of tasks, where it can really save time, money, and resources and create a workable solution at a minimum cost.
When to use no-code/low-code
- Information websites, promo sites, limited functionality landing pages
- One-time solutions: one-page contest sites, ad pages, online application forms, tests, and surveys
- Chatbots
- Solutions for small businesses, e.g. online bakeries or hand-made jewellery stores
- Urgent solutions. For instance, during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ecwid developed a ready-made tool for restaurants and cafes to create their own online stores.
It should be noted that building a website or an app with advanced functionality, creating a marketplace or any other complex service is a task beyond LCNC. And the issue is not even on the technical side either: LCNC hampers project management and limits product components and analytics – though the hype about the whole concept may lead you to believe otherwise.
Our team was once tasked with developing a massive marketplace – a project both big and complex. Then, at some point, one of the client’s managers suggested axing the entire development and building the marketplace on an LCNC platform instead. We decided against arguing and simply proved that this was a hit-and-miss idea by showing the client what product they would actually end up with in the end if the suggestion was implemented.
Indeed, low-code and no-code platforms are very effective when it comes to tasks they are intended for. But the idea that LCNC will completely replace coding in the foreseeable future seems rather far-fetched
More from the Business in Search of Software series:
PWA – Browser under Hood of Application
Cloud-Based Solutions