Business

The Benefits of API Development for Businesses

How has the internet supported your life? Is it how you can run your business? Stay in touch with friends and family? Maybe you use the internet in your leisure time. No matter what the case may be, the internet you know today doesn’t exist without Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). This term may seem intimidating if you are unfamiliar with the concept, so we’re going to have to break it down.

In simple terms, imagine trying to talk to someone in another country without any method for transmitting messages (video calls, phone calls, instant messaging, pen and paper, etc). You’d just be talking to yourself. The API would, in this case, be the devices that make this communication possible. It is software that lets applications communicate. You ask the API for it, and the API goes and gets it for you. 

How do APIs help businesses?

Imagine you want a website for your business that’s going to provide an amazing and unique experience for your users, lightyears from what your competitors are using. You’ll need software that can materialize the concepts through various features in your website and allow it to perform at a high level. For this reason, you’ll look for a web developer who can create an API for your website.

You’re likely seeing the pattern here. APIs expand the potential that businesses can tap into when it comes to scaling the business. Disparate systems are holding back the worthwhile investment for businesses that are currently spending nearly $600 billion annually trying to crack the code. 

Create and Innovate 

So with the idea of innovation in mind, let’s consider the ways that API technology makes expansion possible. When it comes to change in an organization, especially digital transformation, APIs allow people to contribute more and more to the success of the organization by breaking the barriers instilled by traditional methods. As well, monetization is far easier to implement by allowing companies to own real estate on multiple platforms (where more ad space can be sold). 

For services that are driven by advertising or that are “transactional”, having various interfaces will continue to enhance that exposure. With that in mind, have your APIs directed towards a variety of platforms such as browser extensions, Meta, iPhone, and more. 

How can you prepare?

What kind of API is your business developing? Is it meant for developers? Or is this something that’s going to help the third party? Like any software implementation, you need to identify the important aspects that will cover logistics. In the case of APIs, these areas include: 

  • The functionalities you want your API to perform and how many. Is there anything you can automate to assist with maintenance and use? 

  • How will the API be accessed and who will access it? Are you going to integrate it through an already-established platform? Will it only be available to partners or the public?

  • Is your API going to offer support? If so, how much? (This will dictate some of the decisions you make with development so ensure it is taken care of beforehand).

What to do during execution

There’s an abundance of tools to assist in your API development journey, but before you search for them, you need to know your app. The type of data and information you plan to use in the API is fundamental, which means the developer will need to know it or else they’ll be overwhelmed by the app's requirements upon release.

How APIs have helped businesses you know

APIs give businesses the chance to expand into new markets. There are strategic partnership opportunities and technology changes that can bring businesses to the next level. Take Uber for example. Rather than going through the process of creating their own communication, navigation, and transaction methods, they took the top programs for all those aspects and used APIs to link them. 

Also, if you recall the start of Twitter, you’ll remember that it wasn’t perfect. Specifically, their user interface (UI) was not up to standard which required attention. TweetDeck came in and created a far better UI than Twitter's original engine which led to a much more smooth user experience.

What to expect in the next decade

You’ve heard it over and over again: “technology is the future”. This article has certainly spoken plenty of its potential in overtaking traditional methods. Businesses need to be pragmatic when it comes to changes like API technology. Traditional methods involve paperwork, a big sales staff, and many other outlets where companies will invest time and money while seeing little to no reciprocity from today.

The Takeaway

Software solutions is a broad term, but APIs are a very good example to consider when evaluating what it will mean for your business. There’s a variety of opinions on how to “future-proof'' your company, but the fact of the matter is that every business is different. 

At this point, there is almost no business that operates without digital solutions and everyone would’ve had to evaluate and identify their own needs and logistics. This is important, but you’ll need to consult with professionals at some point to get ahead of the competition.

Written By Ben Brown

ISU Corp is an award-winning software development company, with over 17 years of experience in multiple industries, providing cost-effective custom software development, technology management, and IT outsourcing.

Our unique owners’ mindset reduces development costs and fast-tracks timelines. We help craft the specifications of your project based on your company's needs, to produce the best ROI. Find out why startups, all the way to fortune 500 companies like General Electric, Heinz, and many others have trusted us with their projects. Contact us here.

 
 

FinTech and ESG Tech: The Financial Tool Investors Need

Change is an inevitable aspect of running a business. Changes will be good and bad, but the long-term results of change depend on how it’s managed. When it comes to finance, this is something industry professionals have ingrained in their mindset which is what allows them to keep up with the world and market of today.

With the world and culture being interconnected in the way they are presently, there’s been plenty of changes in technology needed for businesses to keep up. Notably, this has brought forth ESG attention which stands for environmental, social, and governance. 

ESG is not reserved for those associated with fossil fuels; companies from a wide variety of industries are finding ways to implement these strategies. Among them is FinTech.

Defining ESG

You can think of ESG as a method of regulating a company's operations in the best interest of the environment. The guidelines associated with ESG are essentially a screening process for how a business is operating, what investments they’re looking to make, the kind of materials being used, etc. Deforestation, carbon emissions, and air pollution, for example, all contribute to a company's performance. Why is that?

Public relation is a factor in financial institutions adopting ESG, but it is not the only motivator. The market is hot and highly competitive for these institutions, which means that the operation and performance of companies are not dictated solely by their brand image. How does the company function internally? How do they plan to be in business for the next 30 years? It comes down to these three guidelines:

Environmental: Green initiatives are a major draw today. Companies need to evaluate how their actions are impacting the planet.

Social: How does the organization impact people? This applies to everyone from employees, to the community, and clients. 

Governance: Who runs the organization? How do they run it? Transparency is an extremely important factor in operating an organization and it extends beyond the needs of your staff.

How ESG Tech works

As we saw earlier this month, green FinTech is big. It is only continuing to grow and though it’s great to see, this kind of consciousness is branching to other areas for companies. Your business isn’t going to attract growth by simply stating your environmental initiatives. This is about running your organization like a well-oiled machine whose operations are balanced. Here is how software can enhance this for FinTechs:

  • Creating modules that track the organization's impact on the environment.

  • Releasing ESG reports based on the institutions' economic activity (this demonstrates transparency).

  • Offering feedback utilizing IoT technology.

  • Building platforms that oversee how a business is meeting the ESG criteria.

  • Evaluating investment risks based on depletion of resources, hazards to the environment, social issues, etc.

FinTech opens businesses to endless opportunities when it comes to ways they can focus on the client side. However, the point we’ve been getting at here is that organizations need to practice what they preach. The front end can be enticing but it isn’t sustainable if the back end isn’t just as well organized. This is why ESG criteria are so beneficial to financial organizations from both ends. 

Commonly, this topic is referred to as a business's “corporate social responsibility” (CSR). The simplest way to understand this term is that businesses adjust to the market, not the other way around. At the moment, the market is demanding initiatives aligned with all three pillars, which is why the technology is in such high demand.

Benefits for FinTechs

The most notable benefit when it comes to ESG tech is how it positions businesses in the eyes of investors which is especially helpful for ​​startups. The start of this year alone saw almost $380 billion worth of ESG assets worldwide. In the tagged article, you’ll see that investors called 2022 “the year of ESG investing”. 

Customers are the real focal point for FinTechs incorporating ESG tech. Again, it’s all about the internal and external governance of the organization. Research is finding that over 75% of consumers are ready to boycott businesses that fail to treat employees or the environment in the right way.

Where are we now?

ESG tech is by no means without faults for organizations at this point. There is still plenty of work to be done for international markets to have efficient identification methods and avoid disinformation regarding the environment (greenwashing) and PR. 

ESG reporting is meant to provide investors and other participants in the market with the necessary information to guide their investment decisions. Ultimately, it is the standardization of these ESG reports that needs work, or they will lose all value.

Methods for measuring performance such as key performance indicators (KPIs) are needed to make these accurate evaluations. It's going to be the organizations that dominate this facet that succeed in using ESG.

What’s next?

ESG guidelines present opportunities for growth in both investors' portfolios and companies' consumer base. ESG technology has still not fully been tapped into in terms of the potential value it can deliver. Like any new technology, it's all about how businesses can integrate it into their platforms. As always, you’ll need a software development team with the skills and experience to bring this to life. 

Written By Ben Brown

ISU Corp is an award-winning software development company, with over 17 years of experience in multiple industries, providing cost-effective custom software development, technology management, and IT outsourcing.

Our unique owners’ mindset reduces development costs and fast-tracks timelines. We help craft the specifications of your project based on your company's needs, to produce the best ROI. Find out why startups, all the way to fortune 500 companies like General Electric, Heinz, and many others have trusted us with their projects. Contact us here.

 
 

6 Programming Languages to use for Developing Blockchain Apps

Blockchain technology has taken industries by storm. Among many features, its ability to streamline and automate processes while enhancing the performance of operations has made this technology highly sought after. Anytime new technology makes a buzz like this, companies want to make it more accessible to their users. 

If you consider technology nowadays, you’ll see that there’s no better way to increase accessibility to a product than by having a high-quality application.

Even though Blockchain technology has the upper hand in competitive markets, many companies underestimate some programming languages or are simply unsure which to use when integrating them into their applications. For this reason, we will go over the various languages commonly used when developing these applications.

Why do you need a programming language?

Software development requires the right tech stack. In the case of tech stacks for Blockchain solutions, companies will find a wide variety of options that all serve different purposes. This means we’ll need to identify which is right for your application. 

Here are some of the top 6 solutions:

1. Python:

This is an obvious choice for its simplicity alone. Although Python is still considered new in the Blockchain space, it’s commonly used for networks like Steem, NEO, Ethereum, and QTUM among others.

Many developers choose Python for its ability to quickly materialize new ideas in a prototype. Additionally, its resources include frameworks, plugins, and libraries as well as external ones. Note that everything here is open-source, meaning that if an issue should arise while developing the Blockchain application, it can be quickly and easily resolved.

2. C++:

In the world of programming, this is a go-to for general-purpose programming simply because of how diverse it can be for building software, especially solutions for Blockchain. Bitcoin, Ripple, Litecoin, and many more are all written using C++.

Among the many draws to C++, one of the biggest reasons for its popularity is that the solution is object-oriented (OOP) and makes low-level functions accessible. This means that the development process is much faster and simpler. Additionally, it's highly compatible, allowing it to easily be used in low-level coding. Programmers know that this is a huge advantage when it comes to scalability and the speed of a product.

3. Java:

This is one of the biggest competitors for C++ due to its popularity and how comprehensive it is during software development. Blockchain solutions such as IOTA, NEO, and Ethereum were created using Java.

What makes Blockchain developers happy with this language are three things in particular: portability, OOP, and API. These contributors are what make applications that are well-structured, high performing, and that can easily operate on almost any device or platform. Another big draw to Java is its highly secured interface. Security threats are mitigated through the systems that manage security such as byte-code verifier checks and Java Virtual Machine.

4. Golang:

Commonly referred to as GO, this language is great for building Blockchain solutions quickly and painlessly. Software developers building apps with GO can make multi-threaded platforms where computing resources can be used efficiently which is paramount for operating Blockchain solutions.

Another reason developers would use Golang is that it's a statically-typed and compiled language. When it comes to Golang apps, this is going to protect them from errors with the runtime as well as make sure that the development process is efficient. 

Among the other draws to Golang, one of its biggest advantages for programmers is that it compiles itself in machine code instead of using virtual machines. Performance-wise, Golang will operate similarly to C++. It will use various other programming practices from different languages which is why the code is easier to write.

5. Simplicity:

A programming language specifically for developing Blockchain, Simplicity was originally made to replace Bitcoin’s script and Ethereum's EVM and is also used to create smart contracts.

When it comes to the creation of Smart Contracts for Bitcoin and Ethereum, Simplicity is meant to mitigate complexity and create solutions full of features that can be relied on. Additionally, its compatibility with Blockstream’s Element platform allows it to support various open-source software. 

6. Rust:

Recently, this has been one of the top choices for blockchain developers, primarily for its low friction and secure features. On top of this, it’s a relatively easy language to learn.

Developers who are sufficient with Rust are in high demand specifically for the crypto industry. Among the many draws to the language, when it comes to blockchain applications, the ability to prevent memory bugs while compiling is critical. 

What’s next?

While many industries are finding ways to implement blockchain technology, those already using it are finding ways to enhance it. Whichever stage you and your business are at, make sure you’re using experienced developers who won’t waste your investment. Technology is moving forward and it’s not waiting for hesitating businesses confined to outdated methods. 

Written By Ben Brown

ISU Corp is an award-winning software development company, with over 17 years of experience in multiple industries, providing cost-effective custom software development, technology management, and IT outsourcing.

Our unique owners’ mindset reduces development costs and fast-tracks timelines. We help craft the specifications of your project based on your company's needs, to produce the best ROI. Find out why startups, all the way to fortune 500 companies like General Electric, Heinz, and many others have trusted us with their projects. Contact us here.