ERP Insights >> Magazine >> July - 2016 issue
How APIs Drive Digital Business
Author : Anish Williams
Friday, July 1, 2016
Digital businesses, as we know, is transforming rapidly. Behind this pace is a nifty approach using API's; and developers & Co's globally are making maximum use of it. Both to roll out innovative solutions and at the same time expand the reach of their offerings. An API led approach has become integral to every start-up today. Be it in logistics, digital payments, e-commerce, food-tech or any other industry segment, smart technology forms the backbone of any new-age start-up's offerings. Growing increasingly popular by the instant, it is almost impossible to work in a technological field without bumping into some reference to APIs. But what are APIs, and how are they powering the rise of the digital ecosystem?
According to most definitions, APIs are 'a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software and applications'. Having been around since the internet came about, these little digital building blocks are receiving renewed spotlight because of their novel implementations; not only are APIs amongst the most reliable ways to offer digital solutions, but are also one of the most feasible ways to expose in-house data to the external data. This leads to a better all-around experience for the consumers who use the product, whilst at the same time also helping businesses in creating superior products and experiences through tighter integrations.
Developers also swear by the benefits offered by APIs. Not only do APIs help developers in saving a lot of time by integrating their offerings with those of the larger organisations, but also allow them to tap into the massive amounts of data that is made available through these integrations. Convenience is also a major draw, as users from social media platforms will undoubtedly appreciate the ability to sign into many apps and websites using their social media accounts. Imagine leveraging the extensive framework of Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, Pinterest or Google Maps for increasing the effectiveness and outreach of your own services. All of this is made possible through APIs.
Amongst other benefits that come with using APIs, security, flexibility, scalability, design and performance count amongst the most immediate and important. By verifying the authenticity of every request and validating them against any limit before authorising them, APIs offer a very secure way of communication. Moreover, owing to their high flexibility, APIs also allow for consistent and seamless experiences. For instance, being a payments company, the wallet APIs that we empower our partners with permit them to choose the ones that work for their business and create experiences that are relevant to their users. This way, the experience remains consistent across the product.
Scalability is another big advantage of using APIs. Not only are APIs extremely scalable, but they can also be designed to be used in different ways. This allows usage across a portfolio of products irrespective of the platform and makes for a very compelling and intuitive user experience. We see our APIs being used from a client product (apps on iOS, Android, WAP & web among others) or from another server. Such usage enables further flexibility to accommodate changes that do not cause cascading or ripple effects. A server-to-server integration would also mean that a lot of changes that are needed can often be handled behind the scenes without any breakage in the end-user experience.
Using APIs also leads to a lot of flexibility in designing experiences a business desires. Uber uses Google Maps to show where its cabs are, while several other apps use it as needed for their businesses, be it to surface restaurants or give an update on traffic. Our payment APIs allow for businesses to not just enable wallet usage for transactions, but also in having the option to add money to the wallet, transfer money between two wallets and credit vouchers among other features. This leads businesses to choose the features that matter to them while also designing an interface that is highly relevant to their product and to make the customers feel at home.
However, APIs are not God's Divine Solution to all digital concerns either. The quality of the API matters a lot, and can lead to a lengthy development and implementation time. Moreover, in case an issue is identified within an API, it could potentially impact the consumers who are using it and hamper their user experience. Twitter famously limited third-party applications' use of its APIs.
These issues, however, are not enough to dampen the enthusiasm for APIs felt by the developers and businesses, nor that of users of the apps and services they make possible. APIs sound dull, but they are anything but; by bringing an unprecedented range of choice, they have changed the way businesses operate and how users interact with products through a far more superior and intuitive experience which elevates user experience and drives business across the digital landscape.
How APIs Drive Digital Business
Author : Anish Williams
Friday, July 1, 2016
Digital businesses, as we know, is transforming rapidly. Behind this pace is a nifty approach using API's; and developers & Co's globally are making maximum use of it. Both to roll out innovative solutions and at the same time expand the reach of their offerings. An API led approach has become integral to every start-up today. Be it in logistics, digital payments, e-commerce, food-tech or any other industry segment, smart technology forms the backbone of any new-age start-up's offerings. Growing increasingly popular by the instant, it is almost impossible to work in a technological field without bumping into some reference to APIs. But what are APIs, and how are they powering the rise of the digital ecosystem?
According to most definitions, APIs are 'a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software and applications'. Having been around since the internet came about, these little digital building blocks are receiving renewed spotlight because of their novel implementations; not only are APIs amongst the most reliable ways to offer digital solutions, but are also one of the most feasible ways to expose in-house data to the external data. This leads to a better all-around experience for the consumers who use the product, whilst at the same time also helping businesses in creating superior products and experiences through tighter integrations.
Developers also swear by the benefits offered by APIs. Not only do APIs help developers in saving a lot of time by integrating their offerings with those of the larger organisations, but also allow them to tap into the massive amounts of data that is made available through these integrations. Convenience is also a major draw, as users from social media platforms will undoubtedly appreciate the ability to sign into many apps and websites using their social media accounts. Imagine leveraging the extensive framework of Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, Pinterest or Google Maps for increasing the effectiveness and outreach of your own services. All of this is made possible through APIs.
Amongst other benefits that come with using APIs, security, flexibility, scalability, design and performance count amongst the most immediate and important. By verifying the authenticity of every request and validating them against any limit before authorising them, APIs offer a very secure way of communication. Moreover, owing to their high flexibility, APIs also allow for consistent and seamless experiences. For instance, being a payments company, the wallet APIs that we empower our partners with permit them to choose the ones that work for their business and create experiences that are relevant to their users. This way, the experience remains consistent across the product.
Scalability is another big advantage of using APIs. Not only are APIs extremely scalable, but they can also be designed to be used in different ways. This allows usage across a portfolio of products irrespective of the platform and makes for a very compelling and intuitive user experience. We see our APIs being used from a client product (apps on iOS, Android, WAP & web among others) or from another server. Such usage enables further flexibility to accommodate changes that do not cause cascading or ripple effects. A server-to-server integration would also mean that a lot of changes that are needed can often be handled behind the scenes without any breakage in the end-user experience.
Using APIs also leads to a lot of flexibility in designing experiences a business desires. Uber uses Google Maps to show where its cabs are, while several other apps use it as needed for their businesses, be it to surface restaurants or give an update on traffic. Our payment APIs allow for businesses to not just enable wallet usage for transactions, but also in having the option to add money to the wallet, transfer money between two wallets and credit vouchers among other features. This leads businesses to choose the features that matter to them while also designing an interface that is highly relevant to their product and to make the customers feel at home.
However, APIs are not God's Divine Solution to all digital concerns either. The quality of the API matters a lot, and can lead to a lengthy development and implementation time. Moreover, in case an issue is identified within an API, it could potentially impact the consumers who are using it and hamper their user experience. Twitter famously limited third-party applications' use of its APIs.
These issues, however, are not enough to dampen the enthusiasm for APIs felt by the developers and businesses, nor that of users of the apps and services they make possible. APIs sound dull, but they are anything but; by bringing an unprecedented range of choice, they have changed the way businesses operate and how users interact with products through a far more superior and intuitive experience which elevates user experience and drives business across the digital landscape.
According to most definitions, APIs are 'a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software and applications'. Having been around since the internet came about, these little digital building blocks are receiving renewed spotlight because of their novel implementations; not only are APIs amongst the most reliable ways to offer digital solutions, but are also one of the most feasible ways to expose in-house data to the external data. This leads to a better all-around experience for the consumers who use the product, whilst at the same time also helping businesses in creating superior products and experiences through tighter integrations.
Developers also swear by the benefits offered by APIs. Not only do APIs help developers in saving a lot of time by integrating their offerings with those of the larger organisations, but also allow them to tap into the massive amounts of data that is made available through these integrations. Convenience is also a major draw, as users from social media platforms will undoubtedly appreciate the ability to sign into many apps and websites using their social media accounts. Imagine leveraging the extensive framework of Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, Pinterest or Google Maps for increasing the effectiveness and outreach of your own services. All of this is made possible through APIs.
Amongst other benefits that come with using APIs, security, flexibility, scalability, design and performance count amongst the most immediate and important. By verifying the authenticity of every request and validating them against any limit before authorising them, APIs offer a very secure way of communication. Moreover, owing to their high flexibility, APIs also allow for consistent and seamless experiences. For instance, being a payments company, the wallet APIs that we empower our partners with permit them to choose the ones that work for their business and create experiences that are relevant to their users. This way, the experience remains consistent across the product.
Scalability is another big advantage of using APIs. Not only are APIs extremely scalable, but they can also be designed to be used in different ways. This allows usage across a portfolio of products irrespective of the platform and makes for a very compelling and intuitive user experience. We see our APIs being used from a client product (apps on iOS, Android, WAP & web among others) or from another server. Such usage enables further flexibility to accommodate changes that do not cause cascading or ripple effects. A server-to-server integration would also mean that a lot of changes that are needed can often be handled behind the scenes without any breakage in the end-user experience.
Using APIs also leads to a lot of flexibility in designing experiences a business desires. Uber uses Google Maps to show where its cabs are, while several other apps use it as needed for their businesses, be it to surface restaurants or give an update on traffic. Our payment APIs allow for businesses to not just enable wallet usage for transactions, but also in having the option to add money to the wallet, transfer money between two wallets and credit vouchers among other features. This leads businesses to choose the features that matter to them while also designing an interface that is highly relevant to their product and to make the customers feel at home.
However, APIs are not God's Divine Solution to all digital concerns either. The quality of the API matters a lot, and can lead to a lengthy development and implementation time. Moreover, in case an issue is identified within an API, it could potentially impact the consumers who are using it and hamper their user experience. Twitter famously limited third-party applications' use of its APIs.
These issues, however, are not enough to dampen the enthusiasm for APIs felt by the developers and businesses, nor that of users of the apps and services they make possible. APIs sound dull, but they are anything but; by bringing an unprecedented range of choice, they have changed the way businesses operate and how users interact with products through a far more superior and intuitive experience which elevates user experience and drives business across the digital landscape.
