Apps are not standalone products. When designing apps we focus a lot on UI, content and interactions. It’s easy to forget that your app relies on a backend just as websites do.
We already saw why you may want to have an app. Now let’s see what your options are for building one. It won’t be an in-depth, technical article, but it should give you a good overview of the solutions currently (2014) available.
If you search for “Do You Need An App”, results will show you that it’s a popular question with complicated (and often contradictory) answers. Of course, for a few businesses, like games for example, not having an app is nonsense. But it’s not so easy for the rest of the world. Small businesses and big corporations alike face the app dilemma.