A Guide to Building Blockchain Applications for Your Business

Unlocking the Potential: A Comprehensive Guide to Developing Blockchain Applications for Your Business

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Blockchain apps are experiencing unprecedented success. Decentralized exchanges, cryptocurrency wallets, and peer-to-peer lending platforms are only part of this revolutionary technology - yet providers and consumers now have equal say over how data is aggregated and shared via distributed ledger technologies such as DLT (developed in the early 2000s).Do you want to develop a decentralized app (aka dapp) and join the blockchain revolution? Here we will cover everything necessary for developing one! We will explore all you require to create one successfully.

What Are Blockchain Apps?

Let's quickly go over what blockchain (DLT) and its applications (blockchain app) entail since this technology forms the core layer for apps. As soon as we step back and examine why we use applications, it becomes apparent that each store processes and displays some form of data. Stock is an example of this: this app pulls data from the internet before processing and showing it in a digestible format for easy consumption by users. Without this data, the app would become useless and even harmful.

Data for most software today (99%) resides on servers owned and controlled by the company that developed it, such as Apple's Stock application which utilizes servers owned and managed by Apple to pull information from news and exchange sites before serving it up through its interface. Apple alone controls how data from an app is processed and delivered to users.

Blockchain technology has introduced another type of database onto the tech scene: a distributed database system without central authority or security system and main access points.

  • Exists on multiple computers
  • Verifies data algorithmically before adding it to the database
  • Protects data from being overwritten, edited, or deleted
  • It provides complete transparency in its current state, including all updates

Blockchain apps, by definition, refer to any mobile or web app that relies on a distributed database for functionality. Once developed, consumers may perceive your blockchain app as just another mobile or web app! Blockchain applications (or "dapps") use distributed ledger technology. If you plan to develop one, remember that it will still appear like any other app to its target customers.

Most people can't discern between a distributed app and centralized crypto solutions and their respective failures - like those seen with FTX or Celsius. As a result, failures like those experienced with them could quickly occur in the first instance.

Blockchain App Market Overview

You need to be aware of three basic facts to get a better understanding of the blockchain application market.

  • You can choose from a variety of blockchains to power your dapp
  • A blockchain application can be run on either a permission (requires rights of access) or a permissionless chain (publicly accessible).
  • DLT is a young technology. You can create any blockchain application.

Chain Apps In The Wild

People often associate blockchain with bitcoin, yet its purpose does not lie within application development; Bitcoin exists solely for transactions; you cannot build distributed applications using its protocol.Recent bitcoin ordinals (NFTs) have caused congestion and an increased transaction fee, showing the new protocol BRC-20 is ineffective as an option for developing blockchain applications such as Dapps; you don't need to create blockchain applications for bitcoin use cases.

Ethereum is the go-to choice for creating decentralized applications (Dapps or smart contracts). This blockchain supports self-executing smart contracts - algorithms that execute themselves when certain conditions are fulfilled - making Ethereum ideal for dapp development. EOS, TRON, and Steem are some of the other blockchain platforms which permit the building of decentralized applications (dapps). At the same time, these chains host fewer applications than Ethereum.Ethereum nodes may be responsible for making it the second-most-popular cryptocurrency globally and being the first to pioneer intelligent contracts technology, prompting many founders to build blockchain applications using Ethereum nodes as their foundation.

Public And Private Blockchains

Note that we only included those dapps that are public and distributed on the blockchain, meaning they are available to all system members.Off the main chain are numerous permissioned blockchain apps (also called private). While these applications can only be accessed by authorized users, they have gained increasing adoption throughout the business world. When developing an application that needs to be shared freely among all network members (i.e., no access restrictions or user permission requirements), creating one using private blockchain technology is the right decision.

Types of Blockchain Apps

As mentioned, blockchain apps remain unknown; any idea for a distributed application holds promise. When we look at popular chain apps today, financial solutions are often embedded within them.DeFi is the name given to apps that operate decentralized finance (decentralized finance is another term), including crypto-lending apps and decentralized exchanges, mobile wallets, and payment tools - as well as crypto lending apps and crypto wallets - among many others.

Other popular categories, such as:

  • Games and gambling
  • Identity and security management
  • Insurance
  • Marketplaces
  • decentralized healthcare
  • Supply chain solutions

The financial aspect of your blockchain application (aka tokenomics) will still be the main driving force, no matter what niche you choose or the use cases you select.

Popular Apps Using Blockchain

Let's look at a few popular blockchain-based apps to get your imagination going before we describe the process of creating apps.

Brave - A Web Browser

Brave, an open-source browser built using the Chromium engine, seeks to revolutionize online advertising. By turning off third-party tracking and blocking regular ads, Brave seeks to change how we view ads online. Brave's program rewards users who watch ads while not browsing and rewards publishers who create engaging content.

Binance - A Crypto Exchange

Binance is an example of a DeFi-chained application. Customers can trade different cryptocurrency tokens on this cryptocurrency exchange and earn interest by staking crypto on the platform.

Kyc Chain - A Compliance Resolution

KYC-Chain assists businesses in complying with KYC, AML, and other regulations. Companies can simplify KYC onboarding processes while verifying customer identities using the KYC-Chain platform when developing blockchain apps.

Compound - Autonomous Interest Rates Protocol

Compound Finance is a DeFi app that enables cryptocurrency customers to borrow and lend cryptocurrency assets using blockchain technology. Customers can borrow or lend assets according to real-time demand and supply, giving you control of your crypto investments!

Trust Bank Wallet Crypto Bank

Trust wallet is an invaluable resource if you're building a blockchain-based app to assist users in managing their digital money. This multi-coin blockchain wallet app enables secure storage and exchange of crypto assets and supports all Ethereum tokens available on iOS and Android platforms - it serves as a prime example of how mobile blockchain apps can be developed.

As you can see, developing a blockchain app is an excellent way to meet both business owner and customer needs. Different depend upon blockchain for various reasons, yet all use its distributed networks as a source of trustworthy digital information.

Benefits of Blockchain Applications

Blockchain technology should bring tangible benefits to your solution; don't get carried away by any hype about DLT. Your distributed app can benefit from decentralized blockchain technology's benefits, including cost reduction, security, transparency, and autonomy. Blockchain's advantages do not come without cost. "Blockchain is the world's slowest database," you may hear quite frequently, or "A blockchain works like the world's slowest database."

Cost Reduction

Blockchain applications are intended to streamline business processes by eliminating intermediaries from the workflow and thus reducing resource use for services that provide similar results.

Transparency

A decentralized app (dapp) enables all its users to see what is going on within its app - this is often one of the primary drivers behind choosing one over traditional applications. Imagine that a clinic or an insurance company wanted to streamline collaboration among their team by making internal workflows transparent for everyone involved. Blockchain can enable this level of cooperation without incurring additional overhead costs.

Be mindful that just because you created a blockchain-based app with complete decentralization doesn't mean all its users will understand how to verify transactions within it. A user interface that makes on-chain data simple and explains it could make all the difference for success.

Security

By nature, a properly built decentralized app (dapp) will typically be more secure than regular apps due to blockchain technology's workings. The mechanism of the dapp prevents any data from being altered or erased and requires consensus among all users before updates can take place on it. Furthermore, all data is also strongly encrypted. To create trustworthy blockchain applications, established vendors must conduct security audits.

Autonomy

Intelligent contracts are necessary when developing blockchain applications. A DLT app consists of mini-apps that take specific actions on their own based upon certain conditions being met, and these actions trigger when this condition has been fulfilled. Decentralized apps may, for example, connect to services that report delayed or canceled flights and initiate automatic payouts to those passengers affected.

Popular Industries For Blockchain Application Development

The following industries can benefit by investing in blockchain application development.

Finances

The financial industry is at the forefront of adopting blockchain technologies. Financial applications powered by this distributed ledger provide increased security, transparency, and efficiency - particularly for cross-border payment gateways and remittances. Ripple (XRP), a blockchain-based technology, allows faster and cheaper cross-border transactions without banks acting as intermediaries.

Insurance

Insurance companies can utilize the blockchain to improve fraud detection, claims administration, and policy administration. By storing information like policy details and claims records on blockchain networks, insurers can increase transparency while decreasing fraud and increasing the efficiency of settlements.

For example, insurance is a collaboration of insurance companies and technology vendors using blockchain for managing marine insurance policies, providing real-time data while automating manual processes.

Healthcare

Dapps can transform healthcare by safely storing and sharing patient data, increasing interoperability, and streamlining supply chain management. Ethereum uses blockchain to promote patient engagement. This enables healthcare providers to reward patients for accomplishing specific tasks, such as medication adherence or post-treatment surveys.

Real Property

Blockchain technology can bring trust and transparency to real estate transactions. This includes property ownership, title transfer, and intelligent contracts facilitating rental or sale agreements.

Example propy is a blockchain platform that enables users to purchase and sell properties worldwide safely, transparently, and without intermediaries - eliminating fraud and intermediaries costs associated with property transactions.

Retail

Retailers can leverage blockchain applications to enhance supply chain management, product authentication, and loyalty programs. Retailers can reduce the risk of counterfeit goods by recording their entire journey on a blockchain.

For example, Walmart and IBM have implemented a blockchain system to track food products as they move from farm to store, facilitating faster recalls of unsafe food products while guaranteeing their safety.

Travel

Blockchain can revolutionize travel and tourism by providing transparent reviews, efficient booking systems, and secure digital identities, enabling travelers to share personal data safely with hotels, airlines, and other travel service providers without losing control.Winding Tree, a blockchain-based travel platform, connects clients directly with suppliers while cutting costs by bypassing intermediaries.

Due to price speculation and trading, decentralized financial apps are common on blockchain platforms like Ethereum. As a result, DeFi apps such as decentralized exchanges, lending platforms, yield farming protocols, and yield farming protocols have emerged on Ethereum, allowing users to engage in financial activities such as earning interest on digital assets or contributing liquidity directly into decentralized markets without depending on traditional financial intermediaries.

Read more: What Are The Four Types Of Blockchain Technology, Its Benefits, And Drawbacks?

Blockchain-Based Application Development Types

You can create different types of dapps based on whether you want to use permissionless or permissioned blockchain architecture.

  1. Public: Your decentralized application can reach all members of its mainnet (e.g., Ethereum), including those you choose as potential employees for deployment purposes. A public blockchain (aka permissionless), decentralized apps may be developed using this strategy to reach as many users as possible, and defi and crypto games often employ this method for maximum reach.
  2. Private: Private or permissioned dapps are restricted to authorized users only and still maintain transparency, data integrity, and other DLT characteristics while only being accessible by them.
  3. Consortium: Private or consortium blockchain applications are typically developed by companies that share joint control over their functionality and determine who can use it. At present, consortium dapp development is not widely popular. Popular options for creating blockchain applications include using public networks such as Ethereum (layer 1) and Arbitrum (layer 2, built upon it) as platforms to develop them.

Top Platforms For Blockchain App Development

As noted, Ethereum remains the top choice of many developers looking to create decentralized financial apps - even up until recently. What else is there besides Ethereum? We can list popular blockchain platforms other than Ethereum by reviewing DappRadar's top 25 apps and noting which chains these applications reside on.

  • BNB (formerly Binance Smart Chain)
  • Polygon
  • Optimism
  • WAX
  • Arbitrage
  • Avalanche
  • Fantom
  • EOS

Let's revisit why Ethereum is such an ideal choice: users. Among all cryptocurrencies, Ethereum had the highest user engagement. BNB is the second most popular dapp after Ethereum, with 15 of the 25 top-rated dapps we reviewed being deployed by BNB. That compares with 12 deployed by Ethereum itself (which still has more active users than BNB), 7 by Polygon and Optimism, 5 by WAX/Arbitrum/Avalanche, and 3 each from EOS and Fantom (the rest scored below that threshold).

If not Ethereum, BNB might be the better fit. Other factors might come into play; your app might work with existing solutions available only on specific networks. Many readers may ask: "What about Solana, with its fast processing speeds of thousands of transactions per second compared to only 12 transactions on Ethereum?" My response would be, who cares? They aren't decentralized enough, have received bad press for stolen funds, and don't have that many users."

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Blockchain Application Development Steps

How should you approach blockchain app development projects? How can you build a dapp that delivers on its promises and disrupts an industry with its shared economy without incurring high app development costs? Before beginning the development of your blockchain application, here are a few factors you need to keep in mind:

Step 1: Define The Purpose

Before creating a decentralized app, you must identify who will use it and what benefits they might derive from it. With your decision, you can either build a private solution or allow public access as necessary.

When:

  • It would help if you created a fair economic environment for all parties involved.
  • You want to avoid having an authority centrally police the functionality of your app.
  • You strive for complete transparency in all data modifications within the app.
  • You plan to automate processes that can be easily translated into algorithms.

Your decision on whether a dapp is DeFi or CeFi will affect the tech stack when you are developing a blockchain application.

Step 2: Prototype Your Idea

Keep this in mind when designing the user interface for a decentralized application (dapp). A dapp exists as direct competition with centrally-controlled apps that offer similar services and solve identical customer problems. An effective blockchain app prototype should start as a clickable shell application tested with real users to assess whether users will engage with it once released.

Rapid prototyping is an invaluable way to test ideas with customers before spending money on app development coding, which is the costliest component. App creation for blockchains doesn't differ significantly from web2 app creation.

Step 3: Create A Distributed Application

Once your prototypes have been validated, the next step should be developing the front end of your dapp, which will shape user experiences. You have multiple platforms from web and mobile to choose from when developing it - just be sure to select an appropriate tech stack! Selecting a modern tech stack will make managing and supporting your product more accessible, so consider these web-based solutions:

  • Use MongoDB, Express.js, Node.js, and React/Vue or Node.js.
  • The same as above, except that Angular is used to build the customer-facing component

Step 4: Building The Backbone of Your Dapp

An app is more than a consumer-facing front end; it requires backend services like databases and servers and business models to run smoothly. dapps do not differ significantly from other apps' functionality; however, they often feature two backends - one built upon blockchain with smart contracts as its focus - while the second backend acts similarly to regular apps by exchanging and processing information through its web servers.

Step 5: Know Your Toolset

If you are searching for a blockchain app developer, ensure they possess experience with these technologies. While finding such specialists may be complex and expensive, check out these web2 and web3 programming languages and platforms aimed explicitly at blockchain development for guidance.

JavaScript

  • Front-end development
  • Smart contracts testing

Python, Go, Rust, C++

  • Backend coding
  • Business logic development

Solidity, Node.js

  • Smart contract development

Truffle

  • Solidity is a programming language that allows you to create smart contracts.
  • Testing blockchain code

MetaMask

  • Ethereum wallet
  • Chain connectivity is available within a browser

Ganache

  • With funded accounts, you can create a local Blockchain in seconds
  • Cheap alternative to setting up an entire testing environment

Ether.js or Web3.js

  • Connects the front end of a dapp to a blockchain

Express.js

  • Off-chain development

Remix

  • Browser-based development environment to write blockchain code

You will need both front-end developers and server-side programmers to build blockchain applications. It's best to work with a company that has experience in both web2 technologies and web3 technology.

Step 6: Decentralized Apps

Once completed, it's essential to rigorously test your blockchain app before releasing it on the mainnet. This step becomes even more critical if working with public dapps once deployed; there's no easy way to fix any potential publicly released problems. Tests for dapps should include UX (user experience) testing and integration testing to detect any issues with how your app interacts with third-party solutions.Release your decentralized app onto the blockchain testnet, then have users test it to detect bugs. This will allow you to identify any potential issues as quickly as possible.

Step 7: Launching An Dapp

Launching a dapp is like releasing multiple applications.

  • Apps for consumers are available on the App Store and Google Play
  • Setting up a web-based consumer application using a cloud service such as AWS
  • Mainnet deployment of blockchain code

This approach ensures that you can update your dapp in the future as you, please. These 7 steps should have helped you understand how to create a blockchain app.

How Does a Blockchain Application Work?

What we have already covered should give you an understanding of decentralized applications. If this concept still seems complex, don't worry; we will explain everything step-by-step so you can quickly grasp its essence.

Customer Applications

Build your app using blockchain technology, and your users won't experience anything unfamiliar or complex; they will continue using software with (hopefully!) friendly user interfaces. You can use the following as your solution:

  • a mobile application
  • a web portal
  • Or even a combination of both

It could be as comfortable as Gmail if Google decided one day that it would be great to make emailing public and transfer Gmail's database to a Blockchain network.

Core Blockchain Formula

Your decentralized app's blockchain component - behind its attractive user interfaces - is responsible for processing and verifying all transactions. No matter if a product was built on a public, private, or consortium distributed ledger system - what matters is that all users have visibility of all transactions happening within it and access. You will store your data here:

  • Blockchain code
  • Smart contracts

APIS

APIs connect your front-end applications and the decentralized core of your dapp while providing connectivity between it and third-party platforms. Imagine a set of rules written into code that describes how a blockchain exchanges data with other systems. A development team and blockchain app developer cannot create a blockchain application without using at least one API.

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Conclusion

If you want to launch a dapp as part of your company, it must integrate seamlessly with all existing systems; APIs provide the ideal solution. Accepting crypto payments is one of the most straightforward use cases. Just find a payment provider with this feature and APIs that enable customization then it's ready to accept USDC BTC and ETH.