Why You Should Create A Chrome Web App For Your Site

I have recently switched from using Firefox as my default browser to using Chrome. It’s just faster, and more streamlined in my opinion. I also had the chance to check out the Chrome Web Store.

If you’re not familiar, the Chrome Web Store has “Apps” that you can install in the Chrome browser to do all sorts of useful things. It’s similar to “add-ons” in Firefox. The difference is that in many cases these Apps are simply icons installed on your Chrome start page that link to a particular site or blog. Essentially they are just fancy bookmarks! Considering how many people use the Chrome browser, it’s easy to see why it would be beneficial for you to have an “App” for your site.

Anything that will allow Chrome users to easily access your site from their start page can only be a good thing right?

It would also be beneficial for you to promote this App from your website and to your ezine subscribers because the more popular your site is in the Chrome Web Store the better it will rank in the store. It’s almost like some kind of secret, secondary search engine.

How great would it be if your site had an App in the Chrome Web Store? Vikitech.com explains how this can be done:

“After reading the Chrome Web Apps Documentation for a while, I found that the process of making a web app from any existing website is quite easy. As an example, I created a Web App for Mind42.com which is my favorite site for creating Mind Maps.

Using the process described below you can create your own Chrome Web Apps. Lets see how it’s done.

Creating Your Own Chrome Web Apps:

Basics: What does a Chrome Web App consist of?

A Chrome Web App consists of a .crx file that contains the metadata describing the app. (The .crx file format is just a variation of ZIP that’s used by Google Chrome.)

The .crx file for a hosted app (app made from an existing website) must contain an icon and a manifest that has details about how the app should function in the browser.

Getting Started:

These are the only 2 things you need to make a Chrome Web App. The manifest and an icon for the web app.

The Manifest - Every app needs a manifest—a JSON-formatted file named manifest.json that describes it.

The Icon - Every app also needs an icon. The icon is used on the New Tab page.

Creating The Manifest:

In order to create a manifest file, open the notepad or any other text editor you use and…” [Read More]

Please feel free to share your Chrome App by leaving a comment below! We’ll have one for TrueWebPresence.com done very soon!

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