It is evident from the rising popularity of PowerApps that users are experimenting with it and are adopting it rapidly. One apparent reason for the growing popularity is the ever-increasing backing and support from Microsoft for this technology, but also its quick and low code nature is attracting citizen developers. Most support pages suggest that new users quickly adopt this technology. Due to its multiple advantages, users are adopting this efficient and low code solution for developing forms and applications in SharePoint.
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We contacted four industry experts who have experience in using PowerApps for SharePoint and asked them to list down their favorite advantages of using PowerApps for SharePoint lists and round-up the following:
- PowerApps offer quick solutions
- Integration with external data sources
- Low to the almost no-code solution
- Test on the go
- Personalization options
- Easy and straightforward branding
- Customizations features
Let us further explore why these SharePoint experts adopted PowerApps for making forms and applications and learn from their first-hand experiences working with this solution.
1. PowerApps is quick
If you need to deliver quick solutions and want to avoid tedious and complicated procedures, PowerApps is the way to go. Here is what these experts had to say:
“PowerApps allows me to set up an application from scratch easily and quickly. There are no tedious setups as PowerApps comes out of the box with a 0365 subscription. Just connect your data source, and you can start working on the solution.” – Talha Imtiaz, SharePoint Consultant.
“Making a CRUD (Create, Remove, Update, Delete) app literally takes seconds to make. Also, it runs on mobile phones as good as a native app, so that’s a great benefit”. –Usman Naveed, Senior Software Developer.
2. Connects to external data sources seamlessly
Whether you have an excel file that you want to fetch data from or have a SQL database somewhere, you can seamlessly connect that to the PowerApps. SharePoint experts had quite a lot to say about this:
“At times, you need to get data from multiple SharePoint lists for a specific use case; you can achieve this very easily in PowerApps. Just add the data source, and you can use the data the way you like.” – Awais Ishfaq, Principal Consultant.
“PowerApps connectors provide connectivity to all the prominent apps such as Microsoft Outlook, Teams and Flows – this allows for easy data sharing!” Usman Naveed, Senior Software Developer.
3. Low to the almost no-code solution
PowerApps is a Low code solution that is super easy to use. It does not require advanced technical knowledge, therefore, individuals with significantly less exposure to coding can also use it. This makes PowerApps accessible to many users who otherwise would rely on the technical team to fix their problems. Experts believed that this saves them time, energy, and money!
“As a developer, PowerApps makes my life so much easier. It takes just a bit to set up a form from scratch, and in no while, the complete solution is up and running. Also, someone who has no prior experience with PowerApps can easily make a basic app for their requirement.” – Ehsaan Ullah, Principal SharePoint Developer.
4. Test on the GO
The PowerApps framework allows users to test their changes as they make them, this allows them to save time, reduce errors, and shortens the testing cycle. Talha Imtiaz, SharePoint Consultant, states:
“When I made changes in other development environments, I had to wait for the recompile which was a long, and boring process. With PowerApps for SharePoint lists, I just click on the play button, and I can test the application.“
5. Personalize for each user
PowerApps for SharePoint lists allow users to make their forms more ‘intelligent,’ for example, it can show specific fields to some users and hide them from others.
“Easier to set up conditions on fields and data; otherwise, this requires JSON, which is quite difficult” – Talha Imtiaz, SharePoint Consultant
6. Branding
Branding a SharePoint list form is very straightforward in PowerApps. Due to its user-friendly and easy-to-use interface, it has become one of the top picks of various SharePoint experts! Here is what Awais Ishfaq, Principal Consultant, had to say:
“Previous technologies required a lot of programming for basic functions of branding, like adding images or updating font colors. PowerApps are able to acheive this simply by using a user-friendly drag and drop interface.”
7. Customizations
You can do just about anything with PowerApps for SharePoint lists. For example, Usman Naveed, Senior SharePoint Developer, states:
“The drag and drop features of PowerApps are amazing. Furthermore, if a functionality is missing in PowerApps, I can just add by using a special code syntax to manipulate arrays. I can also do string operations and put validations and conditions on the data.”
SharePoint and PowerApps together make quite the dynamic duo. If you want to make your business more efficient, introducing PowerApps for SharePoint lists is ideal. As these advanced SharePoint professionals point out, combining the potential of both PowerApps and SharePoint optimizes business efficiency and allows for a smooth workflow.
If you want more information on how PowerApps and SharePoint can be used together, or have questions about our blog, reach out to us!
