Key QA best practices for your custom software project
Those that follow our blog posts closely, know that we are big fans of bespoke software. In past articles, we talked about ways to reduce costs or the importance of having an MVP. This time we want to draw your attention to software testing and why you need to pay attention to this critical part of the software development project. So what are some of the key QA best practices for your custom software project?
We won’t go too deep into the technical aspects of software testing, but rather cover some of the key best practices you should pay attention to. So that you know what you need to go over with your in-house development team or your software development partner.
What is QA testing?
In short, quality assurance (QA) or software testing, ensures that your software does what it is designed to do. It makes sure that it works properly and meets the requirements you set out at the beginning. And for all this to happen you need to have a few things in mind when you approach it.
Use test automation
Automating software tests has a lot of benefits. From reduced costs and time spent on software testing to better test coverage and faster time to market. This matters in the current climate of the software industry, where everything moves incredibly fast and there is a lot of pressure to deliver solutions that have a high degree of quality and reliability.
If, for example, you have a SaaS product, chances are you will need to constantly update it to meet market and performance needs. Unfortunately, even small changes to a software solution can impact the way it works. That’s why it’s important that every time you update it, you test everything to make sure that it works. And test automation can help you do this without breaking the bank or sacrificing quality.
Risk-Based Testing
You can never test everything. This is something that you need to keep in mind in your software development project. Don’t get us wrong, theoretically, you could do it but you would need to spend so much time and resources that it won’t be commercially viable.
Instead, you should focus on adopting a risk-based approach. Meaning that you are aware that not every part of your solution has the same degree of importance. So, you prioritize your software testing efforts based on the impact that a particular feature or requirement has on your bottom line as well as the probability that it might fail.
Focus on the end-user
Make sure that the people who test your software get a chance to meet directly with some of the people who will use your solution. There are a lot of things that a QA team can test which aren’t connected to your end-user. However, if you want to give your solution the best fighting chance it’s important that testing be conducted from an end-user perspective as well. That way you can’t make sure that you provide a smooth experience for your future customers.
There have been countless situations where products failed due to bad customer experience or bugs on the customer-facing side of the software. By keeping your end-user in mind, you can avoid this pitfall.
Security testing
To offer a more effective and tailored customer experience your software solution needs to collect data. So, you need to make sure that this data is secure and that your app is protected against potential malicious attacks.
These types of attacks have grown in intensity and number, so you must be as prepared as possible. In a recent survey by Sophos, 37% of respondents’ organizations were affected by ransomware attacks in the last year.
Any potential data breach can lead to loss of customers, can drive away current customers, and negatively impact your company’s financial wellbeing. The average ransom fee has increased from $5,000 in 2018 to around $200,000 in 2020. So security testing is not just nice to have but a critical business priority.
How can QTeam help?
Our services include not only software development and maintenance, but software testing services as well. We offer clients a tailored approach based on our years of experience in the IT industry. So, get in touch with us, and let’s talk about software.
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