Digital testing is a broad technical service category that means different things to different people. However, testing will be vital if you want to create a successful mobile app, web app, SaaS, desktop software, or any digital product.
This post will explain what digital testing is. Plus, we will cover some of the most common testing services offered by development teams and quality assurance professionals. If you take anything away from this blog post, it should be the importance of testing. Several different tests should be pursued if you want to deliver a secure and exceptional customer experience.
Understanding Digital Testing
Digital testing needs to be regularly performed on every digital product that wants to deliver a secure, quality User Experience. Digital testing aims to ensure the quality of workflows and applications to deliver a flawless customer experience. There are several different types of tests that development teams use to ensure and improve the quality of their projects.
The focus of each test is different. For example, some tests will focus on security, while others will focus on usability. If your organization wants to create a world-class digital product, it will need to invest in the full gambit of digital testing services.
The Common Digital Testing Services
Cyber threats are constantly evolving and getting better at eluding defenses. At the same time, user expectations have never been higher as most companies provide an exceptional customer experience through a wide range of mobile devices.
If you want to remain competitive in your industry, digital testing has never been more important than it is today. That being said, there are a lot of digital testing services out there. So which tests do you need? Which tests are the most important?
Your development partner will likely include some testing services as part of the scope of their work. They should also be able to advise you on which tests your digital product needs and how often. Make sure you are working with a development team that takes quality seriously and will thoroughly test your product.
The digital tests you should familiarize yourself with are:
- End-to-end testing
- Usability testing
- Omni-channel testing
- Performance testing
- Security testing
End-to-end Testing
End-to-end testing thoroughly tests the entirety of a digital product from start to finish to ensure the software behaves and performs as expected. Today, software is far more complex than it used to be. Modern software typically operates with several subsystems and components. If one of these pieces fails, the entire product could fail.
End-to-end or functional testing covers such a broad area that there are smaller sub-tests that make up the greater whole. Development teams will likely perform these tests as part of end-to-end testing:
- System test
- Smoke test
- Regression test
- Integration test
- Module test
Functional testing is performed at different granular levels. Still, the end goal of these testing services is to ensure that the software being developed or tested is fully compliant with its functional requirements.
Usability Testing
To compete in a hyper-competitive market, your business needs a digital product that pleases users and delivers a flawless customer experience. Usability testing evaluates software by testing directly on average users. Direct user feedback is invaluable to development teams, and it is the only way to gather input from real-world users before launch.
The primary concern of these tests is design intuitiveness with users who have never seen or used the product before. User-centered design and development is a popular approach for modern developers because it typically yields a product that delivers a world-class User Experience.
This type of testing will also test how a user’s experience with the product varies by location and language. Usability testing is essential in software that attempts to provide highly personalized experiences. In addition, companies must ensure that each personalized experience meets brand standards.
Omni-Channel Testing
Users access software and other digital products in a variety of different ways. There are several different mobile devices, operating systems, networks, and web browsers that people use. Omni-channel testing ensures that the User Experience is the same for all supported devices, operating systems, and browsers. Delivering a poor User Experience on one device or platform will hurt your brand image no matter how great the User Experience is on other devices.
If your digital product will support a wide range of different options, your business needs to ensure that it is delivering the same User Experience for all users. Omni-channel testing is an important test to run frequently to ensure that your products perform as expected for all users.
Performance Testing
Can your digital product handle user demand, especially when it rises quickly? Performance testing ensures that your software remains stable and functions properly under normal and heavy stress loads. It is important to understand how much your software can handle. Digital products are not endless resources that can be used by anyone and everyone all at once.
Performance testing ensures that your software won’t fail during periods of heavy use. These tests will also push your product to the limits to see how much load it can handle before stability degrades. The value in these stress tests is that your business understands how much its software can handle before it must be scaled. This information can help your organization plan for the future and ensure proper functionality during the present.
Security Testing
We have all seen the damage cyber-attacks can do to a business. Security testing ensures that your software or digital assets are secure from all known cyber threats. Security testing should be done regularly. Security testing is probably the most important type of test on this list, especially for businesses that handle sensitive user information.
Cyber threats evolve rapidly. Your organization must take security seriously and regularly test and update its security measures. The damage from a breach can seriously damage your brand reputation. Make sure you are investing in security testing to minimize your operational risks.
Final Thoughts
There are so many different types of digital tests that you can perform on your software. Each of the tests we discussed in this post has sub-tests and tasks. There is a lot to consider when it comes to digital testing. If your business needs guidance, reach out to an app development partner for all things digital testing.
