Great products have one thing in common: they are tested repeatedly during production. When creating a product, software houses want to capitalize on products with innovative features but does it matter if the quality of the product is poor? Testing your product under various circumstances is the optimal way to ensure that the final product is of high quality and will meet the requirements of the user. Hence, testing remains a critical element during and after software production.

Learn more about the importance of testing for a successful project in our blog article.

Why is Testing Crucial for IT Projects?

Since software is created by people like you and me, errors are bound to occur at various development stages. Some errors might be minor while others if detected at a later development stage, can have dire consequences on the final product. To ensure that such issues are minimized, frequent and rigorous testing is required. 

There are many reasons why testing is beneficial to software companies, but here are the main ones:

• To detect possible issues or defects at an early stage.
• To improve the quality of the MVP and final product. 
• To identify and tackle flaws in a component or the whole system. 

Besides the main benefits of testing mentioned above, there are many other reasons for testing a software product. For instance, to comply with industry-specific standards ( e.g. products for the healthcare industry) Many industries such as motor or pharmaceutical industries require software to comply with their rules and standards. Testing allows developers and product managers to structure the product development process around those rules and standards to avoid possible issues. The ultimate goal of testing is to produce software that is both user-friendly and reliable in the long run. From the perspective of a software company, testing is essential as bugs can be detected before the final product is presented to the client, thus guaranteeing the quality of the product delivered.

To make it easier for you to understand let’s take an example: you’re using an application to transfer money to Mr. X. , once you initiate your transaction and receive a confirmation message, the amount of money should be delivered to Mr. X. However, the money was never transferred to him despite confirmation. Such small issues arise repeatedly when there is a lack of testing during the software production and is likely to cause irreparable damage to the bank’s reputation and the production company. As we mentioned earlier, rigorous testing will not only help identify existing issues and bugs but also help tackle future problems that a user might encounter, thus ensuring a smooth user experience before product release.

Types of Testing 

Wondering whether to consider automated or manual testing? Here is a list of testing types that can be both manual or automated:

Accessibility Testing 

Testing for accessibility involves making sure your mobile and online applications are functional and usable for both users with and without disabilities, such as vision impairment, hearing loss, and other physical or cognitive issues.

Load Testing 

This kind of non-functional software testing examines how the software program functions when used by numerous people at once.

Non Functional Testing 

Non functional testing verifies the readiness of a system according to nonfunctional parameters (performance, accessibility, UX, etc.) which are never addressed by functional testing. 

Security Testing 

To ensure that the software system and application are risk- and threat-free, security testing reveals the system’s weaknesses. These tests seek to identify any software system faults and weaknesses that can result in the loss of data, income, or reputation among customers or other third parties.

Acceptance Testing 

In order to assess whether the software is suitable for delivery, acceptance testing makes sure that the end-users (customers) can accomplish the objectives outlined in the business requirements. It is additionally referred to as UAT (UAT).

Single User Performance Testing 

Single user performance testing verifies that the application being tested operates without any system load and meets the stated threshold. When the system is under load, a realistic threshold can be established using this benchmark.

Smoke Testing

 This kind of software testing, which is carried out on the initial software build to make sure that the program’s main features are operational, verifies the stability of a software application.

Stress Testing 

In order to test the outcomes, stress testing involves testing software beyond its typical operational limits.

Unit Testing 

Unit testing is the process of examining small chunks of code to make sure that each component of a program operates correctly on its own, accelerating testing methodologies and minimizing unnecessary tests.

White Box Testing 

In order to improve design, usability, and security, white box testing entails examining the product’s underlying architecture, code, and structure.

Black Box Testing 

Testing against a system with undisclosed code and paths is known as “black box” testing.

End to End Testing 

A method known as “end to end testing” involves examining every step of the application’s workflow to ensure that everything works as it should.

Functional Testing 

Functional testing verifies that a program, website, or system is performing precisely as it should.

Interactive Testing (Manual Testing)

Interactive testing, also known as manual testing, enables testers to develop and support manual tests for those who do not utilize automation and gather data from external tests. 

Integration Testing 

An integrated system’s compliance with a set of requirements is ensured through integration testing. To ensure proper system operation, it is carried out in a hardware and software environment that is integrated.

What are the main benefits of early software testing?

• Software testing is vital for developers and testers to have full control and understanding of the project. Continuous software testing allows developers to fix bugs without having to start from scratch. Locating the root cause of an issue is a lot more straightforward when your staff has direct access to the different versions of the software. 
• Testing software from the very beginning of its development helps speed up the production as developers can avoid the patterns that reproduce errors that were detected earlier and adopt the best practices to avoid such issues from arising again. From the basic functionalities of a product to the risk of piracy attacks, testing can help developers to create a product with minimum risk and issues once it’s launched. Testing ensures that the system can handle any future issues.
• Software testing allows developers to produce software that is not only easy to use but also meets the expectations of the user. This step ensures that the intended users will have access to a product that is comfortable and easy to use. While ease of use might seem insignificant, it is often the reason why users lean towards one product instead of another. Ease of use is one of the most important aspects of a product. 
• Working as a team becomes more efficient as developers and testers work together to detect scenarios that may reproduce an error. They can work in parallel with the project managers to understand the needs of the products, the compliance requirements, the design, risk areas, and everything regarding the software in detail. This exchange of information allows the team to speed up the development process and produce software that’s adequate for the intended users.

Conclusion

Software testing is crucial, to put it simply. Because it increases consistency and performance, software testing is an essential step in the creation of software products. The main advantage of testing is the discovery and subsequent correction of faults. Testing, however, also enables developers and testers to contrast real and anticipated results to raise quality. If the software is produced without being tested, it may be ineffective or even harmful to users.