How We Train Crowdsourced QA Testers

Rainforest testers are the key to giving Rainforest customers human-powered QA test results in 30 minutes. So whether you’re already a Rainforest customer or if you’re curious about how Rainforest will make an impact on your workflow, understanding how we train testers at Rainforest is an important step to knowing how to leverage the Rainforest tester network most effectively. Here’s a quick introduction to the underlying principles that guide how our testers execute tests in Rainforest.

Onboarding New Rainforest Testers

Every single Rainforest tester must go through a rigorous onboarding module. This process allows the testers to fully understand the testing rules and expectations before accessing customer tests. Our testers continue to perform intermittent, automated training modules throughout their testing career to keep their skills sharp.

Rainforest’s testing instructions are strict and precise for a reason. Ensuring consistent, reliable results requires that our testers clearly understand the expectations set for them, and the way in which they can perform well. Please bear these instructions in mind when evaluating your testers results. A tester who may seem slightly particular in their reporting is likely doing their job correctly!

The Tester Training Module

Our testers are trained to abide by the following standards every time they perform a test or risk their results being rejected by our system.

Rainforest’s training modules are multi-faceted with a focus on excellence and reliability across many levels. Key areas of focus are:

EXACT adherence to step instructions.

• Testers will only perform the instructions as they are written and have been trained not to take any action that they are not specifically instructed to do so in the current step.
• This allows you to be absolutely certain that your results reflect exactly the flow you wish to validate.

EXACT matching of page content to the expectation set in the step

• Testers will fail a step where any number/letter/color/content placement/etc. on the page differs from the question asked
• This allows you to ensure that the key components/processes are functioning perfectly correctly.

EXACT matching of any text content in quotes.

• Testers will fail any step where quoted text differs from the step instructions. Testers will not require text to match exactly if it is not surrounded by quotes.
• This allows you to direct your tester’s focus to copy that must be matched exactly.

If any observation in the process of testing differs from these testing rules, or if the testers are unable to complete the instructions, either because the instruction is unclear or some issue on the page prevents them from proceeding, the testers will end the test and provide clear, actionable feedback on why they ended the test.

Improving Tester Quality at Rainforest

Ensuring that our customers can rely on Rainforest testers to provide thorough, consistent testing is the core of Rainforest’s mission. That’s why we’re always making an effort to improve the quality of Rainforest testers, from developing better training materials for testers and new features to let testers and Rainforest users communicate more effectively. Learn more about how Rainforest testers provide manual testing at the speed of automation on our product page.

Learn more about Rainforest

Originally published at www.rainforestqa.com on April 21, 2016.