The Most Important Points Nobody Told You Before You Started Testing That App
--
The first thing you need to know about testing your app is that this is going to be the least glamorous and least appreciated process of finally getting your app to market. Makes sense, right? All the glory is involved in building something, not in tearing it down. Seriously, do you really want to be known as the guy (or gal) who delayed the launch of a project because you found a few bugs in how the app works? But don’t fall into that mindset: testing your brand new app is one of the most important steps you can take before launching it to the public.
Test the app across a variety of platforms
Running an effective test means seeing how the app performs “in the wild,” and not just in a very specific control environment. So if you’re not hiring a professional testing team to see how the app works, then at least encourage everyone on your team to test the app on a variety of devices and platforms. Test to see if the app works on your local host, yes, but also see if it works elsewhere as well.
Don’t overestimate the importance of fresh eyes
After a long, arduous slog of a project, it’s going to be hard to be impartial about your app. It’s not just that you are going to object strenuously if people start to find fault with your app (“What do you mean that’s a bug? That’s a feature!”), it’s that you might be so caught up in your project that you won’t be able to see the forest for the trees. The longer a development project lasts, the more of a problem this becomes. So always try to bring in a fresh set of eyes so that you get a new, unbiased perspective of the whole forest.
Don’t let the guy who coded the app also test the app
On the surface, this might seem to be counter-intuitive. Wouldn’t you want the developers who know the very most about your app also to take it for a test run? Would you really want to hand over your bright, shiny new toy to the guy down the hall who probably knows nothing about your project?
Well, just keep in mind that the guy who just spent 6 weeks or more developing your app also knows exactly how to press all the right buttons. Either consciously or unconsciously, this person knows all the little, unwritten rules that might make the app seem just a little bit wonky to the average user. (“Hold the phone at a 45-degree angle when using Feature A and then shake it three times with your left hand before using Feature B…”)
**
Of course, nobody is going to tell you all these things before you start testing your app. Most likely, somebody from management is going to be breathing down your neck, demanding to know when that app is FINALLY going to be ready. But after putting in weeks of max effort in developing your app, you need to take the next step and make sure that your app has been fully tested, debugged and given a clean bill of health. If you don’t find the most obvious bugs, rest assured that your customers definitely will.
Hey! I’m Tomer, an entrepreneur and maker. You might know me from Mevee, Crane and Shots, among other products I’ve launched! This article is a part in a larger series I’m writing mostly based on my experiences and is largely made of my and my team’s opinions.
I hope this helps you to avoid making the same mistakes I did, and remember to keep shipping!
This article is part of a series The Most Important Points Nobody Told You Before:
- You Started Building That App
- You Started Writing
- Started Marketing That App
- Started Testing That App
- Started Specing That App
