One of the advantages of writing down your requirements for a website or system is that you can then use that specification as the basis for testing what you’ve commissioned or bought.
For example, if your specification says “if a user makes an error when completing a form, the error shall be indicated to them clearly and none of the information they have already provided shall be lost”, then you can make sure you test this. It’s surprising how many web sites don’t respect their users and casually erase all the information they have just typed!
The specification can be used to create a test checklist, so that each item can be checked, ticked as ok or logged separately in a problem log to be sent to the supplier or developers. That way, you definitely reduce the chances of unpleasant surprises later on when web customers or your staff are using the system.
Rather than just test each item in isolation, it can be useful (and often illuminating) to create scenarios (or scripts) which you or others can test. For example, if you have commissioned an online shopping site, you may have scenarios to cover such things as:
- buying a single item, checking delivery options and altering quantities, before then abandoning the shopping cart
- buying more than one item, arranging for them to be delivered to a different address and paying by card
- finding out how to return an item and contacting customer service to complain about the quality of an item
This will let you see how well a series of actions work together. You can then tick off all the items in the testing checklist that performed as specified.
The more you spend & the more complex your new or updated system, the more time you’ll need to allow for testing in your plans. And it’s worth making sure that the contract you have with your developer ensures they have to fix everything before you accept the system or website and make the final payment.
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