We live in an era of technology now. Almost all of us have smartphones. And we rely on it for our major day-to-day activities like communication, banking, shopping, entertainment etc. It might blow your mind to know that there are more than 5 million applications on Google and Apple combined.
Another interesting fact is that, on average, there are around 2000 submissions every day on the app store by this year.
However, one of the biggest challenges that app owners face is making customers use your app and not just the initial downloading process.
According to statistics,
- 25% of people leave an app after the first use.
- On average, people end up deleting an application after three months of downloading it.
The mobile app world is tight and tough. Superior quality, great design, and thorough mobile application testing processes are imperative for apps to make their mark and stand the test of time.
What is Mobile App Testing?
In simple words, mobile application testing means conducting tests on apps that are being developed for mobile phones through manual or automated tools.
The target of conducting these tests is to make sure that the applications are functional, stable, compatible, and usable. It is important to create high-quality, competitive apps to create a space in the market and stay afloat.
Along with that, the mobile application testing services comprise UI, performance, security issues, etc.
The Reasons for Conducting Mobile App Testing
The testing process is imperative for several reasons. That’s why most businesses do that before launching. Let’s find out some of the reasons why you need testing.
- To ensure the stability of the application, irrespective of external influences like heavy traffic.
- To ensure that your application is running smoothly and functionally.
- Speed optimization.
- For a better user experience.
Types of Mobile Application Testing
- Compatibility
- Usability
- Localization
- Security
- Performance and functionality
- Load
- Interruption
- Installation
- Recovery
8 Tips for Successful Mobile App Testing
The testing process can be complicated, especially for those who are new to the field. Because there are numerous technologies support mobile application development, like React Native, Flutter, etc.
Enumerated below are some tips that can help you navigate the complex mobile application testing process smoothly.
- Have a strategy in place
Strategizing is the first crucial step, as all other testing steps will depend on it. Designing a strategy will help you lay down guidelines that all testers follow. It will give a defined structure to your testing process, enabling uniformity in testing and ensuring complete test coverage.
- Learn enough about the end users
To create a competent mobile application, you will be required to have critical information about your end users. Knowing how people interact with your app will help you make the right business decisions, build support policies, and create the best user experience. Get access to end-user data to identify the most relevant test strategies and business decisions eventually.
- Go for automated testing
Going for manual testing might make you resolve errors, but it’s prone to errors and might lead to unnecessary consumption of time and energy.
You also stand the risk of missing complete coverage and crucial steps leading to inconsistencies in the testing process.
Automated testing has benefits like higher ROI, improved test coverage, multiple device testing, a speedier process, higher accuracy, and reliability.
It’s best for –
- Regression testing
- Repetitive test execution
- Overall performance testing
- Check it on multiple mobile devices
Consumers use different types of smartphones. So, remember to test your apps on various devices to ensure smooth functioning for everyone.
Also, remember to test for bugs in portrait and landscape mode, as this is where most bugs are detected due to changes in viewpoint size.
Having said that, it’s not possible to exhaustively test on all devices, so zero in on the preferred ones and perform QA on them.
- Test your app with different internet speed
Internet speed can have a big impact on the user experience and might define their engagement. Apps with rich media content can load slowly in bad/slow cellular networks.
Run your testing in both slow and fast connections to make sure that the user experience is decent at any speed.
If your app has a certain feature that works best with a WIFI connection, you can incorporate an alert that lets them know for a better experience (in a faster internet connection).
- Test the right platform and versions
Your testing process will differ based on the platform your app supports, like Native, Hybrid, PWA, or web-based. Each variation requires a specific type of mobile testing approach. A hasty testing process might make you go for emulators and simulators, but they don’t include all the features of real devices. Remember to test your app on real devices to ensure real reliable results. Also, each OS has more than one version available, so test on more than one version. For example, if your app is designed for IOS 8, you will still have to test for 8.0, 8.1, etc.
- Go for an apt testing tool
There is a plethora of testing tools available digitally, so you will need to find the most feasible that’s cost-effective and successfully lets you run the test. For instance, in the case of SDETs/test engineers, a high-level cross-platform testing framework is apt. In the case of mobile developers, native tools are good.
Some of the best testing tools are Appium, Espreso, XCUI, EarlGrey, etc.
- Be mindful of external interruptions
To ensure a great user experience, you will need to be mindful that your application is adaptive to external issues and will remain functional.
One of the critical challenges is app crash that causes a huge impact. It’s one of the most common bugs in a mobile application getting people stuck and resulting in customer attrition.
Also, you would want the app to function normally with other functions on the phone, like phone calls, system notifications, etc. You would also want to ensure your app functions smoothly with other applications and the phone entirely, running in the background.
In a Nutshell
Mobile app testing is an important process, vital for the survival of applications. Developers complete this process before launching to ensure performance, usability, and stability.
We are a successful Mobile application testing company with longstanding experience in the field. For your testing queries, kindly connect with us for the best solutions.