What is quality assurance?
Launching a website is a crucial milestone for associations and organizations. However, a successful site launch isn’t just about design and development; it’s also about ensuring the quality and functionality of the website. This is where Quality Assurance (QA) and testing come into play. In this blog, we’ll explore the various elements that go into a successful site launch through effective quality assurance and testing.
22% less time is spent fixing issues when you have a high-performing team that takes care of issues before a launch.
Puppet. (n.d.). History of DevOps Reports. Puppet. Retrieved October 26, 2024, from https://www.puppet.com/resources/history-of-devops-reports
We know the excitement of unveiling a new website is sometimes barely contained after all the time and effort put into it over days, weeks and months, but you need to pump the brakes a bit before the end. Ensuring a smooth and successful launch and beyond requires meticulous planning, particularly in quality assurance (QA) and testing.
So, how do you ensure that you’re doing everything you can when you’re in the final stages of site launch? If you have the time and resources, here are a few tips that we recommend.
1. Setting clear objectives
A successful site launch begins with setting clear objectives. You need to define what your website should achieve in terms of functionality and user experience. Having well-defined objectives gives you a clear roadmap for the QA and testing phase. This includes understanding the target audience, intended features, and performance benchmarks.
2. Comprehensive test planning
Once you’ve set your objectives, it’s time to create a comprehensive test plan. This plan should outline the types of tests, testing methodologies, and a timeline for testing. Common types of tests include functional testing, performance testing, security testing, and usability testing. The goal is to identify and address potential issues before they affect the end users.
3. Functional testing
Functional testing focuses on ensuring that every component of the website functions as intended. This includes testing features, forms, links, and any interactive elements. Testers check for broken links, incorrect calculations, and functionality issues that could disrupt the user experience.
4. Compatibility and cross-browser testing
In today’s multi-device and multi-browser world, testing your website across various platforms and browsers is crucial. This step ensures your website looks and functions consistently regardless of the user’s device or browser choice. Compatibility testing involves checking for issues related to different screen sizes, resolutions, and browser versions.
5. Performance testing
Performance testing is essential for assessing how well your website handles traffic. This includes load testing, stress testing, and scalability testing. Performance testing identifies bottlenecks, slowdowns, or crashes that could occur during a surge in user activity. It helps ensure your website can handle the expected load without compromising user experience.
6. Security testing
Security is a top priority for any website. Security testing identifies vulnerabilities that could lead to data breaches or other security threats. Testers assess the website’s security measures, including data encryption, access control, and protection against common web vulnerabilities like SQL injection and cross-site scripting.
7. Usability testing
Usability testing assesses the website from a user’s perspective. Testers evaluate how easy it is to navigate the site, find information, and complete tasks. The feedback from usability testing helps refine the user experience and ensure the website is user-friendly.
8. Regression testing
After making changes or fixes during the QA process, it’s crucial to conduct regression testing. This ensures the new updates don’t inadvertently introduce new issues or break previously working features.
9. Documentation and reporting
Throughout the QA and testing process, it’s essential to maintain detailed documentation of the tests, findings, and any issues identified. This documentation is valuable for tracking progress and sharing insights with the development team. Clear reporting enables effective communication and collaboration between testers and developers.
10. Continuous improvement
Quality assurance and testing should be an ongoing process. After the initial launch, regular monitoring and testing help to identify and address new issues that may arise over time. Staying vigilant and continuously improving your website’s quality ensures a positive user experience.
Association-specific cues to remember.
When it comes to launching association websites, there are a few specific features that need to be checked when preparing for launch.
- Membership management: Ensure seamless integration of member directories, online membership applications, and renewal processes. Verify that member profiles, benefits, and communication preferences are accurately transferred to the new platform.
- Event management: Test event registration, payment processing, and attendee management functionalities. Test to ensure event calendars and details are displayed correctly for different member categories.
- Content accessibility: Check that all website content, including member-only areas, adheres to accessibility standards and is compatible with assistive technologies for users with disabilities.
- Data privacy and security: Do thorough testing to keep your members’ data safe and secure. Double-check that sensitive information is encrypted and protected from unauthorized access.
- Member communication: If applicable, check email templates, notifications, and communication channels to ensure accurate and timely information delivery to members.
- Language translations: Review your content to make sure translations are right and working correctly.
How we do it.
Building a site that performs well from day one requires careful attention across content, design, and development. Quality assurance is integral to this process, ensuring each element is ready for a smooth and effective launch. While testing plays a critical role in identifying potential issues, it’s important to remember that testing can reveal the presence of defects but cannot guarantee their absence. Exhaustive testing is often impractical in all but the most trivial use cases; instead, we focus on targeted testing strategies that maximize coverage where it matters most. Here’s how we prepare each site for launch, balancing thoroughness with efficiency to ensure reliability from the start.
UX review and testing.
Our UX team thoroughly reviews all site pages on desktop and mobile from the user’s perspective. We put ourselves in our users’ shoes to identify potential pain points and ways to improve the experience.
Brand and content
- Ensure the brand is applied consistently across the site according to brand guidelines and digital style guide (colours, typography styling/sizing, graphic elements, etc.).
- Look for and correct any content errors.
Usability testing
- Test navigation, links, and downloadable items.
- Review the site’s animations and interactive elements to ensure proper interactivity, speed, timing, and style.
- Test key features, such as search, filters, forms, and checkout process, to ensure everything functions as expected and that any instructions are clear for users.
- Review and ensure appropriate success and error messages.
Testing specifically for mobile users
- Make sure content and imagery are in the ideal order for mobile users.
- Ensure adequate spacing between touch targets (nav, links, etc.).
- Ensure that non-standard content such as tables, tab systems, and maps are adapted appropriately.
Coordinate with dev
- Provide dev with recommendations that help streamline, clean up, and optimize the user’s experience.
- Meet with our development team for clarification and/or to refine various solutions.
Development review and testing.
On the development side, our team tests and checks on things from a technical perspective. This includes but is not limited to:
Content
- All content is in place, and no placeholder text is left behind.
- Checking all downloadable files are available and in the right place.
- Ensure all pages have meta titles and descriptions.
Usability and accessibility
- A proper permalink structure is set.
- Print-friendly CSS for accessibility.
- External links open in a new tab for usability.
- Test navigation, links, and downloadable items.
- Ensure there are no broken links left.
- Ensure tap target sizing is adequate for mobile.
Performance
- Ensure images are optimized for loading speed.
- Check all downloadable files to ensure they’re optimized.
- Enable caching, image compression, and other performance features.
Codes, plugins, security
- Check code formatting.
- Security checks ensure that reCaptcha is on all forms.
- Ensuring plug-ins and WordPress are all up-to-date and that licenses are activated and correctly set.
Once these two groups have done their testing, separately and together, your site is ready to launch whenever you’re ready. Once the site is live, another round of tests ensures that everything is working as it should be.
Pushing the bird out of the nest.
A successful site launch results from meticulous planning, thorough quality assurance, and comprehensive testing. By setting clear objectives, creating a robust test plan, and addressing functional compatibility, performance, security, and usability, you can significantly increase the chances of a seamless website launch. Remember that the process doesn’t end with the launch; it’s an ongoing commitment to maintaining the quality and performance of your website.
