Mobile App Testing – A key to supreme user experience

‘Supreme User Experience’ should be the primary goal of every business. One puts countless hours of efforts and substantial cost investments to ensure that their product/ service is perfect and glitch free. Mobile applications should provide end users the best-in-class user experience. Today, we have a mobile app for everything – from buying groceries to booking a ride, planning your vacation to staying in touch with your loved ones. The total number of mobile app downloads in 2017 is forecasted to be 197 billion[1]. Every week, thousands of mobile applications are launched. Yet, 77% of daily mobile users stop using an app after just three days![2] Hence, we can deduce that only a few apps get successful in this cutthroat competitive market.

Let alone staying ahead in the competition, even to survive, the apps have to be error free and user-friendly. It takes just one incident of poor performance or crash to compel a user to uninstall an app and switch to a better alternative. There is no dearth of competition in the world of apps. You will be able to find dozens of apps in any line of business. So, what is it that sustains? What enables an end user to choose you over your competitor? A common misconception is that the number of features and options an app provides over the other is what makes it different from others. However, for all practical purposes, it is the performance and the end-to-end usability of an app that provides an edge over its competitors. A research article by James O'Brien, an author at Mashable Inc., supports this data where he says that the key to a successful mobile app is focusing on user experience and interaction.[3]

Testing a mobile app is very different from testing a desktop/ web app. People are well accustomed to how a desktop works and have been patient in finding bugs post a new app has been deployed. They have matured with the various stages of technology and are comfortable to wait to find bugs on a new PC software. In contrast, mobile device users want to make sure that their downloaded apps work right and respond rapidly. Additionally, another critical factor that the mobile app developers have to keep in mind is to provide Omni channel experience to their users. Consider you are browsing through one of the online shopping sites (like Amazon) on your desktop. You like a product and are interested in buying it but save it for later in your shopping cart. Now, while in transit, you take out your smartphone, login the Amazon app and find the same selected product in your shopping cart ready for purchase! This fantastic use of technology is what provides an Omnichannel experience to a user. This is a must-have feature in today’s scenario where the use of smartphones is rampant in every field. Mobile app users should have a robust methodology and test practices in place to provide a seamless and hassle-free experience. Mobile users choose a different app in a matter of seconds, as most of the apps are freely available and downloadable. A buggy and a slow app would snatch the business away and bring down the brand value as well as the market share.

Thus, the mobile app testing should be taken as seriously as the customers take their apps! One of the best ways of testing a mobile app is to involve people who could be potential users and know what exactly they want from the app. They will be able to give profound opinions for achieving a better performance and improving the functionalities.

A few of the most common challenges faced in Mobile Testing -

So how can you address these concerns? A good & successful mobile app testing strategy includes some best practices mentioned below -

Thorough Test Plan and Strategy - A pre-defined Test Plan & Strategy does not work in case of Mobile Testing. Teams should be ready and open for a dynamic way of working as Mobile testing strategies should be updated from time to time with newer demands and upcoming features.
Play the role of an end user/ customer - Since a handheld device focuses most on the End user satisfaction and experience, testing team should always have that view from the start and wear their hats while testing
Design simplicity - Complex structures are deterrents to success. Design should be simple to understand and easier to modify later, if needed.
Continuous monitoring of testing performance - Given the dynamic nature of Test Strategy & Test Plan, continuous monitoring of performance becomes a key to a favourable outcome. It also ensures that the team is on track and on schedule.
An eye for detail - There are numerous functions which can be performed through a mobile app and it is also connected to n number of other things. Having a holistic approach to testing and drilling down to the details is a must when testing a mobile app
Intense performance testing - Mobile apps are very susceptible to performance failures or other issues. An error-free performance can be ensured by a thorough and vigourous testing of the AUT
Monkey testing - According to a research, people spend around 16% of their day on mobile phones. Imagine what all and where all they can click!! Monkey Testing is a method of testing by providing random inputs to see if the app will crash, making it an important element of the overall testing strategy.
Crowd testing - Given the number of varying user types of a mobile app, Crowd testing seems to be a wise option if you want to cover different areas and varying ways of testing of the app.
Network connectivity - For most of the apps to function, they need a seemless connectivity to a network. Thus, testing this connection becomes imperative as a part of Mobile app testing.

The mobile app landscape is growing multi-folds and changing rapidly with a blink of an eye. There cannot be a standard testing strategy for ensuring the quality of a mobile app. Quality engineers should regularly update the Testing Strategy. This will also decrease the market launch time of the app and provide end-user satisfaction. Dynamically adapting to the changing customer tastes, demands and preferences and building a most suitable and up to date app is the need of the hour. Moreover, to enable that, a solid foundation of mobile testing is imperative to go a long way and build amazing apps for your customers!

About the author

Rahul Joshi is a consultant with Test Advisory Services (TAS) in Wipro. He is currently instrumental in conducting QA assessments for test consulting engagements and also contributes to thought leadership. He has an overall experience of 3.5+ years and has worked extensively across different phases of software development lifecycle. After completing B.Com (Hon) from Calcutta University, Rahul worked in a Chartered Accountancy firm for 1.5 years and then went on to pursue an MBA from Xavier Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship, Bangalore. A fitness enthusiast, Rahul starts his day in the gym and enjoys sports like football, cricket and table tennis. Apart from that, he loves to read and cook in his leisure time.

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