43% of all order cancellations of online purchases are due to technical malfunctions. This statistic makes it abundantly clear how often not even the basic functions at webshops are working. It also makes me want to bluntly state the following: Through thorough webshop testing and respective UX optimisation, the number of online orders can be increased by a maximum of 43%.
Yes, that’s a bit overstated, but honestly: do we all know if the functionality of our webshops is 100% flawless? We don’t! Often due to a lack of resources, devices or necessary expertise in testing. Also, retail sites are highly dynamic with new offers, new products, sales, etc., which makes webshop testing a complex and ongoing necessity.
At Testbirds, this is one of our core propositions and testing with the help of the crowd is one successful approach. We use the help of a global online community, that tests software under real conditions for user-friendliness (Usability and UX) and functionality (Quality Assurance) issues. The Testbirds crowd consists of over 400,000 registered users with more than 650,000 different devices from 193 countries. In one of our former blog posts we wrote about the importance of cross-device testing of webshops. Of course, a flawless UX across all devices is crucial, especially due to the on-going shift in purchasing towards mobile, but what’s even more important is that the basic functionalities of a webshop actually need to work. In this post, we want to explain how exactly this can be tested.
Test Set-Up – Exploratory Bug Test
A common approach to test the functionality of a webshop is to execute an Exploratory Bug Test. The website gets tested with user stories and predefined tasks while still allowing testers to maintain the freedom to complete each step their own way. Every detail of the testing procedure is documented by the crow. This process of testing outside of laboratory environments helps discover the bugs that lead to the most common errors encountered after a product’s release.
Webshop Test Design and Script
What exactly the crowd tests, is planned by one of our Project Managers together with the respective client. Based on the structure of the online shop and predefined testing goals, they develop user stories and tasks and set the test up in our testing platform, the Nest. The Test script could look something like the following:
Use Case1 | Overview
Open the website XY take a general look. Explore the obvious functions and acquaint yourself with the website.
Use Case 2 | Product Search and Filter
Now you know a little bit about the website and you want to search for some specific product. Please try the search function and use the filter and sorting options on the result page.
Use Case 3 | Detail Page
In use case 2 you found a very nice product and you want to take a deeper look at it. Please check out the detail page of the product and look for design issues. After this have a look at other detail pages, switch sizes and colours and look for bugs or issues.
Use Case 4 | Add to bag
Imagine you really like the nice product from use case 2 and 3 and you think of buying it. Please add it to your bag.
Use Case 5 | Buying a specific product
Please find Product X in size 38 and color white and add it to the shopping bag (delete the product from foregoing use case), delivered to your address and pay them with credit card (your order will be blacklisted, and you do not actually receive something, nor will you have to pay).
Use Case 6 | Registration
Imagine that you really like the products of this website and you want to return to this page. Please try to register yourself (you can delete your account after the test) and check the registration confirmation email.
Use Case 7 | Login
Please try to log in with your new account from use case 7.
Use Case 8 | Account
Now go to your account and check the personal information. Try to change some information (e.g. telephone number) and add a shipping and billing address to your account.
Use Case 9| Exploratory Bug
In the end of this test please explore the website by yourself and hand in every bug you can find.
Tester Group for a Webshop Test
For a webshop test it is just as important to choose the right tester group in order to make the results as relevant as possible for the respective target group of the clients online-shop. For the right size and selection, our project managers choose the candidates with over 65 criteria from the crowd and examine, which testers suit best for a specific test case. Demographics such as age, gender, income but also information about testing devices, testing experience, specific shopping preferences etc. can be important criteria for building the tester group, that at the end matches the target group of the client.
Webshop Test Results
“Crowdtesting has proven to be efficient. We can start testing on a Monday and see the results on Tuesday. It’s a powerful addition to our development process.” ,said Lieven Swinnen, Manager e-Business Landal GreenParks
Once everything is set up, a test can be executed relatively fast. The first results are often already there after 1-2 days. The raw data are accessible for the client as well and the testers make screenshots/videos, that document technical problems and mark down every bug they find during the Exploratory Bug Test of the webshop. The final results are then consolidated and summarised by the project manager in a final test report.
Benefits of Crowdtesting
According to Hobson&Company, Crowdtesting can lead to an increase in customer retention rate by 10% – evidence of how effective it can be to include crowdtesting into your testing processes as an ongoing solution.
“We have a continuous process of change, adjustment and improvement. Testbirds offer their testing solutions with the same flexibility and agility, which made us decide to embed their testing services continuously into our development cycle.” Corny van de Wal, Team Manager Shop Development & Production
What other beneficial impact Crowdtesting can have on both the efficiency within your testing processes and for your business, we will share with you in another blog post next week.
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Regina Heiß
PR & Marketing Manager
Birds flying high, you know how I feel… whenever Regina is not working in the marketing-team for Testbirds, you can find her singing with her Jazz-Trio .
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Testbirds specialises in the testing of software such as apps, websites and Internet of Things applications by using innovative technologies and solutions. Under the slogan, “Testing Reality”, the company offers various testing methods to its clients looking to optimise the user-friendliness and functionality of their digital products. With over 250,000 registered testers located in 193 countries, Testbirds is one of the world’s leading crowdtesting providers. In addition, the IT service provider utilises cloud based technologies to support customers in the optimisation of their digital products. The combination of the two testing methods delivers a unique and extensive portfolio that takes the quality of software to the next level. Testbirds was founded in 2011 by Philipp Benkler, Georg Hansbauer and Markus Steinhauser. Today, the company has over 100 employees. Other than its headquarters in Munich, there are now offices in Amsterdam, London and Stockholm, franchises in Hungary and Russia and sales partners in Italy.
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