SaaS Testing: Basics and How Codeless Automated Testing Helps
SaaS or Software as a Service model is increasingly becoming popular. Thanks to its features like – quick deployment, reduced dependency on internal systems, an increase in availability, reliability of resource and most importantly low upfront costs, it serves as the best choice. However, looking at the flip side, the companies are under immense pressure to release new features at a fast pace. Adapting agile methodology for development and testing has helped the businesses, but has also come with the challenges – the need to deliver quality software. So, what could be done? How can you assure the quality of the software yet make a quick delivery?
Codeless Automated testing for SaaS-based web apps
We all know how crucial is to test any software, but with a SaaS-based application there are numerous challenges that makes testing of utmost importance. So let’s take a glance to the challenges of SaaS Application and how codeless testing tools can help overcome them –
| Serial # | Requirements of a SaaS application | Why is it important | Solution By Codeless Test Automation |
| 1 | Frequent Updates and UI Validation |
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| 2 | Scalability and Performance |
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| 3 | Security |
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| 4 | Integrations & APIs |
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| 5 | Cross Browser functionality |
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As an entrepreneur, if you are looking to reduce the testing efforts, test automation could be beneficial. It not only reduces the time-to-market but could also help you with providing accurate results. For building the test automation framework, test automation strategy in-house, here is the quick approach and best practices that could help you –
Test Automation Approach for SaaS Products
An efficient automation is one reduces manual effort, improves test coverage, reliability and provides a positive ROI. Hence while formalizing a test automation framework, fundamentally for a SaaS product, you should keep in mind the features of SaaS –
Record and Play Approach
The most basic test automation approach offers convenience, low implementation cost and easy to be deployed. However, it does not provide flexibility and maintaining a record and play tool when manual intervention is required could be a costly affair in the long run.
Data-Driven Approach
The approach is best suited when a significant amount of data is to be tested under different combinations. It involves some scripting, and hence team should be skilled enough to check data output under various conditions.
Keyword-Driven Approach
A testing approach that could be expanded to various platforms, applications and environments. It suits for large/small data sets and projects of long/short duration. However initial implementation cost is one of the major pitfalls of this approach.
Hybrid Keyword Approach
The most sophisticated test approach that is long-lasting, flexible, provides you with ample checkpoints, sustainable and comes with an ability to integrate with external objects. But again, the initial implementation cost is enormous, and during initial months you may not witness a positive ROI. Hybrid keyword approach is a long-term test automation strategy and may not be the right choice for short-lived and straightforward projects.
Best Practices for Testing SaaS Products
- Make sure to set aside resources and time to measure the performance of the SaaS application.
- Get a clear understanding of the requirement and “How it needs to be tested.” Just for example does SaaS product needs integration with any other application? Or Would it work under different environments?
- With frequent release, set aside some time for exploratory testing in every release that helps in getting new test cases and bugs
- Make sure to perform upgrade testing, data migration testing with frequent upgrades and changes of SaaS application
- Ensure the security, stability and quality of the SaaS application when connected to third party APIs
- Set an estimate to your test automation efforts. Just for example once you guys have decided on the approach, how much time do you think it would need to write one test script? How much time does it need to execute it? It would help in comparing the estimated and actual efforts, thereby re-aligning your test strategy and leading to a higher ROI.
- The user base is quite crucial for a SaaS application, hence make sure to have room to scale up in case it is needed.
- Set up a plan for disaster recovery to ensure your users are not in a hung state in case of discontinuance of service.
- Ensure Reliability testing in your release cycle for smooth deployment of code onto live site.
While founders know, the prime motive of building a SaaS application is that it is customer focussed. Have you thought they are also getting the quality? SaaS testing is a comprehensive test solution that includes Functional, Security, Load, Performance, Cross-Browser, and compliance testing. Codeless Test Automation of SaaS test scripts shortens the test cycle helping in frequent upgrades and release of SaaS application.
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