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Have you ever wondered how we select testers for our tests?

Back

Have you ever wondered how we select testers for our tests?

At Testbirds, our clients request many different types of end users to test their applications and websites. We take these challenges very seriously and always provide the best possible solution for each test. Our Nest is the central platform for all clients, testers and project managers. But how does the selection process actually work?An example when selecting testers for a test might be as follows.

Exploratory Bug Testing

  • Bug test of a shopping app
  • iOS and Android
  • 30 testers

In this case, it is a functional test, where the testers look for bugs in the app. Here the selection of devices and testers is crucial to the test result. Since Android itself has such a large diversity of its own operating system and the devices it runs on, the test needs to cover a variety of them, usually the most common ones including a couple more exotic devices. The project manager who’s responsible for the project then goes on to our testing platform Nest and filters our crowd for the specific target group.

  • Users with iOS (e.g. 10.x) and Android (e.g. Android 6.x – 8.x) devices
  • Mix of normal users as well as testers that are more experienced. The reason being that normal users tend to find issues that professionals don’t and vice versa.
  • Completed the entry test
  • Speak german fluently (since it’s a German app)

The project manager has to find the number of requested testers in order to carry out the test. Once the constraints are put in the Nest – Testbirds platform for testing – to filter the crowd for the specific target group, the invites are sent out systematically to testers who fulfil the constraints until we have the required amount of testers signed up. There is also a small number of testers in the waiting list (queue) as a backup, in case testers drop out. Relying on our crowd to finish a test is crucial for us, since we depend on the exact amount of reports being submitted. Imagine a test for which we need 20 different devices. If one tester drops out, we have to find somebody else with the exact same device and operating system in a very short amount of time.Usability and UX Study

  • Usability test of a global company’s career application website
  • Desktop devices, tablets & smartphones
  • Special target group: consumers, partners, investors, journalists, job seekers
  • 160 testers: 5 different countries – Testbirds testers + client testers
  • Bring Your Own Crowd – client uses some of their own employees to test

For usability tests with a very specific target group, gathering the required testers is even trickier. Although we can filter our crowd on more than 60 different types of demographics, the more constraints you need to find a specific tester the harder it gets, since not all testers fill their profiles completely and update them with new things like their job or interest in finance. They also need to have the time and be available to do the tests. In the above (quite complex) example, the client wanted to bring some of their own crowd, i.e. their own employees to test the application. Bring Your Own Crowd (BYOC) is a concept we offer to include a clients’ employees in testing enterprise applications. If we cannot filter all criteria through the tester profiles, a pre-questionnaire helps to identify relevant testers. This is an option we use to make sure the selected crowd matches the requested target group. If testers have not filled out their profiles to an extent, they will be screened out from the start, which means we have to recruit more. Selecting very specific target groups for a test can be difficult even with a large crowd like ours. Of course, not all projects require such specific criteria. But if they do, it’s very valuable to know a lot about our crowd and be able to rely on them for testing.

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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