Today’s modern customer wants everything at the touch of a button, so speed and immediacy are vital factors to consider when developing applications.
However, with the need for speed, complacency is a risk that can result in inadequate preparation.
Planit specialises in testing applications to avoid those critical mistakes that can have detrimental consequences.
Their Technical Solutions Director, Joel Deutscher, advised the audience at OmniChannel Media’s CxO Disrupt, Sydney on how to prevent carelessness when focusing on speed.
The first question that needs to be addressed is; why is performance not at the forefront of the strategy in developing a new application?
“Performance isn’t appreciated. It’s not appreciated until it breaks.”
Deutscher compared ignoring performance testing to getting poor car insurance. Everything is okay until something goes wrong and the consequences are enhanced with the lack of preparation, “when it goes wrong, it goes horribly wrong.”
Without proper testing, it risks the possibility of angering the customer base that has been affected, and could lead to negative backlash, particularly through social media platforms.
Planit’s studies show that 37% of customers will leave the page if it takes more than 3 seconds to load, and 29% of visitors are likely to share their bad experience via social media.
Deutscher offers five simple steps that are often forgotten, which can lead a smooth landing when the application goes live:
1. Know What You Want to Deliver
It is essential for the business heads to know exactly what they want the application to deliver and how. Mission statements like “the application needs to be fast” is too vague and won’t work. Know your aims and under what conditions you want them to work.
2. Strive for a Seamless CX
Know what your customers want and what the ideal experience would be when reviewing the applications. If a user takes 8 seconds to load a page, and your data can reflect that, it can enable the organisation to find a quicker solution and solve it before it becomes an issue.
3. Open Communication Throughout the Organisation
Ensure the information is shared throughout the company. The data should be readily available across all departments so all sectors can strive to enhance their customer experience.
4. Test the Entire System
Test it from the front all the way back. When testing, make sure the full application is checked, not just the parts that you’re concerned about. This will guarantee there will be no shocks when the application goes live.
5. Building on Feedback and Reflection
It is integral to understand the results and critically think about the process and overall user experience. Does it meet the goals you aimed for? If not, why? If it did, how can you improve? Reflecting on the product is essential to continuously maintain and improve the application.
Failing Fast? The Best Approach if it Goes Wrong
However, we are all human, and we all make mistakes. Deutscher says that if mistakes happen, communication and transparency with your customer is the best solution.
He concludes by referencing to Twitter’s Fail Whale when the popular social media website went down.
“If you are going to fail, fail gracefully.”
Joel Deutscher presenting at CxO Disrupt, Sydney