Choose the Right Approach: 7 Top Software Testing Strategies

Before executing the testing of your software application, it is important to have a proper testing strategy.

A proper software testing strategy helps to identify bugs early, optimize testing efforts, improve software quality, and reduce development costs, and time to market.

However, choosing the right testing strategy is also important to avoid future challenges like inefficient, delayed, and low-quality testing.

As a leading software development agency, we also need to use the right testing strategies that help us to make error-free software solutions within a limited timeframe.

By researching the best and most effective strategies, we have a made list to help you choose a particular strategy as per your requirements.

So, let’s get started.

A List of 7 Best Software Testing Strategies

A software test strategy is a high-level test plan that describes all the information about testing a software application. It includes information like test objective, test environment, test approach, testing tools, a software test strategy name, and risk analysis.

Here is a list of the best software testing strategies you must know.

1. Analytical Strategy

   In this strategy, the testing efforts are decided based on the risks or requirements of your software application. Under the analytical testing strategy, there are two subtypes; risk-based and requirements-based testing.

   Risk-based testing solely focuses on determining the testing efforts based on the risks associated with your software components like features, functionalities, and user experience. Whereas, requirements testing focuses on testing software applications to check if your software application meets the predetermined requirements.

   When should you use an analytical strategy?

   • You have a complex software system that has multiple features and functionalities.
   • You have software applications that deal with medical devices, financial systems, or safety-critical systems.
   • You are dealing with frequent changes or updates within your software application.

   When should you use a requirement strategy?

   • You want to check if your software application meets the predetermined requirements
   • You want to check if your software application is user-centric and meets the requirements
   • You want to ensure that every component of your software application works fine and is connected properly internally within the software

2. Model-based Strategy

   In this software testing strategy, QA teams create or design a model. Based on how the software application works, the model of software testing is created. Further, test execution is done to check if your software works accordingly.

   The aim of model-based software testing is to generate test cases from a model that describes the behaviour of the software. Another name for model-based testing is black-box testing.

   When should you use a model-based strategy?

   • You want to verify if your software is functioning as per the requirements of users.
   • You want to ensure your software meets the determined quality standards like performance, security, reliability, and usability.
   • You want to identify the potential risks associated prior to the development process.

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3. Methodical Strategy

   This software testing strategy helps you to perform testing of your software application within a systematic, structured, and organized process. Within the methodical testing strategy, the QA team performs the testing of your software based on predefined rules, procedures, and guidelines.

   The aim of the methodical strategy is to create a structured and organized approach for checking all the important areas of your software thoroughly.

   There are different techniques that are used in the methodical testing strategy. Here is the list of techniques that are used in the methodical testing strategy.

   • Error guessing
   • Checklist-based testing
   • Boundary value analysis
   • Equivalence partitioning
   • Pairwise testing
   • Decision table testing
   • State transition testing

   Let’s now check in which conditions methodical strategy can be used.

   When should you use a methodical strategy?

   • You want to check large and complex software applications thoroughly.
   • You want to ensure the defects are fixed by following consistent steps.
   • You want to conduct bug detection earlier in the development process.

4. Process-driven Strategy

   In simple terms, a process-driven testing strategy is a roadmap or a set of instructions for ensuring the software testing is executed in a consistent and efficient way. A process–driven testing strategy helps to perform testing of your software application by following a proper set of defined processes, procedures, and workflows.

   Within this software testing strategy, the software testing process is integrated into the software development stage.

   Here is a list of process-driven testing techniques:

   • Agile testing
   • Waterfall testing
   • V-model testing
   • Continuous testing
   • Risk-based testing
   • Exploratory testing
   • Acceptance testing

   Depending on the type of software development methodologies, you can choose a particular process-driven testing technique. Let’s know in which conditions choosing process-driven testing is beneficial.

   When should you use a process-driven software testing strategy?

   • You want to integrate testing throughout the development process.
   • You want to identify the potential risks or issues early in the software development process.
   • You want to complete software development within a strict timeline.
   • Your software application has a high level of customization to meet requirements.

5. Consultative Strategy

   In this software testing strategy, testers seek guidance and input from experts, stakeholders, and end-users for performing testing. The consultative testing strategy focuses on collecting feedback from different sources for ensuring the software meets the predetermined requirements of all parties involved in the software. The aim of this software testing approach is to improve the overall quality and performance of the software application.

   When should you use a consultative software testing strategy?

   • You strictly want to ensure that the software focuses on user-centred design and functionalities.
   • You want to ensure that the software meets industry standards and regulations.
   • You want the software to have high quality and reliability.
   • The software projects have a high level of involvement of stakeholders and collaboration.

6. Reactive Strategy

   The reactive testing strategy helps focus on the software testing approach to detect bugs that have occurred after the software is delivered. Generally, this testing strategy is used when you have less time to test the software or when the software is already in use. The aim of this software testing strategy is to quickly identify potential issues and get them resolved as soon as possible.

   Here are the different types of software testing techniques that are used in reactive software testing strategy.

   • Performance testing
   • Security testing
   • Usability testing
   • Functional testing
   • Stress testing
   • Load testing
   • Integration testing

   Let’s check what are the suitable conditions to opt for a reactive testing strategy.

   When should you use a reactive strategy?

   • You have a limited time duration to conduct the thorough testing of the software
   • You don’t have detailed specifications of the software application
   • You want to perform software maintenance to fix the issues or bugs

7. Regression-averse Strategy

   In this software testing strategy, you automate repetitive tasks and time-consuming testing tasks to increase overall efficiency and reduce the risks of human errors. The aim of a regression-averse testing strategy is to identify and fix repetitive defects prior to the software development stage.

   Moreover, a research paper by Arshpreet Kaur Sidhu, and S. Sehra says that if your test results are not as per standards, then you must perform regression testing to improve the quality of your software application.

   Several types of automation tools are used like Selenium and Appium for running the same test cases after the changes are made to the software application.

   When should you use a regression-averse testing strategy?

   • You frequently release new updates within the software application.
   • You have a software project that needs to get completed within a limited timeframe.
   • You need to perform the software testing within limited resources and achieve higher results.

These are the 7 software testing strategies that are mostly used when it comes to preparing a complete and detailed plan for conducting software testing. Next, if you are unsure which one to choose for your software testing, here are some tips to help you out.

How to Choose the Right Software Testing Strategy: 5 Useful Tips

Use these five tips to choose a suitable software testing strategy.

• Thoroughly understand your project requirements and get a clear understanding of the software’s functionalities or features.
• Identify the risks or consequences of defects to prioritize testing efforts accordingly.
• Determine your testing goals and prepare the expected results you want to achieve at the end of testing.
• Evaluate the approaches of software testing you want to use for your software testing.
• Determine the deadline for your software testing so you can define the activities accordingly and it helps you to choose the suitable strategy.

By considering these factors and evaluating different testing strategies and approaches, you can choose the most effective software testing strategy for your project.

Next, check the FAQ section if you have questions regarding software test strategies.

Select the Right Software Test Strategy for Your Project

In this blog post, you learned about the most popular software test strategies used for preparing a complete detailed plan. This detailed testing plan helps you to conduct thorough testing of the software application. Therefore, you can deliver quality software applications in the market.

If you are unsure which software testing strategy to choose, get in touch with us. We are a leading software development company in Canada. If you are looking to develop a software solution, let’s talk. We have a team of software developers who have developed software solutions for startups to enterprise businesses.