In this era, every organization is on the path of test automation to increase efficiency. Just like manual testing, automation testing also needs proper planning, structure, monitoring, and maintenance. Test cases can be defined as a set of conditions wherein a tester determines whether an application/software system or one of its features is working as expected or not. Test cases help clarify what needs to be done in order to test a system.



The main objective of automation testing is to reduce the number of test cases that need to be run manually. Successive development cycles need to execute the same test suite repeatedly using a test automation tool. No human intervention is required once the test suite is automated. This is sure to improve the ROI.



Automation Testing always comes ahead of manual testing. Manual testing should be done at least once and automated test scripts need to be created based on the manual test cases.



<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#Importance_of_Converting_Manual_Test_Cases_into_Automated_Test_scripts">1 Importance of Converting Manual Test Cases into Automated Test scripts</a></li><li><a href="#How_to_Convert_Manual_Test_Cases_into_Automated_Test_Cases">2 How to Convert Manual Test Cases into Automated Test Cases?</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="importance-of-converting-manual-test-cases-into-automated-test-scripts">Importance of Converting Manual Test Cases into Automated Test scripts</h2>



It’s important to convert manual test cases into automated test cases as it comes with several advantages: 



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Increases efficiency</li><li>Wider test coverage of application features</li><li>Lowers cost</li><li>Delivers the required and bug-free product on time</li><li>Play a vital role in achieving the desired ROI</li><li>Ensure consistency</li><li>Human intervention is not required while execution</li><li>More cycle of execution can be achieved through automation</li><li>Reusable test scripts</li></ul> 



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="how-to-convert-manual-test-cases-into-automated-test-cases">How to Convert Manual Test Cases into Automated Test Cases?</h2>



Suppose there is a requirement for ‘Signing into the google’. The first step is to prepare the test design.&nbsp;



The test design should be in the below format i.e. test cases documented and split into different stages. Below is a table that shows the same:



 



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table style="border:1px solid"><tbody><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">S.No.</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Pre-Condition</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Test Steps</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Test Data</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Expected Result</td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">1</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Launch Browser {Chrome / Firefox / Safari} and Enter URL</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">1. Launch the selected browser2. Enter the URL in the browser address bar and open</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">URL: https://google.com</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Google home page opens</td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">2</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Gmail link&nbsp;</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Click on the Gmail link</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">NA</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Clicking on it redirects to Gmail page</td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">3.&nbsp;</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">UserName&nbsp;</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Enter the userName in the “Email or Phone” SignIn textbox and then click next</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">userName: &lt;TEST&gt;</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">licking on Next after entering the correct username will show the password textbox</td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">4</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Password</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Enter the Password in the “Enter your password” textbox</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Password: &lt;TestPass&gt;</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Entering the correct password should not show any error</td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">5</td><td>Submit</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Click on the SignIn button</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">NA</td><td style="border:1px solid;padding:10px">Clicking on the SignIn button should redirect to the mailbox</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



 Now, you can use one of the automation tools for translating manual test cases to automated test cases. Following are the components we need to take care of during the translation: 



a) State of the Application: The state&nbsp;of the application is important and needs to be the same every time a particular test is performed. When beginning a test, you need a browser in a ready state for performing all the operations. And configuring the browser is an extra step.



<pre class="wp-block-code"><code>For instance, if you are using <a href="https://www.selenium.dev/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">Selenium</a> to automate tests, we need the below boilerplate code every time to set up and initialize the browser.

</code></pre>



For Chrome:



WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();



System.SetProperty(“webriver.chrome.driver”,&lt;Path&gt;);



driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(TimeOut, TimeUnit.SECONDS); 



For Firefox:



WebDriver driver = new FirefoxDriver();



System.SetProperty(“webdriver.gecko.driver”,&lt;Path&gt;);



driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(TimeOut, TimeUnit.SECONDS); 



Along with this, we need to set up the local environment with necessary testing libraries and also driver executables. 



Using <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Using Testsigma there are none of these additional setup steps. Everything is preconfigured in the cloud and we just need to provide the URL of the application to get started.
 (opens in a new tab)" href="https://testsigma.com" target="_blank">Testsigma</a> there are none of these additional setup steps. Everything is preconfigured in the cloud and we just need to provide the URL of the application to get started! 



 



And for verifying the application state&nbsp;in Selenium, we need to use the functions like the ones given below:



<ol><li>elementToBeClickable()</li><li>alertIsPresent()</li><li>presenceOfElementLocated()</li><li>&nbsp;titleContains()</li><li>visibilityOfAllElementsLocatedBy()</li></ol> 



All of these required state verifications can be done using simple NLP grammar in Testsigma like wait until the element is clickable, wait until an alert is present &amp; more. 



 <li>Test Steps: Test steps should be easily readable for everyone who is familiar with the application.



In Selenium, we can have logical names for variables and methods so that the tester can easily understand what’s happening in the system. Also, we need to make sure to add comments, debugging statements, and output statements so that the output can be written to a console. 



In Testsigma, the test steps are in simple English and they are self-explanatory. 



<li>Verification &amp; Validation: Verification and validation is the core part of the testing process and without it, it is pure automation without the checks. You should have several checkpoints, loop statements, and conditional statements in order to test the application effectively.</li> 



Testsigma provides a huge set of verification grammar for verifying almost every input and value in the application. 



<li>Test Data: Test data is a crucial part of testing. You should have answers to the following questions as your test data requirements:</li>



<ul class="list_style_disc wp-block-list"><li>Where to place the data?</li><li>You should hard code the data or not?</li><li>Concerns related to security</li><li>Concerns related to reusability</li></ul>



You can use the excel sheet for storing your data and then fetch it to use in your test case. It is important to notice that having test data, username and password is one of the prerequisites to begin the test. 



In-built Test Data management feature provided by Testsigma helps to manage the Test Data with ease. 



<li>Results: In the case of manual tests, you can put the result of each step in the “actual result” column but, in automation, the result is stored when executed. Automation test results have robust reporting features but it is still a good practice to have an excel sheet or a notepad associated with each test to put in comments while executing the test. Your automation tool should have some good reporting add-on to get good quality reports.</li> 



Testsigma has a robust test result interface that provides easy to understand reports in pictorial format. The results can also be exported to a file in a single click. 



<li>Post Operation: After the completion of the test step, there is no need to close the program in manual testing. But as an automation tester, it is important to close the browser in case of automation. In the case of an automation test case, you need to make sure that you clean up the activities, kill all the connections you created, close all the apps and release the memory.</li></ol> 



Testsigma handles all the tasks for ending the session safely and without resource wastage. You don’t need to add additional steps to end the session. 



Importance of Choosing the Right Test Cases for Automation Testing



Software testing and retesting is a continuous process in the software development lifecycle to find out errors as early as possible. But, without clear and practical objectives, a test automation project will fail drastically. Identifying which test cases should be automated and which should remain manual is one of the key factors in setting automation testing objectives.&nbsp;



This filtering becomes especially important for Regression Testing. Regression testing is used to ensure the validity of the updated software. It is a costly process and it consumes a significant amount of resources. Here are some of the main points to keep in mind while choosing the right cases for regression testing:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Include test cases frequently having defects</li><li>Include critical test cases which verify core features of the product</li><li>Include all the integration test cases</li><li>Include all the complex test cases</li><li>Prioritize the test cases for regression testing</li><li>Change the regression test cases whenever required</li></ul>



For Regression Testing, Testsigma has an <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="For Regression Testing, Testsigma has an inbuilt mechanism to filter the Test Cases on the basis of multiple criteria and this helps in the filtration for Regression Test Suite. (opens in a new tab)" href="https://testsigma.com/regression-testing-tool" target="_blank">inbuilt mechanism</a> to filter the Test Cases on the basis of multiple criteria and this helps in the filtration for Regression Test Suite. 



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Running a test suite at night and getting the test reports in the morning? Pretty cool, right? 



There are many automated testing tools available in the market and<a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="There are tons of automation testing tools available in the market and tool selection is one of the biggest challenges you need to tackle before going for automation testing. (opens in a new tab)" href="https://testsigma.com/blog/select-right-automation-testing-tool/" target="_blank"> tool selection</a> is one of the biggest challenges you need to tackle before going for automation testing. You need to identify the requirements, explore the capabilities of the tool among others. 



<a href="https://testsigma.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Testsigma, a cloud-based test automation ecosystem, is a complete package for those who are looking for quality and speed. You can easily integrate with your favourite CI/CD tools to run automated regression tests for each new build continuously. With simple English based tests, complex automated test cases are now as simple as manual tests and helps you save time, cost and effort thereby increasing the ROI.
 (opens in a new tab)">Testsigma</a>, a cloud-based test automation ecosystem, is a complete package for those who are looking for quality and speed. You can easily integrate with your favourite CI/CD tools to run automated regression tests for each new build continuously. With simple English based tests, complex automated test cases are now as simple as manual tests and helps you save time, cost and effort thereby increasing the ROI.

How To Convert Manual Test Cases Into Automated Test Cases And The Advantages

How To Convert Manual Test Cases Into Automated Test Cases And Why

With advancements in technology, major areas in every field are researching and employing new tools to simplify their workflows and make things simpler. These tools also mean reduced effort and time. But as is common, we are apprehensive of anything new and are reluctant to step out of the comfort zone and into an unknown territory.



The same is the case with new improved automation testing approaches like <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/scriptless-test-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The same is the case with new improved automation testing approaches like Scriptless automation testing that are now being introduced in the market. (opens in a new tab)">Scriptless automation testing</a> that are now being introduced in the market.



<div>&nbsp;</div>



Some common thoughts that prevent us from exploring such new tools are “Scriptless automation is not really going to be that easy”, “What if something unexpected happens?”, “What if this is not the right way?”, “But I&#8217;m halfway through. I&#8217;m not jumping in that bandwagon! ”.



And, “What is wrong with our current processes?”, ”We don’t really need a change, all our needs are met.”, “Embracing new processes means new sets of tools and processes, and again it will need either hiring new people or training the existing ones.”



 



Of course, fearing the unknown is good but why rule it all? Giving these scriptless automation testing tools a try and <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Of course, fearing the unknown is obvious and good but giving these scriptless automation testing tools a try and comparing them with the traditional scripted ones in all aspects is the need of the hour for better adoption of technology and moving ahead.
 (opens in a new tab)" href="https://testsigma.com/blog/selenium-alternative-for-automated-regression-testing/" target="_blank">comparing them with the traditional scripted ones</a> in all aspects is the need of the hour for better adoption of technology and moving ahead. Let us discuss the reasons why new user-friendly scriptless automation testing tools are still only a second thought.



<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><ul><li><a href="#The_market_tends_to_lean_towards_open_source_and_free_technologies">0.1 The market tends to lean towards open source and free technologies</a></li><li><a href="#There_are_a_lot_of_test_cases_that_are_automated_already_moving_to_a_new_tool_seems_cumbersome_and_expensive">0.2 There are a lot of test cases that are automated already, moving to a new tool seems cumbersome and expensive</a></li><li><a href="#When_tools_are_being_researched_for_implementation_the_famous_and_widely_adopted_ones_are_generally_preferred">0.3 When tools are being researched for implementation, the famous and widely adopted ones are generally preferred</a></li><li><a href="#Fear_of_the_unknown">0.4 Fear of the unknown</a></li><li><a href="#Maintaining_the_current_automated_tests_is_tedious">0.5 Maintaining the current automated tests is tedious</a></li><li><a href="#Because_of_the_high_learning_curve_of_the_automation_testing_tool_in_use_there_are_just_a_handful_of_resources_that_can_debug_the_test_cases">0.6 Because of the high learning curve of the automation testing tool in use, there are just a handful of resources that can debug the test cases</a></li><li><a href="#You_are_looking_to_reduce_the_time_and_cost_involved_in_writing_and_maintaining_your_automated_test_cases_in_the_long_run">0.7 You are looking to reduce the time and cost involved in writing and maintaining your automated test cases in the long run</a></li><li><a href="#An_overhaul_in_the_product_is_being_planned">0.8 An overhaul in the product is being planned</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#Try_Testsigma_for_Scriptless_Automation_Testing">1 Try Testsigma for Scriptless Automation Testing</a></li></ul></div>
<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="the-market-tends-to-lean-towards-open-source-and-free-technologies">The market tends to lean towards open source and free technologies</h3>



As Open Source and Free tools like Selenium and Appium don’t require an initial investment to learn and apply, the number of people skilled in such tools is much more compared to the paid ones. This also means that these tools are adopted by more number of companies than the ones that would require monetary investment on the automation testing tool.&nbsp; 



Thus, Ease-of-use and less cost of resources, in the long run, is a factor that is missed accounting for when automation is planned. 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="there-are-a-lot-of-test-cases-that-are-automated-already-moving-to-a-new-tool-seems-cumbersome-and-expensive">There are a lot of test cases that are automated already, moving to a new tool seems cumbersome and expensive</h3>



When a lot of time and money has been invested during the automation of test cases and there is a large test suite that is being executed already. It does make much sense to move these to a new scriptless automation testing tool. Even though it will be scriptless, it will require some time for covering all test cases. 



This is a valid point unless the test cases are proving too much to be maintained. This point will be discussed in detail later in the article. 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="when-tools-are-being-researched-for-implementation-the-famous-and-widely-adopted-ones-are-generally-preferred">When tools are being researched for implementation, the famous and widely adopted ones are generally preferred</h3>



Before any automation testing is put into place, most of the companies spend some time in figuring out the tool that best suit their needs. One of the major factors in picking up a tool is the high adoption rate. If there are multiple organizations that use a tool, the trust factor is more.



People also rely on experience when the question of using an automation testing&nbsp; tool comes up. If in an organization there is someone who has previously worked on a tool, that tool will automatically get preference because that is known to work first hand. Again, in this scenario, the much-needed analysis before choosing the right tool is skipped and the advantage of using a scriptless automation tool is mostly forgotten. 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="fear-of-the-unknown">Fear of the unknown</h3>



As discussed before, when someone is asked to use a new tool that has not been widely used yet. The fear of unknown failures and the belief that help, when needed, would not be readily available, prevents people from adopting it. 



Even though we discussed why there is a reluctance to abandon already automated tests, we also need to know what are the scenarios when adopting new scriptless automation tools will prove beneficial for you. 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="maintaining-the-current-automated-tests-is-tedious">Maintaining the current automated tests is tedious</h3>



If you would look at testimonials of people using scriptless automation testing tools in the market like Testsigma or any other, you will find out that people have moved very large sets of test cases to new automation tools and have saved time and money in the long run. So, if there are moments when the amount of time and effort that is being spent while automating the test cases seems to get on your nerves, re-evaluating the tools used will prove beneficial.&nbsp; 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="because-of-the-high-learning-curve-of-the-automation-testing-tool-in-use-there-are-just-a-handful-of-resources-that-can-debug-the-test-cases">Because of the high learning curve of the automation testing tool in use, there are just a handful of resources that can debug the test cases</h3>



If there are a limited number of people that can write and debug your test cases and you have a large testing team, it is time to switch to a testing automation tool that enables all the users to create the test cases. The way to go here is a scriptless test automation tool. The need to collaborate is important too. 



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="you-are-looking-to-reduce-the-time-and-cost-involved-in-writing-and-maintaining-your-automated-test-cases-in-the-long-run">You are looking to reduce the time and cost involved in writing and maintaining your automated test cases in the long run</h3>



A scriptless automation testing tool may require some investment upfront but what needs to be considered is the total cost involved in learning the tool, test case automation and maintenance. If the total cost is less than the cost for another tool that has a higher learning curve and requires more time for test case automation and maintenance, then the choice is clear.&nbsp; 



A scriptless automation testing tool like <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="A scriptless automation tool like Testsigma that offers AI supported scriptless automation and test case maintenance, is sure to keep the maintenance cost to a minimum. (opens in a new tab)" href="https://testsigma.com" target="_blank">Testsigma</a> that offers AI supported test case maintenance is sure to keep the maintenance cost to a minimum.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="an-overhaul-in-the-product-is-being-planned">An overhaul in the product is being planned</h3>



If your product is going through an overhaul, it is the perfect time to reconsider your choices in terms of the automation testing tool being used and if possible, go for a better solution.



Check out the different scriptless testing methods you need to check out!



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 <ts-linktext-value>Scriptless Test Automation</ts-linktext-value>
 <ts-linkurl-value>https://testsigma.com/blog/scriptless-test-automation/</ts-linkurl-value>
 </ts-link-item>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="try-testsigma-for-scriptless-automation-testing">Try Testsigma for Scriptless Automation Testing</h2>



In today’s times, when Testsigma provides automation that can be scriptless, test cases that can be maintained via artificial intelligence, can be hosted on the cloud saving infrastructure cost, can be integrated with all widely used tools for analysis and reporting and last but not the least, the test cases can be run on a device farm in addition to physical devices!



Check out <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/scriptless-test-automation-tool-why-testsigma/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Check out Why Choose Testsigma as your Scriptless Test Automation Tool? (opens in a new tab)">Why Choose Testsigma as your Scriptless Test Automation Tool</a>? 



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Reluctance To Abandon Automated Tests And Switch To Scriptless Automation Testing

Continuous Delivery envisages the release of reliable software in fast-paced short cycles automatically and frequently. 
These short continuous release cycles ensure a faster time to market and reduced business risk associated with every release.
Continuous feedback is important in a DevOps environment for continuous improvement, to identify and fix defects early in the development cycle. Continuous actionable feedback through Continuous Testing helps to release software products faster into production with lesser defects.
Continuous feedback in the delivery pipeline from Functional Experts, stakeholders, QA Analysts, Testers ensures a speedy release of quality software with less or no errors.
A good deployment pipeline has feedback loops at all stages of the development lifecycle. Feedback is required not only on the quality of your code, but on the quality of your requirements, and the quality of your processes for delivering software. At each stage of the pipeline, verifications need to be run, not just acceptance tests.
Development teams need adequate information regarding a failure. Feedback should automatically include all the necessary information and actions to fix the issues and proceed in the pipeline quickly, for instance, specify which test failed, how it failed, and provide adequate steps for action with the supporting information.
<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#From_Passed_or_Failed_results_to_Actionable_feedback">1 From Passed or Failed results to Actionable feedback</a></li><li><a href="#Feedback_from_the_team_through_Team_Collaboration">2 Feedback from the team through Team Collaboration</a></li><li><a href="#Testsigma_Approach">3 Testsigma’ Approach</a></li><li><a href="#Chat_with_our_test_experts_and_learn_more_about_Testsigma">4 Chat with our test experts and learn more about Testsigma!</a></li></ul></div>
<h2>From Passed or Failed results to Actionable feedback</h2>
While delivery speed is the key, ensuring the right user experience is critical. Hence, businesses need to continuously test in real user scenarios to seamlessly release software.
Along with the speed of delivery, the reliability and immediate feedback from cross-functional teams play an important role in continuous testing to help improve the quality of software.
In the Continuous Delivery process, every software change is a release candidate that continuously undergoes Testing before deployment. 
In such short cycles, there wouldn’t be much time to scrutinize the test automation results, instead, it would be time saving and easier to quickly identify if the continuous testing platform could give a Yes or No automatically to decide if the release candidate is safe to proceed further in the delivery pipeline.
Additionally, if instead of simple Passed/Failed results of test automation, a platform that can analyze the business risk associated with test failures and be able to say Yes or No to allow your &#8220;release candidate&#8221; to move forward in the delivery pipeline automatically with actionable results will help analyze, debug and fix the cryptic failures.
The actionable feedback will not just help you to understand the build status, but also provide suggestions to take release decisions automatically. This feedback should include all the necessary information to fix the issues and proceed further in the pipeline instantly.
This approach will save both time and effort required to debug and analyze the test results to proceed.
With short release cycles, it is very difficult to analyze the cryptic results of all the failed tests and the affected areas.
Along with the feedback from the failed tests it is also required to identify potential failures upfront but automatically fix them and suggest those areas that might as well be affected.
Before we flag &#8216;Yes&#8217; or &#8216;No&#8217; to a release candidate, the platform should perform all necessary checks automatically to ensure the quality of the release(Exploratory testing would be a plus). 
Along with validating the functional requirements, we need to asses the system requirements, achieve maximum coverage and assess the performance automatically to ensure an uninterrupted existing user experience while adding new features.
An Agile organization that follows Continuous Delivery and a continuous feedback approach Continuous Delivery and continuous feedback with the help of an end to end automation process can ensure the release of quality software faster with less or no business risks.
As the roles are redefined in Agile and DevOps, cross-functional teams and just anyone can take part in Continuous testing. Hence, the results/feedback must be understandable for everyone including non-developers.
<h2>Feedback from the team through Team Collaboration</h2>
In addition to actionable results, team collaboration is also important in DevOps.
Cross-functional teams across different geographical locations need a common platform to communicate the ambiguities in the automated testing process.
Team communication is important for teams to function effectively and produce quality products. Feedback is fundamental not only to CI/CD but throughout the application development lifecycle. &nbsp;Feedback should be fast, and actionable and delivered in a way that lets teams respond rapidly. 
If the feedback is actionable and understandable to everyone, anybody can take the necessary steps to proceed further in the delivery pipeline. 
Traceability throughout the lifecycle is required for rapid response. Tailor your feedback process to fit your team. If an existing solution doesn’t fit or becomes outdated, You may need to create a new one that works. 
The main goal of continuous delivery is to make feedback loops shorter to ensure the reliability of software and analyze the business risk associated with it before the software reaches the competitive market. 
The continuous actionable feedback along the<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/enhancing-robustness-ci-cd-pipeline-test-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Continuous Delivery pipeline</a> ensures the reliability of the software being released. A well-designed delivery pipeline that integrates the team, process and tools offer no scope for failure.
<h2>Testsigma’ Approach</h2>
Testsigma’s non-cryptic easy to understand feedback of all test runs help teams take effective actions immediately.
<a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma’s</a> inbuilt automatic feedback mechanisms in the form of instant notifications and automatic suggestions from AI on executions help make effective decisions on the go. The AI indicates areas of failure and those that might as well be affected due to change.
Shift Left is imperative to Agile development and delivery needs. You need to identify if your <a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/blog/test-automation-tool-ready-for-shift-left/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">test automation tool is shift-left ready</a>.
<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/how-does-testsigma-support-the-shift-left-approach/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Testsigma is a strong advocate of Shift Left</a> testing. Testsigma allows testing at an early stage even before the application is fully available also as a part of every stage in the development lifecycle checking modifications as soon as they are introduced.
Integrations with collaboration tools like Slack lets you monitor execution updates, track and share the progress of tests automatically.
It is also easy to make changes to the automated tests since the test scripts are written in<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/natural-language-processing-nlp-based-test-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> simple natural language</a> statements. Even complex test scenarios can be automated easily with the help of detailed feedback from within Testsigma and the collaborating team.
Testsigma gathers continuous actionable feedback and helps development teams prioritize these actions. Clear documentation and points on improvement are important in the application development cycle to achieve Continuous Testing.
<h2 style="text-align: left;">Chat with our test experts and learn more about Testsigma!</h2>

Importance of Actionable Feedback in Test Automation for Continuous Delivery

Bhanu Prakash

Actionable Feedback in Test Automation for Continuous Delivery

Today, businesses have a mobile-friendly website, a native or hybrid app that can be downloaded from an app store or a web app that render HTML web pages, APIs that are used to build different user interfaces or all of them. It is important to ensure that the software application works as intended on whichever platform it runs, a mobile platform, desktop or the web.
The choice of choosing what type of application to build depends on the end goals of the business. You may need a mobile, web application or both. Ensuring the best user experience on every device that the user owns is critical to the business. Developing the software and verifying that the application type works on all devices and browsers is not easy.
It takes a huge amount of time to manually verify the same functionality works as intended across multiple user interfaces. Manually testing the working on each of these doesn&#8217;t fit your Agile and DevOps strategy.
Continuous Testing is the best approach in such cases and can be best achieved through test automation.&nbsp;Hence, Automated Continuous Testing platforms play a major role in meeting today’s DevOps/Continuous Delivery standards.
Instead of multiple automation testing tools that can automate just one application type, there should be a unified Continuous Testing platform that can automate every application type on all platforms, best in parallel with development.
Let us see some of the important elements needed in a Unified Automated Testing Software for Continuous Testing
<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#A_Unified_Test_Development_Approach">1 A Unified Test Development Approach</a></li><li><a href="#Inbuilt_Test_Management">2 Inbuilt Test Management</a></li><li><a href="#Unified_Test_Execution_Platform">3 Unified Test Execution Platform</a></li><li><a href="#Testsigmas_Unified_Test_Development_Approach">4 Testsigma’s Unified Test Development Approach</a></li><li><a href="#Testsigmas_Unified_inbuilt_Test_Management">5 Testsigma’s Unified inbuilt Test Management</a></li><li><a href="#Testsigmas_Unified_Test_Execution_Platform">6 Testsigma’s Unified Test Execution Platform</a></li><li><a href="#Parallel_Testing">7 Parallel Testing</a></li><li><a href="#Continuous_Testing">8 Continuous Testing</a></li><li><a href="#Continuous_Integration">9 Continuous Integration</a></li><li><a href="#Flexibility_and_Extensibility">10 Flexibility and Extensibility</a></li><li><a href="#Manual_and_Automation_Testing">11 Manual and Automation Testing</a></li><li><a href="#Bottom_Line">12 Bottom Line</a></li></ul></div>
<h2>A Unified Test Development Approach</h2>
The automated continuous testing tool should not demand different skills to automate different applications. Otherwise, you may need multiple resources with collective skills to check each functionality. 
This adds up to the delay in the testing process and an increase in the automation budget and thereby causes a delay in the Return On Investment.
<h2>Inbuilt Test Management</h2>
Most of the times you need to interact with different applications of different types to complete an end-to-end business use case, for instance, applying for a payday loan in a mobile application, verifying the loan application details in the backend from a web portal etc.
Thus it becomes important for all the tests and requirements of different applications and test types to be documented in a single unified automated continuous platform so that all the stakeholders can easily refer to them anytime.
A Unified automated testing software with an inbuilt test management system that can allow to update the tests continuously and help the stakeholders stay up to date on the requirements.
<h2>Unified Test Execution Platform</h2>
There is a new OS and version release made every day. Taking into account the number of possible device combinations, it becomes increasingly difficult for teams to test multiple test environments manually. Additionally, setting up and maintaining of all required resources demand huge time and expense.
It is necessary to check the functioning of every application in each of these device and browser combinations. This is rather complex considering the speed at which application builds are released today.
Testing the same application features on a different device would require many tools to automate. There is no one tool that can automate the application across the various device/OS/browser combinations that the application is intended to run.
A unified, extendable and secure Continuous Testing Platform is essential to help testers connect thousands of web, mobile devices with different device configurations, in one go.
<a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma</a> is a unified automated testing software for web, mobile apps and APIs which allows to create and execute reliable test cases on multiple OS/Device/Browser execution configurations.


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<h2>Testsigma’s Unified Test Development Approach</h2>
Testsigma uses a unified<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/natural-language-processing-nlp-based-test-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> simple natural language</a> approach to automate testing for all application types.
Since there is no technical barrier, this approach increases participation in Test Automation from everyone who can contribute including SMEs and QA Analysts.
Inputs from a combined collaboration of cross-functional teams with diverse skills help in improving the quality of software. Using simple natural language grammar statements to automate even the most complex scenarios, the participation is now not limited to automation testers.
<h2>Testsigma’s Unified inbuilt Test Management</h2>
Inbuilt Test Management to track all the requirements and manage multiple application types within your automation testing tool.
Every change needs to be identified and checked to see if maintenance is required. As changes in the application increases, maintenance efforts further increases.
With in-built test management all the you can notify the changes in requirements automatically to the entire team and do the necessary changes to the tests if required.
<h2>Testsigma’s Unified Test Execution Platform</h2>
Testsigma comes with 1000+ OS/Browser/Version combos and 2000+ real mobile devices of both Android and iOS operating systems.
<a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma</a> provides an extended support for a wide range of mobile, web applications and API services and can run manual/automated tests on iOS, Android and Windows platforms across various browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers to ensure that a software works as planned.
<h2><a href="https://testsigma.com/parallel-test-runs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Parallel Testing</a></h2>
Parallel testing has emerged as a way for testers run the same scripts in multiple environments concurrently, allowing them to increase test coverage while cutting down execution time.
Through parallel testing, the test scripts can run the same test over and again on different machines any number of times.
<a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma</a> also provides access to thousands of execution configurations on cloud for parallel testing. This allows for faster feedback and rapid development and delivery cycles.
<h2>Continuous Testing</h2>
Continuous Testing determines if the software is ready to enter the delivery pipeline. Each build committed by the developers is continuous tested, integrated and tested again to find possible business risks at a very early stage. 
This supports and optimizes the widely-used methodologies of continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) that provides fast feedback. 
Read more on <a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://dzone.com/articles/continuous-testing-for-agile-and-devops-using-test" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Continuous Testing at the speed of Agile and DevOps</a>.
<h2>Continuous Integration</h2>
Automation Testing should be integrated with Continuous Integration tools to run automatically once the build is ready. It is necessary to identify the right tests to run automatically on every build and if a test may fail, the results have to be integrated back into the pipeline triggering a failed build. 
<a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma</a> offers multiple integrations with CI tools to streamline your continuous testing process.
<h2>Flexibility and Extensibility</h2>
There might be a need to scale up or down the resources with quick adjustments to suit changing business needs. Testsigma provides access to thousands of resources available on the cloud with provisions to restrain or accommodate more.
<h2>Manual and Automation Testing</h2>
Though there is a <a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://www.utest.com/articles/why-shift-from-manual-to-automation-testing-for-continuous-delivery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">need to shift from Manual to Automation Testing</a>, there are certain areas that need to be manually tested and you may want to choose a tool that provides specific support for manual tests as well, 
Testsigma unites manual, automated testing in one.
Testsigma is a single platform that brings all resources together for better management and increased test coverage for faster results with near zero initial time and efforts.
Testsigma has an inbuilt ecosystem of all the essential requisites of Test Automation allowing the testing of Web, Mobile and Web services anytime, anywhere!


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<h2>Bottom Line</h2>
The success of DevOps is dependent on not just test automation, a tight feedback loop, and the right set of tools is important. A <a class="brand-color" style="box-shadow: unset;" href="https://testsigma.com/continuous-testing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unified automated testing software for continuous testing </a>that supports multiple application types and allows for cross browser/OS/device executions for both manual and automation testing is necessary.

Why Unified Automated Testing Software for Continuous Testing in Agile and DevOps.

Why Unified Automation Testing tool for Continuous Testing in DevOps

Modern delivery practices, from Agile to DevOps to Continuous Delivery, have changed the way software is being delivered. Software releases occur on a daily basis, and the testing process should begin as early as the requirements specification and planning phase to keep up. But there are always many challenges in testing that you would come across before you shorten the testing cycle.



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<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#What_is_Manual_Testing">1 What is Manual Testing?</a></li><li><a href="#Major_Challenges_in_Manual">2 Major Challenges in Manual</a><ul><li><a href="#1_Gap_between_dev_complete_and_test_complete">2.1 1. Gap between dev complete and test complete</a></li><li><a href="#2_Increased_Cost_Time_and_Resources">2.2 2. Increased Cost, Time and Resources</a></li><li><a href="#3_Difficult_to_cope_with_changes">2.3 3. Difficult to cope with changes</a></li><li><a href="#4_Errors_due_to_mistakes">2.4 4. Errors due to mistakes</a></li><li><a href="#5_Lack_of_real_or_close_to_real_Test_Environments">2.5 5. Lack of real or close to real Test Environments</a></li><li><a href="#6_Less_Test_Coverage">2.6 6. Less Test Coverage</a></li><li><a href="#7_Less_Collaboration">2.7 7. Less Collaboration</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#And_Hence_Test_Automation">3 And Hence Test Automation.</a></li><li><a href="#Why_is_there_a_Retreat_to_Begin_Test_Automation">4 Why is there a Retreat to Begin Test Automation?</a><ul><li><a href="#1nbspThe_major_reason_would_be_the_need_for_programming_skills">4.1 1.&nbsp;The major reason would be the need for programming skills.</a></li><li><a href="#2_Test_Automation_demands_the_usage_of_several_tools">4.2 2. Test Automation demands the usage of several tools</a></li><li><a href="#3_Insufficient_test_reports">4.3 3. Insufficient test reports</a></li><li><a href="#4_Gradual_ROI">4.4 4. Gradual ROI</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#Conclusion">5 Conclusion</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="what-is-manual-testing"><a href="https://testsigma.com/guides/manual-testing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">What is Manual Testing?</a></h2>



It is a type of testing that involves checking the application against user requirements manually without the use of any automation tools. Testers perform the validation process by creating manual test cases and executing them by themselves. It is the go-to approach to testing for a long time, but it is a tedious process when the test cycles repeat frequently.As we understand, It is not the best testing approach to match the pace of Agile development and <a href="https://testsigma.com/guides/continuous-delivery/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Continuous Delivery</a>. In such short cycles, it is difficult to test every feature of the application manually.Let’s discuss some of the major challenges in manually testing an application:



Let’s discuss some of the major challenges in manually testing an application:



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="major-challenges-in-manual-testing">Major Challenges in Manual</h2>



As we know, it covers multiple aspects of an application, but it comes with its fair share of problems. It is time-consuming, requires major resource planning, and is prone to human errors as well. Here are some of the challenges in testing for you to get a better understanding of the process:



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="1-gap-between-dev-complete-and-test-complete">1. Gap between dev complete and test complete</h3>



The most critical tail back in ensuring the continuous delivery of software is caused by a delay to start.



Testing of an application that starts when development completes, impacts the continuous delivery cycle. Inadequate traditional test practises and testing tools adopted compounds to this.



It is never enough to emphasize on the fact that Testing should be involved at the initial stages of the SDLC best, in parallel with development. Immediate feedback and an increased collaboration will enhance the quality of the software.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="2-increased-cost-time-and-resources">2. Increased Cost, Time and Resources</h3>



The testing team must comprise a group of enduring testers. The manual approach can be quite repetitive and the testers need to work under pressure to meet the delivery time. This requires the participation of a large number of manual testers scrutinizing every feature of the application on each device it is intended to run with a great deal of attention. This process can be time consuming with a large number of test cases being tested by hand. The cost involved in testing a software manually increases with increasing time and application size. To ensure that the continuous delivery needs of a large application is met, a huge number of manual testers and resources would be required.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="3-difficult-to-cope-with-changes">3. Difficult to cope with changes</h3>



It is not the best option for applications that are intended for long term. Such applications may undergo a lot of updates and enhancements continuously. Having to check all of these changes on every device, repeatedly for the same and different release each time is tedious and time consuming.



 With the variety of device configurations available now, it would be rather difficult to check the working on each of these while delivering software continuously.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="4-errors-due-to-mistakes">4. Errors due to mistakes</h3>



We are bound to make mistakes and there’s no denying that. An error left unnoticed can escape into further stages and impact the quality of the application. The accuracy of scripted test results is more in less time compared to Manual.



 As testers repeat the same tests many times there is a good chance of missing out a few things. There wouldn’t be enough time to fix these errors during continuous software delivery.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="5-lack-of-real-or-close-to-real-test-environments">5. Lack of real or close to real Test Environments</h3>



Another important issue is with test environments. It is necessary to ensure that the actual test environment is provided to testers to cover all possible errors that may occur at the user’s end.



Manual Testers need to manually check for compatibility and other possible errors in all the device/OS/browser combinations. Considering the multitude of device configurations and orientations available today, this is a rather difficult and time-consuming task. Also, setting up these <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/test-environment/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">test environments</a> manually for each tester is not easy.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="6-less-test-coverage">6. Less Test Coverage</h3>



Errors that appear on a single platform can only be checked at a time. Quite often, manual testers may miss out on a few test cases and this can affect the overall coverage of the tests.



Check here &#8211; <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/test-coverage/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Test Coverage </a>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="7-less-collaboration">7. Less Collaboration</h3>



There is a need for cross-functional collaborative teams that shares process updates as testing progresses. An agile team must ensure the participation of multiple testers across teams at any time. With huge test cases that needs to be manually tested, there may not be enough time for collaboration efforts across different teams.



Immediate feedback will help the developers make quick error fixes and save time. Practising Testing in Agile and CD model is practically infeasible.



It can be a bottleneck which requires tremendous testing effort. To ensure faster, continuous delivery of quality software with lesser ROI payback time, manual is not enough.



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="and-hence-test-automation">And Hence Test Automation.</h2>



Today, the software industry has accepted the fact that Test Automation is a better replacement for Manual.



Functional Testers manually go through every feature of the application on each device/OS/ browsers, try out all possible input combinations, compare and document the outcome with the expected one, manually, each time. This is rather time consuming.



It is hardly the case that a set of programmed (automated) scripts miss out on some tests. Test Automation scripts need only be written once and can be executed any number of times repeatedly.



 Test Automation is best suited for testing such reusable units, especially when the application undergoes a lot of updates and enhancements and retesting is required. Hence, it is best suited to match the modern Agile and Continuous Delivery practices.



However, a sudden shift towards <a href="https://testsigma.com/automated-testing" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Test Automation </a>can be a bit overwhelming for functional testers. The Test Automation tool being adopted should allow for a smooth transition from Manual to Test Automation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="why-is-there-a-retreat-to-begin-test-automation">Why is there a Retreat to Begin Test Automation?</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="1-the-major-reason-would-be-the-need-for-programming-skills">1.&nbsp;The major reason would be the need for programming skills.</h3>



Test Automation demands programming knowledge and depending on the application, would require expertise in multiple languages and technologies.



A test automation tool like <a class="brand-color" href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Testsigma</a> is easy for just anyone. It allows Manual testers to take charge of test automation with no additional programming knowledge. The test scripts are developed using simple natural language and involves no complex coding.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="2-test-automation-demands-the-usage-of-several-tools">2. Test Automation demands the usage of several tools</h3>



To automate each application type, different sets of tools might be required. Integrations with Bug tracking and Reporting tools, CI/CD tools, <a href="https://testsigma.com/test-management-software">Test Management tools</a>, etc are all necessary to automate tests to enable Continuous Delivery.<gwmw style="display:none;">



One tool that suffices every application type hardly exist. It is required to set up all of these tools before getting started. The time and cost involved to set up and ramp up the test automation process is huge.



Testsigma provides all the essential components and necessary integrations with external tools to ensure Continuous Delivery.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="3-insufficient-test-reports">3. Insufficient test reports</h3>



The Test Automation tool should provide a detailed report on the test runs, more than just Passed/Failed for better troubleshooting. A share detailed failure report with cross-links to rectify the errors is essential.



 The actionable results provided by Testsigma’s AI strategy indicates what when and why failed and identifies other tests which may as well be affected and tries auto-correcting these affected automated tests. Thus, potential failures can be identified upfront and a lot of effort, execution time and cost is saved.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="4-gradual-roi">4. Gradual ROI</h3>



As the demand to continuously deliver applications faster increases, one may need to do effective planning to create test runs faster and achieve better ROI.



It involves several requisites and a huge initial investment to get started. However, Test Automation efforts in <a href="https://continuousdelivery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Continuous Delivery</a> would pay off as effective ROI, but only gradually due to huge initial time, high set-up resource cost, and need for continuous maintenance.



<a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Testsigma</a> saves time and maintenance efforts to create reliable tests with well-managed test data. There are no requisites for getting started, and there’s no long wait needed to start seeing ROI.



The objective of Test Automation is to simplify testing as much as possible with minimum effort.



A platform that incorporates all the <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/essential-elements-of-test-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">essential elements of test automation</a> into one will make the Test Automation process in Continuous Delivery effective and affordable.



Such is <a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Testsigma</a>, the Test Automation tool on the cloud with an in-built ecosystem of all the essential requisites to get started with Testing right away. Testsigma allows for the testing of Web, Mobile, and Web services anytime, anywhere while ensuring faster continuous delivery of the application into the market with no compromise in Quality.



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



It is the first approach toward ensuring that your application is working as per expectations. And for years, testers have relied on manual before moving on to some other testing approach to validate the software quality. However, this process is quite tedious and requires great attention to detail to avoid issues. Challenges in testing, such as inaccuracy, time, and resources, are some of the big drivers for <a href="https://testsigma.com/automated-testing">automation testing</a>.



Consider all the factors involved in manual and think about the challenges to ensure you are getting the best of your testing efforts.



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