Offshore QA: The Best Way To Get Quality Products

The digital world we live in is experiencing a remarkable advancement in offshore IT industry. From startups to well-established brands, companies of all kinds have started outsourcing their IT requirements. Partnering with an offshore quality assurance company has become a part of a wise and profitable business strategy. And here are the key reasons behind this rising trend.

Domain Dexterity

On-boarding QA Partner Benefits

The key reason why product development companies consider an offshore QA partner is their expertise and knowledge on certain domains. A QA team which works with the Dev team has exposure to the domain the product belongs to. This proficiency is inherent, which allows the QA engineers to provide accurate and quick testing results. 

Low On Costs And High On Quality

Outsourcing is indeed a cost cutter, but it would not have been in demand if there was no quality associated with it. The workforce, infrastructure and expertise are pooled in while testing a product, which ensures premium quality at a reasonable price.

Quality Results Overnight

Most of the offshore QA teams generally work at a difference of up to 12 hours with the client’s time zone.  This means that the in-house Dev team can work on the code and submit it for testing. And when the team arrives the next day, test results are already waiting for them.

Unbiased Approach For QA

While working on a project, it is quite common that the company may lose sight of their primary goals. An offshore testing team looks at the product from a completely different perspective and follows an independent approach for quality assurance.

Wrapping Up

An offshore QA team aims at making the products market-ready. Quality assurance engineers study the software or application from the client’s perspective and rigorously work on achieving the best possible user experience. Standardized tools and methodologies used for testing allow them to deliver establish a specific, well-defined methodology and apply it consistently throughout the high-quality and consistent output. To know more about how an offshore testing and QA team can help a product company, visit qasource.com.

How Software Testing Services Can Help Release Products Faster

Leading Software Testing Services Provider - QASource

When a product company begins development of its product, it must consider who will test their product. Will they have an in-house QA team which will test the product? Will they ask their developers to perform testing as well? Or will they hire a QA partner? There are many benefits of hiring a software testing company to help you test your product.  One such benefit is a faster release cycle. Below, we’ve listed 3 ways a QA company can help you release your product faster.

Extensive experience
Leading QA providers have experienced engineers perform their software testing services. These engineers have extensive experience with multiple domains, industries, technologies and tools. Because of their experience, engineers will already know the critical areas to test and how to use a particular tool.

Time difference
Another option you may want to consider is partnering with a QA company that is located offshore. A major benefit of offshore software testing is the time difference. India, the popular location for offshore software testing, has a 13-hour time difference from the west coast of the U.S.  QASource, and other top testing companies, capitalize on the significant time difference by utilizing a 24/7 development and testing cycle. When your development team has ended their workday, your offshore team is b

Test automation
Many QA companies, such as QASource, have experience with test automation. Test automation will not only save you time, it will help increase the quality of your product. Automated testing allows manual testers to focus their efforts on other parts of the product instead of performing repetitive and time consuming tasks, like regressions tests.  If you want to automate tests, hiring a QA company which is experienced with automation will save you the time it would have taken you to train your in-house team. Leading QA companies will already have the hardware needed to begin automating tests, saving valuable time.
Investing in software testing services is extremely beneficial for product companies. Partnering with QASource, a leading QA company that has a state-of-the-art testing facility in India and highly experienced engineers who are experts in test automation, will help you release your high quality product into the market faster. To learn more about QASource visit qasource.com today

Common Questions Asked When Outsourcing QA

Companies all over the U.S. are choosing to outsource their quality assurance to an offshore company. Even though outsourcing offshore is increasing in popularity, there are some concerns companies have when sending their product to a third-party. 

Is outsourcing offshore more expensive?
A common concern is whether outsourcing to an offshore company will be more expensive than outsourcing to an onshore company. The answer to this is no. Outsourcing QA to an offshore company is financially beneficial. Sending your product to an offshore software testing company, like QASource, is more cost-efficient than outsourcing to an onshore location. The cost of labor in the U.S. is more expensive than in regions commonly outsourced to, like India. This lowered price will help reduce your overall QA cost by at least 50%.

High Quality Software QA Outsourcing Services - QASource

If the cost is reduced, won’t that affect the quality of engineers? 
Another concern is the quality of work will decrease along with the cost of hiring an offshore company. Fortunately, this is not the case for all offshore software testing companies. Some of the common offshore locations have been outsourced to for many years. India, for example, is leading the IT industry and has some of the best infrastructure for engineering fields. In Chandigarh, India-where QASource’s testing facility is located-there are more than 50 schools and 3 Indian Institutes of Technology within 150 miles of the facility. This easy access to universities allows QASource to recruit the best talent possible. All of QASource’s engineers have either a bachelor’s or master’s degree and undergo continual training to ensure each client’s product is of the best possible quality. Not all companies invest in training and career paths of their engineers, but QASource does and that is why they have the highest quality engineers.

Will my product be secure in an offshore facility?
A very important question to ask, especially since you are going to be handing over your product to a third party, is whether or not your product will be secure in this outsourced company. Ask your prospective vendor how they maintain physical and logical security of their client’s products. Does your prospective vendor also have an infrastructure that can help prevent unforeseen delays with your product?

Another way to be sure your product will be secure is to look at your prospective QA partner’s clients. If your potential provider has a 94% client retention rate and has worked with market leaders, like QASource, you’ll know your product is in good hands. 

How can I maintain communication with my offshore team?
Efficient QA companies will have different ways to help ensure you stay in contact with your offshore team. QASource knows how important communication is for a team's success, so QASource has multiple methods of communication available to their clients. Besides email, there's instant messaging services, VOIP phone numbers and video conferencing available to QASource's clients.

If you feel that outsourcing QA is the right option for you and your company, consider partnering with a leader in offshore software testing, QASource. Visit qasource.com to learn more and receive a Free QA consultation.

What Makes a Good Software Testing Company?

When many product companies begin the search for a QA provider, they have a very small list of requirements; just a few boxes that the partner must be able to check off. Obviously, one of the key requirements is that prospective partner actually offers the type of testing that the company needs performed.

Unfortunately, many companies are in a hurry to get their testing implemented, and will stop searching as soon as they find a partner that meets this basic need. But there are a few other areas that you should be considering when researching and vetting different software testing companies. Here they are:

Talent & Scalability

Software Testing Company

Make sure that your software testing company staffs true QA experts: engineers who are trained in the latest testing methodologies and tools, and who are committed to testing as a career path rather than a mere stepping stone to development. It also helps to have domain and automation experts on your side, because they can uncover common yet easily overlooked bugs and help make your testing process more efficient. 

Another great aspect of outsourcing to a competent QA partner is the flexibility they offer. Expand your QA team as needed, then scale back when the work is finished -- you’re under no obligation to retain your team. They can grow right along with you, or they can shrink right along with you, it’s your choice!

Great Culture

Talent and expertise are one thing, but how does the company treat their engineers? Do they respect their knowledge and experience and do their best to retain them? Software testing companies that invest in their teams see increased productivity, show higher retention rates, and generally retain big-name clients.

Before you begin onboarding, find out as much as you can about how the company operates, how the communication structure works, and what they do to ensure seamless team extension. All of these factors will influence and shape your working relationship going forward.

Tech Infrastructure

Does the partner have the technological infrastructure to support your testing needs? For usability and performance testing, it’s important that your QA partner can provide all of the necessary devices (Mac, PC, iPhone, Android, etc.) and accommodate all of the OS and environments that your product runs on. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck buying and upgrading your testing platforms yourself!

Reputation & Track Record

It’s important to take into account what your software testing company is doing today, but it’s also important to look back and see where they’ve come from. Look at their list of clients and note how many they’ve retained over the years, read their testimonials, and ask them about what their future goals are. This will help give a more complete picture of the company and whether they’ll be the right fit for you and your specific needs.

There’s much more to a software testing company than basic offerings. To make sure you end up with the partner that will be a right fit today and in the future, do your research! Look for characteristics that align with the areas outlined above.

Do I Really Need to Hire a Software Testing Company?

Of course you don’t. But choosing not to bring on a dedicated testing partner can have many negative effects on an organization’s product and reputation in the long run. Lack of QA can also have an impact on the day-to-day work experience of your in-house team. Here are just a few of the possible consequences of foregoing quality testing:

Software Testing Company

Consequence #1: Limited test coverage
Occasionally product companies try to stretch their development team thin to help push a product toward release or cut costs, making programmers test the code as it’s written. This is a poor solution over time because QA and development are two different beasts that require separate skill sets.

A software testing company brings a fresh perspective. To help draw out bugs that developers would normally pass over, testers write targeted test cases for user scenarios based on previous experience in the domain. These tests provide full coverage to help ensure that the resulting product is strong in its most vulnerable areas.

Consequence #2: Reduced Team Productivity
Many companies already have an in-house QA team. Why should they hire on more resources? As the company scales and expands its development team, chances are the existing QA engineers will become overwhelmed with the workload. Outsourcing a portion of that work to a dedicated software testing company can help alleviate some of the pressure placed on the in-house team, free them up for higher-priority projects and improve team morale.

Consequence #3: Poor Product Quality
Skipping dedicated QA leaves many holes in the test approach: ineffective test cases, limited domain expertise and in-house teams that are spread thin. Over time each of these weak spots can become true pain points, resulting in critical post-release bugs, dissatisfied users and a damaged reputation -- not to mention the loss of revenue if these issues aren’t promptly fixed.

The solution? Hire A Software Testing Company That Cares
The industry’s leading QA partners have a glowing reputation and a loyal base of international clients. The reason for their success? They are able to deliver quality that creates value for the clients they serve. So, always prefer to hire the best that well-suited all your testing needs, budget and requirements.