How Swarming Technology Cut User Acceptance Testing by 20%, Accelerating Success With Clients

Many believe that “process is the foundation of success,” and for those who aren’t entirely convinced, this article might just change your mind. 

We sat down with Germaine Krystowiak, Chief Marketing Officer at Swarming Technology, to learn more about how the team streamlined their UAT process and reduced UAT execution time by 20% across all projects company wide. This resulted in more on-time project completions and strengthening client loyalty, driving them through over a decade of consistent growth.

User acceptance testing (UAT) is crucial for validating the quality and functionality of the software from the end-users’ perspective. Properly planned and executed UAT helps identify and address issues early in the development process, reducing the likelihood of costly rework and delays. 

Their accomplished team proficiently navigates various platforms such as Magento, Shopify, and BigCommerce, driving growth and efficiency for the company’s diverse clientele. With a global workforce of seasoned developers, project managers, and UX/UI designers, all of whom are committed to delivering excellence in web development, Swarming Technology embodies innovation and reliability, delivering unparalleled value to their clients.

With quality assurance as the cornerstone of the team’s operations, the necessity for transparency and efficiency in their workflows highlighted the need for visual feedback in usability testing. Following a comprehensive exploration of project requirements, market research, reviews, and demos, Swarming Technology found that Usersnap checked all the boxes for UAT execution. 

Shortening the project duration with improved feedback processes

✅ Capture screenshot + video 

✅ Technical context automatically attached 

✅ Advanced Jira integration capabilities 

✅ Easy to implement + user friendly 

✅ Reliable customer support team 

For Swarming Technology, finding a tool versatile enough to accommodate their diverse array of e-commerce projects was imperative. For example, when confronted with the massive undertaking of revamping multiple storefronts across eight different sites for a single client, the team streamlined the testing process by creating custom tags that aligned with each site, making it easy for team members to visually track and organize feedback. What once took up to six weeks for UAT could now be accomplished in half the time. 

Visual feedback provided by Usersnap also proved its value to Swarming in various UAT scenarios. For one of their e-commerce projects,  a client reported that coupons could actually be applied twice if the user were to double-click the Apply Coupon Code button twice during the checkout process. The error was difficult for the client to articulate initially, but they were able to utilize Usersnap to demonstrate what was occurring visually.  This saved the project team a considerable amount of time troubleshooting the issue, as the client was able to demonstrate the steps taken to reproduce the error visually.

To summarize the process, the feedback widget in Usersnap displays a toolbar on the screen for annotating screen captures, making it easy to draw, highlight, or pin comments directly onto a screenshot.

“We’re really loving Usersnap because it makes it super easy for our clients to replicate issues. No more fussing with excel or sifting through emails. Clients are all about the visuals.”

Before integrating Usersnap into their workflow, Swarming Technology struggled with manual feedback tracking using Excel spreadsheets and emails, This type of meticulous work resulted in a lot of back-and-forth communication in order to properly identify issues. The existing process was inefficient and hindered project progress. Usersnap changed the approach by offering a user-friendly interface for clients to submit visual feedback. 

Tracking success of UAT for project launches 

Over the past few years, the Swarming Technology team has been utilizing a project health report to track various project phases against the timeline scoped in the original project proposal. This includes the UAT phases of projects, which typically constitute a significant portion of the final few weeks of project work.  Swarming’s analysis of their project health reports shows a 20% reduction in the UAT portion of project work thanks to the implementation of Usersnap into the UAT process. A more effective UAT phase resulted in faster issue resolution and more timely project launches. Before Usersnap, it could take up to four weeks to fully UAT a project, but the team has brought this down to an average of two to three weeks consistently over the last three years.

A well-executed project requires detailed planning and execution. Using a project health calculator is an effective way to keep track of project schedule, cost, scope of work, team performance, and stakeholder management. 

Check out our Pro Guide to Successful Website User Acceptance Testing Today. Then, see the examples using Trello and the user acceptance testing template.

Optimizing workflows through enhanced integrations

Integrating with Jira has been instrumental in helping Swarming Technology organize feedback submitted by clients into actionable tasks. Integrations with Slack augment this organization by sending notifications to ensure prompt attention to new comments and task prioritization. Features like metadata attached to feedback, two-way status sync and edit field options made the Jira integration critical for workflow and communication between teams. 

With the introduction of the newest Atlassian product, Jira Product Discovery, you now have the ability to seamlessly copy links from Usersnap’s user feedback items, enabling the creation of “insights” to bolster ideas on your backlog

Ready to try a visual feedback widget? 

Learning about Swarming Technology’s dedication to e-commerce, alongside a motivated team emphasizing process and client satisfaction, was truly inspiring. We hope your team sees the value in making processes easier both for customers and team members. 

To jumpstart your upcoming UAT, take advantage of the visual feedback widget on Usersnap for free during the initial 15 days!