Testing is arguably the most important part of any software implementation. Sure, it's not the most exciting part of the process, but thorough testing is needed to validate that the data is accurate and syncing across systems according to plan.
Think of it this way: If you were the best Formula One driver in the world, you'd make sure your pit crew has time to stabilize the car, switch out tires, make aerodynamic adjustments, and check the engine for overheating—then you're ready to win the race.
Before we get into the importance of testing, let's define what it is and why it's critical to system integration.
What is software integration?
Software integration is the process of connecting different applications, systems, or software programs so they can work together seamlessly and share data automatically. This enables separate programs to function as one unified system, eliminating the need for manual data transfer between applications.
You've likely seen a software integration in action before and never realized it.
E-commerce businesses especially use integrated applications (or connectors) at checkout to accept customer payments, initiate orders, track shipments, and more. After you've made a purchase, your order request kicks off multiple automated workflows, ensuring the company (and you) receive timely and accurate details of the transaction.
Although most SaaS apps cover common business needs, every organization has unique processes that often require different software. If your applications are being used in siloes, teams tend to use manual workarounds to move data where they need it. Hand-keying information can be time-intensive, error-prone, and a risk to your organization.
What used to be reserved for enterprises, automated solutions are becoming widely adopted by many small to medium-sized businesses.
Software integrations come in different shapes & sizes
These solutions can be built and implemented in several ways. Most organizations try different connectors available on an app marketplace (e.g. Salesforce AppExchange). Some are easy to plug in or enable, while others can be custom-made by working with an IT consulting firm.
The Importance of Software Integration Testing (and best practices)
Software integrations impact people, processes, and technology
In addition to hard costs, changes made to your organization’s tech stack will have an impact on cross-departmental teams, day-to-day operations, and system functionality.
Testing should be a collaborative activity for team members using the applications regularly. Together, you can identify areas for improvement and ensure automated features perfectly align with your requirements.
Uncover errors before leaving the sandbox
Software integrations are built in a sandbox environment before “flipping the switch” to turn them on. It's playtime! This time should be used to make a mess and dig into new use cases with your technology.
This may sound strange, but errors are a good thing. Whether your team is using a test script or conducting your own discovery, you'll likely encounter some errors along the way. If not, you should try entering data incorrectly to make sure error-handling mechanisms are set up correctly.
When you see error messages, call them out and share them with your integration expert so they can make the necessary adjustments in the background.
Discover what teams need to be trained on
Testing is a great time for teams to learn how their new integration works:
It's a good idea to capture specific actions teams should be trained on. A few ways to capture training information include:
- Screen-recorded videos of automated workflows in-action
- Step-by-step instructions written in a standard operating procedure (SOP) document
- (If working with a provider) Save video call recordings of integration experts demoing the workflow
They're your systems. You know how they work best.
This one especially applies to you if your organization decides to partner up and outsource integrations. Even if you decide to build in-house, you know your systems best. Your testing process should be an exciting time. Get team members involved—the more eyes you have on the solution, the more fine-tuned your workflows will be.
Most importantly, you should involve subject matter experts to approve any changes to your technology before pushing integrations into a live production.
Some other things to consider and document:
- Who is our dedicated expert for ongoing system maintenance and updates?
- Do we understand how API usage works and the costs?
- Who will maintain our compliance and security protocols?
- Are these automated workflows easily changeable at scale?
Risks of inadequate testing
Regardless of building app integrations in-house or outsourcing them, thorough testing is pivotal to ensure workflows between systems are ready for production.
Integration failures can be catastrophically expensive. According to Gartner, a single hour of critical system downtime costs enterprises an average of $300,000 to $1 million. For smaller businesses, 98% report that just one hour of downtime costs them over $100,000.
The stakes are particularly high for integration failures in certain industries:
- Financial services: 40% of unplanned downtime is caused by integration issues, costing an average of $6.48 million per hour
- Healthcare: 47% of system outages are integration-related, with each incident costing around $636 per minute
- E-commerce: Cart abandonment rates increase by 75% when payment integration issues occur, directly impacting revenue
These statistics demonstrate why companies that implement rigorous integration testing experience 70% fewer critical system failures and reduce their mean time to resolution (MTTR) by 50% compared to those with inadequate testing protocols.
Operational disruptions
If you were to skip out on adequate testing, an integration could flood your systems with incorrect data. This would disrupt operations‚ requiring more time and additional resources for a data cleanup and fix to the integration. Not only are teams pulled away from the systems they need for their role, but internal IT teams will have to de-prioritize ongoing projects—adding more to their backlog.
Unexpected costs
When systems are down, your business is missing out on new opportunities. On top of revenue loss, the cost to fix a software solution can cost a pretty penny (more specifics on that above).
Just like remodeling a home and finding hidden water damage, software integration testing could uncover a need for additional solutions that create additional costs. If you’re working with an outsourced provider, consider asking them what ongoing fixes are covered and which ones will require having additional support hours through a service level agreement (SLA).
Unscalable workflows and technology
You definitely don't want to find out your integration is inflexible later on down the line. Pre-built connectors typically do not offer much wiggle room, so your testing process will most likely be defined by the developer who built the integration.
If your integration is custom-fit to your business needs, you'll have more flexibility to make changes in the future. Although, considering the above risks, testing should still be a priority to avoid major technical fixes.
Conclusion
Testing is a pivotal part of the process for building integrations between business applications. It entails a deep dive into newly automated processes—often consisting of tasks that were once done manually, like data entry from a CRM to an accounting system.
Software integration testing isn't all doom and gloom. It should be a collaborative and exciting experience for teams to see automation in action. After all, these are solutions that will be saving them hours (even days) on tasks that were once performed manually.
If testing is skipped or not completed thoroughly, there are potential risks that can cost your business more time, resources, and money to address errors in your technology. Without primed software solutions in this day and age, businesses can fall behind their competitors and miss out on new customer opportunities.
About Venn Technology
If you're looking for a collaborative white-glove approach to building integrations between your apps, Venn's got you covered. We take the time to learn how your finance, sales, marketing, service, and other teams use systems before bridging the gaps with automation solutions.
Our mission is to help busy teams: Integrate. Automate. Be Free.
Let's work together to help you get more from the applications your teams rely on the most. Our integration project methodology is tried and tested, consisting of a testing phase conducted on our end and yours.
