How to get non-technical users onboard with Salesforce UAT testing

All good Salesforce Admins and Business Analysts know the real UAT challenge isn't fixing the bugs – it's getting non-technical users to effectively test, record, and report issues in a way developers can understand. 

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And that starts by making the UAT process accessible and engaging for non-technical team members, especially considering the unique challenges of testing in Salesforce environments.

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With three major Salesforce releases per year, it’s crucial to regularly test new features and ensure existing implementations don't go haywire. Many Salesforce organizations also have extensive customizations – from custom objects and fields to workflows and Apex code – that all require a thorough once-over.

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Add to that the various Salesforce clouds and products that integrate with each other, and the testing process becomes even more complex for non-technical people. So we’re here with a three-step strategy to get non-techy UAT done faster and easier. Here we go.

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1. Simplify the Testing Experience

UAT quickly becomes a hassle when the user experience is too technical. Participants come from different backgrounds with varying expertise and have their jobs and limited availability.

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So ensuring users spend less time trying to understand the process, tools, and interfaces, and more time actually testing is key to saving everyone time and frustration.

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The number #1 issue non-technical testers face is a testing interface is difficult to understand or use.

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So, start by offering pre-UAT training sessions to familiarize users with the testing process and environment – or if time’s a constraint, create a UAT handbook, a quick reference guide, and/or a dedicated communication channel for questions during UAT.

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Then you want to facilitate collaboration between technical and non-technical teams. When non-technical users bring their business process insights to the table with technical team members it creates a better understanding of requirements, leads to more thorough testing, and helps bridge the gap between business needs and technical implementation.

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To get both teams on the same page, try joint UAT kickoff meetings, mixed-skill testing teams, or regular sync-ups during the UAT process. The more aligned your teams are, the smoother testing will go.

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Finally, when it comes to starting the testing, provide clear, role-specific test scenarios so testers know exactly what you’re asking them to test.

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The right tools can also help simplify the process for UAT testers. Copado Robotic Testing, for example, directs testers to the correct test environment and launches reviews directly from CI/CD features and user stories. Then it uses an intuitive interface that guides participants through user journeys and provides specific instructions and tool tips where needed.

2. Streamline Feedback and Follow-up

Step 1 ensures non-technical users understand the task at hand, step 2 is about making it easy for them to execute. Because the easier for users to provide clear feedback the faster and easier developers can identify, replicate, and fix the bugs. 

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Problem is, most UAT feedback systems are ad-hoc and stored across multiple different systems in varying formats. 

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Deploying a uniform way of collecting feedback in a centralized platform makes a world of difference for both UAT testers and your developers. This ensures all feedback is collected in one place, making it easier for both testers to submit defects and for developers to review them.

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Copado Robotic Testing offers easy markup tools like highlights and text annotations, so anyone can identify defects directly and clearly for developers. It also records entire testing sessions so when UAT testers flag an issue, it automatically flags that bug on the recording so developers can jump straight to the relevant part.

3. Automate what you learn

The best way you can get non-technical testers onboard with UAT is by taking as much testing as you can off their plates. That is, automate as much as you can from UAT sessions so you’re not asking testers to do the same processes again and again and again.

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While this sounds like a lot of script creation, with the help of AI it’s become much much easier. 

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Copado Explorer’s Test Pilot — Copado’s new generative AI scripting assistant — converts recorded tests to scripts and builds automation suites with no coding experience required.

The development team can then run the test and pick up the issue if it appears again, and UAT testers can spend more time focussing on more complex test cases.

Copado is the only Salesforce UAT built for non-developers

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If you follow these three simple steps, you can make the UAT process accessible and engaging for even the most non-technical testers. 

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But we know this is just one of many many challenges you face. 

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Check out our latest guide, The 3 biggest testing pains Salesforce Admins and BAs face – and how Copado Robotic Testing solves them, for answers to some of your hardest testing challenges Salesforce Admins and BAs are facing right now. 

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