Testing is a very important part in the development of any software. Whenever a new software is developed, it is tested by people who are specialists for this job. These specialists report the bugs to the developers and then they are fixed.

However, things are somewhat different in case of websites. A number of websites are constantly being developed and are usually tested by the designer himself. Due to this,  most of the faults remain undetected and unsolved. Therefore, it is true that testing of  websites can be quite beneficial.

Detection of the problems
Sometimes it happens that a particular section of the website is not accessible to the visitors due to a layout error. This problem was earlier not detected as the designer was able to access it, but not others. This may lead the designer to believe that the particular section is not popular, and might be removed.

Testing helps in doing two things:

* Detecting bugs, that is, broken links etc.
* Usability issues

It is easy to detect the bugs, but not the usability issues. The designer himself in not able to view the website in the same manner as a first-time visitor would see it.

User Testing on a Budget
In case your budget does not allow you to pay someone else to test your website, then you will have to handover the task to your friends and family.

Ask them to do some common tasks that other users are expected to do, such as on a email site, the users would obviously login and check or send their email. Only a close observation can reveal if there is any trouble or any trouble is expected to arise.

User Tests Reaction
After the user testing, ask the people one question, that is, “how would you expect a certain thing to happen?” Take care to do the things in a way majority of people expect it to happen.

Consistency is essential in web designing. Your site will be more appreciated if it is easy to use. That is possible only when things are done the way people expect them, not by showing to them how it can be done in a better way. 

Split Testing
Split testing is done by the creation of two distinct versions of the same site and then testing both of them with the same number of people. The resultant reactions would be the best judge of the better design. It is a very effective technique of testing.

Feedback Forms
Even after uploading the site on the web, you can continue testing it in order to make room for more improvements. The visitors can be asked to leave their comments through feedback forms. This can help them to express if they found anything difficulty or in case there are any other issues.