Exploratory Testing Tip: Use the wisdom of the crowd

Exploratory testing unleashes the full potential of each and every tester. It trusts them to determine what features, functions, and paths need testing, and to review and document the results on the spot.

But how do you get the most out of exploratory testing? How do you get enough experienced and engaged testers checking your app or your website to ensure the kind of coverage required for high-quality software?

Crowdtesting (or crowdsourced testing) is the perfect complement to exploratory testing. By putting dozens or hundreds of testers to work testing your software, you benefit from the "wisdom of the crowd":

"The wisdom of the crowd is the collective opinion of a group of individuals rather than that of a single expert."

Each crowdtester checks your app or website based on the exploratory parameters you outline. Instead of using scripted testing's stringent and restrictive step-by-step test scenarios, you rely on the large number of testers to explore all the different pathways and potential problem areas.

Your software gets the benefit of exploratory testing and the unfettered examination of an experienced software tester, counterbalanced by the security of having a crowd to find all the important bugs.