Why Regression Testing Matters
Every time a new version of your website is prepared for deployment, whether it’s a minor update, a major upgrade, or a bug fix, there’s a risk that something unexpected breaks. That’s where regression testing comes in.
Regression testing is a repeatable suite of checks designed to ensure that recent changes haven't unintentionally affected existing features, content, or layout. It provides confidence that your website continues to function as expected before changes go live.
Think of it not as a box-ticking exercise, but as a safety net that helps:
- Protect your live environment
- Catch bugs early
- Speed up troubleshooting
- Reduce deployment delays
What Testing Looks Like at Zoocha
At Zoocha, we take testing seriously across multiple stages:
- Developers test their changes during development
- Automated checks validate code standards
- Senior developers peer review every change
- Our QA team conducts a combination of automated and manual tests, focusing on areas of change and perform their own regression tests
- Clients perform User Acceptance Testing (UAT), which is the final and most important quality gate and indicates their acceptance to deploy the changes live
This final step is crucial: you know your website better than anyone, and your review often catches things no automated script ever could.
The Power of Regression Testing
We get it - no one wants to test every page and every piece of functionality after every change. It's simply not practical.
Rather than testing everything, regression testing focuses on what matters most: key functionality, core user journeys, and known problem areas. It's your go-to checklist before sign-off.
Benefits include:
- Faster UAT cycles
- Fewer missed issues
- Easier debugging when things go wrong
- Clearer documentation of what was tested, when and with what results
Getting Started Is Easier Than You Think
You don’t need a large dedicated test team or 100-page checklist to begin. Start with a small list of key tests and build over time. Even simple, high-level checks like "Create a news article and check it looks right" are valuable.
You can split regression tests across your team to reduce the burden and alternate who performs which tests to benefit from different perspectives. The more often you run the tests, the faster and easier they become.
Here’s a starter list for a typical Drupal website. You could probably complete these in 20 minutes, plus another 5-10 minutes for every additional key content type.
- As an anonymous user:
- Does the homepage load correctly and look visually normal?
- Does the menu look okay?
- Are key pages accessible (no 403 or 404 errors)?
- Can you use the search function and see expected results?
- Does the contact form submit correctly?
- Are maps or external embeds displaying as expected?
- Do a selection of key landing pages look as expected?
- Does the mobile view look right?
- As an administrator:
- Can you see the admin menu?
- Can you access key admin pages?
- As a content editor:
- Is the correct editor menu visible?
- Can you create and publish content?
- For the news content type:
- News listing page:
- Are articles displayed with correct titles, images and dates?
- Do filters and pagination work?
- Does the mobile view look right?
- News item page:
- Are all elements (title, body, tags, related content) displaying correctly?
- Is formatting preserved in rich text and media fields?
- Does the mobile view look right?
- News content creation:
- Are all required fields present and working including rich text and media embeds?
- Does the workflow status behave correctly (draft, published)?
- Is unpublished content hidden?
- Is published content visible?
- News listing page:
- Repeat this for every key content type on your site…
Making Regression Tests Work Harder
Regression tests are powerful because they:
- Are created independently by site owners, so don’t repeat existing tests and focus on what’s important to them
- Rely on expert knowledge rather than pre-defined results
- Are modular: can be split into general vs. feature-specific sets as the list grows
- Are documented with screenshots or notes of each run for future comparison
- Grow as new features are added or new regressions are discovered
- Are high level, non-specific and holistic to provide an opportunity to examine a lot of functionality and content quickly and easily
When testing something that can’t be verified pre-deployment such as live payment gateways, ensure those checks are run immediately after go-live.
Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them
- Delaying client regression testing is the #1 cause of deployment delays. For urgent updates like security fixes this can introduce an unnecessary risk.
- Regression testing shouldn’t be treated as a blocker and should be seen as a shared safeguard between your team and ours.
Creating a simple, repeatable suite of tests provides focus and clarity of what needs testing, and removes anxiety from the process to build confidence across all releases.
Final Thoughts
Regression testing doesn’t have to be burdensome. Start small. Reuse what works. Evolve your tests as your site evolves. The more embedded this becomes in your workflow, the smoother your launches will be and the fewer surprises you’ll encounter along the way.
If you need help reviewing your regression testing process or you’re starting from scratch, get in touch with your Zoocha team. We’ll help you shape something that works for your team and your site.
About the author
Bruna joined our team in 2024 and has already made an impact in how we approach testing. With over 15 years' experience in QA, Bruna is nothing short of a real testing wizard. Bruna works actively with our clients and team to support a genuinely collaborative testing strategy that meets the needs of complex and evolving digital projects. Bridging the gap between developers, testers, and the end users, Bruna puts the Q into QA!