Avoid These 8 Common Mistakes During Full Stack Web Application Development!

Introduction

Releasing a full stack web application is a complex, multi-step process. Whether you’re working with an in-house team or partnering with a web application development company this blog will help you avoid costly mistakes that might badly damage your web application’s performance and functionality.

Avoid These 8 Common Mistakes in Full Stack Development!

1. Skipping Comprehensive Code Reviews

It can introduce security holes, bad performance, and inefficient code compliance that later become expensive. To avoid skipping comprehensive code reviews:

• Developers should follow a structured code review process, so that there is no varied process, it helps in uniformity.
• Constructive feedback: Peer reviews are also supposed to help improve, not criticize.
• Tools for code review: This can be done with the help of GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket. These tools shall ease the process of code review.

Read more: 10 Steps for Custom Web Application Development

2. Inadequate Testing

Without unit testing and high test coverage, an application is likely to break on update or scaling, meaning the possibility of expensive downtime, along with costly hotfixes. In particular, do the following:

• Write unit tests for all the important paths through critical code: This means that each piece of code behaves as expected
• Keep test coverage high: The more code under test the fewer bugs will find their way to production
• Use mocking and stubbing effectively: Parts of the application under test can be simulated.

3. Not considering the usability issues

Ignoring usability leads to a bad user experience. To Make your application more usable:

• Observe your user without interference: This is used to identify real-life usability problems.
• Task-based testing of the application: Test it with some of the usual tasks that users would use the application for.
• A/B testing to improve user satisfaction: Identify which version of the application works

4. Ignoring Security Vulnerability

Security is always a requirement for all types of applications. To secure your web applications, its essential to: 

• SQL Injection: These tests prevent unauthorized database access.
• Sanitize user inputs to prevent XSS attacks: Sanitize user input helps to prevent cross-site scripting attacks.
• Use a CDN and minify CSS/JavaScript to optimize performance: In these steps, you may make a huge difference in the performance of the site and therefore have a better user experience.

5. Manual Build Processes

Automation will reduce errors and save so much time. To automate your build process:

• Use Webpack or Gulp to Automate: Bundling and minification are automated using Webpack or Gulp.
• Environment variables for different environments: Separate configurations for Development, Staging, and Production
• Rigorous validation of the build process: Consistency and reliability of the build process are assured.

Read more: Freelance vs. In-House Web Developers: Which Is Right for Your Project?

6. Crappy or Inadequate Documentation

Well-written documentation is the precursor of a successful deployment. Ensure that:

• Guides of users are simple and easy to follow: End-users will need easy and simple guides.
• Use tools like Swagger to create high-quality, intuitive API documentation that explains how users should interact with the API.
• Publish release notes so that users are always aware of changes, improvements, and fixes.

7. No Testing in the Staging Environment

The failure to test it in a staging environment may lead to problems bursting out at the time of production. Instead,

• Conduct functional and performance testing: Ensure the application operates as intended under expected loads.
• Security and integration testing: find and close security holes, and integrations.
• Involvement of Stakeholders with UAT: Get feedback from those who understand the business needs the best.

8. Non-Compliance with Legal and Accessibility Standards

Compliance is a must while avoiding legal issues and giving the best user experience. Ensure that:

• Review privacy policies and update as needed: Privacy policies should be updated to the current data collection practices.
• Ensure GDPR, CCPA, and more are followed: Knowing the current data protection law
• Ensure accessibility guidelines are followed to make the full stack web application usable by everyone, including people with disabilities.

Read more: 5 Things to Look for When Choosing a Web Development Agency

Conclusion

After taking care of these 8 mistakes, you’ll know how to deploy a reliable, robust full stack web application that meets business objectives while offering the best possible end-user experience. 
Partnering with the right web application development company will help streamline the entire process and guide you through all the many stages involved in what can prove to be quite a demanding application development process, ensuring the successful rollout of your application across performance, security, and usability.

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Bhargav Bhanderi

Director - Web & Cloud Technologies