What is the difference between testing and validation?
Testing checks whether software works as built. Validation checks whether it works as intended for the actual user in real conditions.
A form can pass every technical test and still confuse users into submitting wrong data. Validation catches that gap.
Has the definition of validation changed recently?
Slightly. There is more emphasis now on documented evidence rather than just sign-off. If your business operates under any compliance framework, such as ISO 9001 or industry-specific standards, auditors increasingly want to see test records, not just a verbal confirmation that something was checked.
Cloud-based tools like Zephyr Scale or qTest make this documentation easier to maintain without a full QA department.
Is user acceptance testing still necessary?
Yes, and it is often the step small businesses skip. Getting two or three actual users to run through a workflow before launch surfaces problems that internal teams miss because they already know how the system works.
This does not need to be formal. A 30-minute session with a staff member who was not involved in the build is often enough to catch critical issues.
What is the biggest mistake small businesses make with validation?
Treating it as a one-time event rather than a process. Software changes, and validation needs to follow. Even a small configuration change can break a workflow that was previously signed off.
Setting a rule that any change above a defined complexity threshold triggers a re-validation check is a practical way to manage this without significant overhead.