The answer is probably "Yes!"
Many companies have not explicitly addressed load testing and performance testing. Yet a slow system, an inaccessible website or a crashing application can lead to significant loss of revenue, reputational damage and frustrated customers. But when exactly are performance tests essential? Whenever your system needs to function reliably under high load.
Below you will find a list of exemplary scenarios for which precautionary load tests and performance tests are recommended.
1. e-commerce peak loads:
- Black Friday / Cyber Monday: The absolute endurance test for every online store.
- Seasonal sales: Summer sales, winter sales and other discount campaigns attract many customers.
- Product launches: When a new, heavily advertised product comes onto the market, the rush is often great.
- Marketing campaigns: Successful advertising leads to more traffic - is your website equipped for this?
- Flash sales: Short-term, heavily advertised sales campaigns with high traffic.
- End of auctions: Online auction platforms just before the end of bidding.
2. financial, administrative & reporting peaks:
- End of month / end of quarter / end of year: In many industries (finance, insurance, controlling) there are high workloads for closings at these times.
- Closing runs in ERP systems: High load when processing postings, stock movements etc.
- Tax return deadlines: Tax portals have to withstand enormous access numbers.
- Regulatory reporting deadlines: Systems for fulfilling statutory reporting obligations (e.g. in the banking and insurance sectors).
- Payroll accounting: Many employees access HR systems at the same time (e.g. pay slip retrieval).
- Dunning runs & invoicing: Process-intensive procedures that are often bundled together.
- Report queries (business intelligence): When many users generate complex reports or dashboards at the same time (e.g. Monday morning).
3. time-critical events & deadlines:
- Ticket sales launches: for concerts, festivals or sporting events, the system must be able to cope with the rush.
- Enrolment/application deadlines: Universities, schools and other educational institutions experience high access numbers at certain times.
- Start of online exams/tests: Many participants start an exam at the same time.
- Submission deadlines: Portals for the submission of papers, projects or applications (e.g. funding).
- Publication of results: High rush on portals to announce exam or election results.
- Elections/voting: Online portals for elections or referendums.
4. operational, logistical & internal peak loads:
- Shift changes: in production plants, call centers and logistics centers, many employees access systems at the same time.
- Peak times in public transport: booking and information systems must function reliably.
- Warehouse management systems (WMS): For high incoming/outgoing goods or picking peaks.
- Parcel tracking at peak times: High numbers of queries from customers (e.g. pre-Christmas period).
- Route planning in field service: Simultaneous call-off of tours at the start of work.
- Launch of internal campaigns: Employee surveys, mandatory training, etc.
- Rollout of new internal software/features: Many employees use a new function at the same time.
5. media, gaming & unexpected traffic spikes:
- News spikes: Breaking news causes traffic on news sites and social media to explode.
- Live events: Streaming of sporting events, concerts, press conferences or webinars.
- Peak times for online games: Game releases, in-game events, login servers during high activity.
- Launch of new seasons/content: High rush on streaming platforms when popular content is released.
- Viral trends: Unexpectedly high traffic due to social media hypes or viral marketing effects.
- High network utilization: Special events (New Year's Eve, soccer matches) that put a strain on communication networks.
- Release of major software updates: Millions of devices download updates (operating systems, apps) at the same time.
6. healthcare:
- Access to electronic patient records (ePA): peak loads in clinics, surgeries or emergencies.
- Online appointment booking systems: High rush when new quotas are activated (vaccinations, specialists).
- Telemedicine platforms: At peak consultation times or for special health situations.
7. system changes, technology & infrastructure:
- Data migrations: Even if it's not a regular peak load, a migration can put a lot of strain on a system.
- Cloud Auto-Scaling Events/Tests: Ensure that auto-scaling works quickly and correctly under load.
- Infrastructure updates & maintenance windows: Check performance after updates or during backup processes.
- API gateways & interfaces: When many partners, customers or own apps access central APIs at the same time.
- IoT platforms: When thousands or millions of devices send data or receive commands at the same time.
- Backup & recovery processes: Data backups or recovery tests can affect system performance.
8. authorities & public sector:
- Access peaks to citizen portals or, for example, tax portals: When new services are introduced, deadlines or special information requirements.
and much more!
The consequences of poor performance
- Loss of sales: Customers abandon purchases if a website is too slow or errors occur.
- Reputational damage: Word of poor performance gets around and damages your image in the long term.
- Loss of productivity: Employees cannot work efficiently if internal systems are slow or unstable.
- Contractual penalties: Failure to comply with service level agreements (SLAs) can have financial consequences.
- Customer and employee frustration: Slow systems lead to dissatisfaction and can encourage churn.
We can support you.
Don't wait until problems arise.
Invest proactively in load and performance testing to ensure that your systems are stable and reliable even under heavy load.
This will protect your company from financial losses, reputational damage and dissatisfied customers. It is an investment in the future and the success of your company.
We will be happy to discuss your specific scenario with you and offer you customized and market-driven solutions.