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Introduction

Thorough testing is crucial for ensuring your AI phone agents work reliably in production. This guide covers testing strategies, tools, and best practices to help you catch issues before they impact your callers.

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Testing Philosophy

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Test Early, Test Often

Golden Rule: Every change should be tested before deployment, no matter how small.
Testing should be integrated into your development workflow, not treated as an afterthought. The earlier you catch issues, the easier and cheaper they are to fix.

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Types of Testing

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1. Unit Testing

Test individual blocks and components in isolation:

Block Configuration

Verify each block works with different input values and configurations.

Variable Handling

Test how variables are passed between blocks and transformed.

API Integrations

Ensure external API calls work with various response formats.

Error Conditions

Test how blocks handle unexpected inputs or failures.

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2. Integration Testing

Test how different parts of your flow work together:
1

Block Connections

Verify that blocks connect properly and data flows correctly between them.
2

Conditional Logic

Test all possible paths through your flow, including edge cases.
3

External Systems

Ensure integrations with databases, APIs, and other services work as expected.

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3. End-to-End Testing

Test complete user journeys from start to finish:

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Testing Tools and Methods

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Phonely’s Built-in Testing

Flow Simulator

Test your flows in a controlled environment before going live.

Call Recording Analysis

Review actual call recordings to identify issues and improvements.

Analytics Dashboard

Monitor call success rates, completion times, and error patterns.

A/B Testing

Compare different versions of your flows to optimize performance.

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Manual Testing Checklist

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Test Data Management

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Creating Realistic Test Data

Security Note: Never use real customer data for testing. Always use anonymized or synthetic data.
Best Practices:
  • Create representative sample data that covers various scenarios
  • Include edge cases (very long names, special characters, etc.)
  • Test with different data formats and languages
  • Ensure test data reflects your actual user base demographics

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Test Environment Setup

1

Separate Test Environment

Use a dedicated test environment that mirrors production but with test data.
2

Test Phone Numbers

Set up dedicated test phone numbers for different scenarios.
3

Mock External Services

Use mock services for APIs and integrations during testing.

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Performance Testing

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Load Testing

Test how your agents perform under various load conditions:

Concurrent Calls

Test with multiple simultaneous calls to ensure system stability.

Peak Hours

Simulate high-traffic periods to identify bottlenecks.

Long Conversations

Test extended conversations to check for memory leaks or timeouts.

Rapid Succession

Test quick back-to-back calls to verify system recovery.

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Response Time Testing

Monitor and optimize key performance metrics:
  • Initial Response Time: How quickly does the agent start speaking?
  • Processing Time: How long does it take to process user input?
  • API Response Time: How quickly do external integrations respond?
  • Total Call Duration: Is the conversation efficient?

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User Acceptance Testing

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Beta Testing Program

Recommendation: Run a beta test with a small group of real users before full deployment.
Beta Testing Process:
  1. Recruit Testers: Find representative users from your target audience
  2. Provide Instructions: Give clear guidance on what to test and how to report issues
  3. Monitor Calls: Listen to recordings and analyze performance data
  4. Collect Feedback: Gather both quantitative metrics and qualitative feedback
  5. Iterate: Make improvements based on findings before full launch

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Feedback Collection

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Continuous Testing

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Automated Testing Pipeline

Set up automated tests that run on every change:
1

Pre-deployment Tests

Run automated tests before any deployment to production.
2

Smoke Tests

Quick tests to verify basic functionality after deployment.
3

Monitoring

Continuous monitoring of production systems for issues.

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Regression Testing

Important: Always test that new changes don’t break existing functionality.
Regression Testing Strategy:
  • Maintain a comprehensive test suite that covers all critical paths
  • Run full regression tests before major releases
  • Use automated testing where possible to catch issues quickly
  • Document and track all known issues and their fixes

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Testing Documentation

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Test Plans and Results

Keep detailed records of your testing activities:

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Next Steps

Performance Optimization

Learn how to optimize your agents for speed and reliability.

Flow Design

Review flow design principles for better user experience.