Building high-quality digital products: why best practices matter

Creating a successful digital product goes far beyond coding—it’s about ensuring every feature, line of code, and user interaction is purposeful, tested, and aligned with business goals. At 20tab, we believe in a development approach that combines technical excellence with clear communication, following industry best practices to guarantee quality and reliability.

Why Best Practices Matter in Software Development

Software development is a structured, iterative process that benefits greatly from well-established practices and standards. These guidelines are not mere formalities: they help teams reduce errors, improve maintainability, and create products that are scalable and reliable. Let’s explore the key principles:

1. Code Only When Necessary

Writing unnecessary code leads to wasted effort, higher complexity, and more opportunities for bugs. Stick to the requirements and focus on solving current, validated problems. This approach keeps projects lean and efficient.

2. Avoid Duplication

Duplicate code increases maintenance costs and the risk of inconsistencies. Identify repeatable patterns and encapsulate them into reusable functions or modules to maintain cleaner, more reliable systems.

3. Define Clear Acceptance Criteria

Before writing a single line of code, it’s crucial to know exactly what needs to be built. Acceptance criteria act as the shared “shopping list” for the team: clear, testable conditions that define when a feature is complete. At 20tab, we keep them simple, user-focused, and agreed upon by all stakeholders. This ensures every feature meets expectations and reduces the risk of misunderstandings or missed requirements.

4. Test Every Function (and Do It Early)

Testing is non-negotiable. Adopting Test-Driven Development (TDD) encourages deeper analysis of requirements and ensures that each function works as intended. Comprehensive unit testing protects against costly failures - especially in critical systems.

5. Prioritize Code Coverage, But Stay Smart

High test coverage is valuable, but it’s only meaningful if tests are robust. Focus on covering real scenarios and edge cases, not just hitting percentages. Quality matters more than quantity.

6. Write Minimal and Optimized Code

Less is more. Minimal, well-structured code is easier to test, maintain, and scale. Regularly review and refactor code to improve performance and clarity.

7. Keep Functions Small

Breaking down logic into smaller functions makes testing simpler and debugging faster. Smaller blocks of code are also easier to optimize.

8. Embrace Refactoring

Refactoring shouldn’t be an afterthought. Allocate time to improve algorithms, simplify queries, and enhance readability. Clean code is an investment in long-term quality.

9. Automate Builds and Releases

Automation reduces human error and accelerates workflows. A solid CI/CD pipeline ensures consistency, speeds up onboarding, and improves overall reliability.

Final Thoughts: Building with Purpose

High-quality software doesn’t happen by chance. It’s the result of a disciplined process that combines technical rigor and clear, shared goals. Best practices ensure code excellence, while clear acceptance criteria keep us aligned with user and business needs. Together, they form the backbone of any successful digital product strategy.

At 20tab, this focus is central to our work. Whether we’re developing from scratch or enhancing existing platforms, our teams follow these principles to deliver products that are robust, user-centric, and impactful.