Your survey has been translated, so the next step is to get it into your survey platform. A professional survey overlay service will save you time and you can field your survey, safe in the knowledge that the translation are where they should be to help you obtain the best results from your fieldwork.
In the context of international research, survey overlay is the process of inputting existing translations into your survey platform. Translations approved or fully provided by your client need to be overlaid into your survey, either via an interface or by copy-pasting them into a script exported from the software. Either way, you need to be confident that it will be done carefully and accurately.
Survey overlay is most often needed when the end client has provided their own translations, or has asked to review the translations you’ve provided in the original Word or Excel format. These translations need to be overlaid into the survey platform or an export file generated by the platform.
Some platforms provide an interface where translations can be added. If you have a pre-approved translation, it would usually be copy-pasted into the interface. A subsequent online QC, where linguists go through the survey as if they were a respondent, would enable you to check everything displays as it should.
Most survey platforms can generate exports into which translations can be overlaid. These exports, such as .xliff, .xml or .xlsx files, will contain scripting language as well as the text the respondents will see. It’s important when populating the files with translations – or translating directly in them – that the scripting language is taken into account, to ensure the survey displays correctly when it’s live. This includes the proper placement of tags for formatting, list items, inserts and piping. It’s particularly important for right-to-left and/or character languages, which non-native speakers can’t easily do. Once again, the overall display and flow of the translation can be double-checked by an online QC.
At The Language Factory, our expert linguists will ensure your translated survey is overlaid correctly, carefully placing all the tags, codes and scripting language to ensure the survey displays as it should. Our experienced team of Project Managers support our linguists to guarantee you an efficient and stress-free, end-to-end service, enabling you to complete your project on time, within budget and to the highest possible standard.
A survey overlay service involves inputting your translated surveys into your preferred survey platform, either directly through a translation interface or via survey exports. The final and approved translations can be inputted directly in your preferred survey platform or via a survey export, usually in .xliff, .xml or .xlsx format, by our professional, mother-tongue linguists.
Survey overlay is useful if your end client has provided their own translations or wishes to review your translations in Word or Excel format before they’re fielded. The linguist will input the translation in the platform or survey export, applying all coding, formatting and piping to the approved translations so the survey displays correctly to the respondent. This process helps to maintain the integrity of the survey and provide consistent results across multiple markets.
Implementation time depends on the survey length, number of languages and complexity of scripting. Typically, small-to-medium surveys can be completed within 1-2 business days.
The survey overlay process doesn’t typically include proofreading but it can be conducted simultaneously if you need a second opinion on the translation or a second linguist needs to be involved as part of your QA processes.
Absolutely. TLF offers an online QC (or online link checking) service to check ensure all language versions display correctly, piping and inserts work properly and error messages appear when and where they should, allowing any adjustments to be made before launching to the target audience.
We are proud of our long-standing association with the Market Research Society and membership of language industry bodies, ATC (Association of Translation Companies) and ITI (Institute of Translation and Interpreting), abiding by their strict codes of conduct and demonstrating our commitment to best practice for the benefit of our clients.
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