Effective surveys provide actionable insights to inform future business strategies and drive growth. To get the best results, your respondents need to understand the questions in a language they can understand. As experienced market research professionals, your clients rely on you to ask the right questions, at the right time, in the right way.
Survey translation is the process of translating questions, instructions, or any other text within a survey from a source language into one of more target languages, ensuring a wider range of respondents are able to participate in the research project. Collecting multi-market high-quality survey data and ensuring inclusivity in your research project is vital. To learn more about the evolution of gender, language and translation read our blog.
Best-in-class survey translation looks at nuances or cultural norms which can affect the language used. It ensures the meaning of each question is understood by respondents in different languages and geographical areas to facilitate data comparison across markets.
To learn more about international differences, read our tips on optimising market research surveys for translation.
Survey translation allows researchers who are not multilingual to effectively field surveys in multiple geographies.
To encourage respondents to complete a survey, it’s obviously important they understand the questions. Survey translation means that respondents will be engaged in their native language, which can help reduce dropout rates and ensure that all the content is appropriate to each target audience.
Survey translation can also positively impact respondents and the market research industry in the long term. Those engaged in their native language and who benefit from a good survey experience may be more likely to participate in future research projects.
An experienced translation service provider can identify points of confusion in the source language to ensure the survey is accurately translate, leading to more relevant survey reponses. They can also offer guidance that means you can minimise time-consuming re-translation and improve the quality of your surveys.
Take a look at our Ultimate Guide to Market Research Translation for more information and advice.
Quality is at the heart of everything we do. We are proud of our proven quality assurance process, and that we are a certified provider of an ISO 17100-compliant translation and revision service. Our successful certification and completion of annual audits demonstrate our commitment to providing high-quality and reliable business translation services at all stages in the research process.
Our experienced team of Project Managers are another key part of our high-quality service. They provide 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.
Professional survey translation ensures linguistic accuracy, cultural authenticity and conceptual equivalence across all target markets. Accurate translation safeguards data integrity and enables meaningful cross-market comparison. Poor translation can lead to misinterpretation of questions, biased responses and unreliable data.
Conceptual equivalence refers to ensuring that the translated survey question conveys the same meaning and intent as the original, rather than being translated word-for-word. This is critical when measuring attitudes, behaviours or perceptions across cultures.
Accuracy is ensured through a structured process that may include translation, proofreading and in-country review. For complex research projects, cognitive testing may also be recommended to validate comprehension in the target audience.
Back translation involves translating a survey back into the source language, to enable you to compare the two source-language versions. It is usually done by a second linguist who is a native speaker of the source language. Full proofreading by a second linguist of the target language is the preferred method of providing reassurance that the original translation is accurate.
Yes. Localisation adapts content to reflect regional vocabulary, cultural nuances and local sensitivities. For example, Spanish used in Spain differs from Spanish used in Latin America. Regional localisation improves respondent engagement and response accuracy.
Surveys presented in a respondent’s native language are more likely to be completed accurately and fully. Clear, culturally-authentic translation reduces confusion and drop-off rates, supporting stronger participation and more reliable data.
Yes. We provide translation of both structured survey content and respondent-generated open-end responses. This enables accurate multilingual reporting and consolidated data analysis across territories.
We support a wide range of formats including Word, Excel, XML, XLIFF and other specialist market research software exports. We can also work directly within survey platforms where required.
We use a combination of industry-leading translation tools and propietary techniques and processes to ensure consistency across all language versions and waves of research. This is particularly important for tracking surveys.
Yes. We work with professional linguists who have sector-specific expertise in market research, consumer insights, healthcare research and social research. Subject-matter knowledge ensures accurate rendering of technical terminology and research scales.
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.
Our highly-experienced market research translation team will work with you to ensure your survey translation is completed accurately, efficiently and authentically.
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A translation service is only as good as the people providing it. Making the best use of human experience blended with industry-leading technology, our exceptional Project Managers go above and beyond for our clients. Frequently praised for their attention to detail, the smooth and straightforward end-to-end service they provide will get you to launch faster.
Our experienced Project Managers:
Meet our expert project management team.
If you’re looking for support with a survey or any other language translation service, click on the link below to contact our expert team.
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