While it may seem arcane to some, a large number of North American market research firms continue to translate open-end global survey data and then code that translation. And yet, the numbers clearly show the sticker shock of this practice. In-language coding is less time consuming, more cost-effective and culturally weighted. And yet, arguments for the benefits of in-language coding remain a hard sell.

Presumably, many market research firms still are willing to pay the substantial costs to translate the respondent verbatim and endure protracted timelines. Ironically, while they place a significant value on the localization of their surveys in global markets, they wrongfully assume they will/are not losing value-added cultural insights or sentiment nuance — both so easily lost in translation. Localizing mobile apps for market research also appears to remain status quo, as noticeably evidenced by Txteagle and Techneos. Of course, social media monitoring in non-English languages is de rigueur. To wit, localization leader Lionbridge monitors SME in more than 100 languages, enabling companies to monitor brand sentiment.

While many early adopters of such robust language-supported coding tools as Ascribe prove by their market share, the tenacity of these contradictory market research practices remains baffling.

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A leading global ice cream manufacturer sought to gauge the overall public perception of its brand and to test several TV advertising campaign concepts across international markets. After viewing the TV ads, the study participants were asked for their reactions to the brand and the test media, as well as to imagine what type of person would use the product and in what type of settings.

Localspeak was hired to perform in-language coding for demographics in the UK, France, Japan, Shanghai, and Singapore markets. English code frames were created and synched across all markets. From the coded data we provided, the client was able to identify the viewers’ perceived demographic strengths and weaknesses and address same in these markets. Some respondents also viewed market-specific ads, after which Localspeak provided culturally-nuanced coding, given the in-culture background and expertise of our coders and translators. In addition to creating codes geared toward these market-specific sets of test media, Localspeak provided the client with translations of specific verbatim, illustrating the overall trends. This key information provided the client with the inherent advantages of in-language coding, with added benefit from in-culture sensibilities.

Different sets of TV ads were produced specifically for the Japanese and Chinese markets. In Japan, one ad featured a Japanese female celebrity practicing yoga, waiting to eat ice cream as it began to melt. Viewers were able to successfully identify the celebrity and the elements of excitement, anticipation and relaxation held resonance for positive reactions. Viewers saw the appeal of the ice cream brand and ingredients as high quality. Yoga, however, proved somewhat a divisive factor. While some of the viewers perceived yoga movements as high class activity, others believed the wait to eat the ice cream was too long. A second ad featured a Japanese woman eating ice cream while she relaxed with her dog. At the end of the ad, she rested her feet on top of the dog, as if it were a footstool. Here viewers perceived the ice cream to be a premium brand, citing luxury, indulgence and relaxation. Other viewers also cited her action as animal cruelty or unclean behavior, negatively impacting their desire to purchase the product.

In a Chinese market-specific study, a TV ad featured a couple entering an elevator and proceeding to engage romantically. As the doors began to close, the woman pressed the buttons to all of the floors. She then reached into her purse and produced the ice cream product, which they begin to share as the elevator made its way up slowly. Some viewers perceived this visual concept as too sexually suggestive or inconsiderate to other elevator passengers, or simply as a waste of energy resources.

Eva DeColongen joined us as in-language German coder in 2006, when Localspeak segued its practice from advertising and marketing adaptions to coding, partnering with its first market research client, OTX (acquired by Ipsos in 2010). She brought to the firm a wide-range of experience, from coding media and copy to complex concept tests. Today she also trains prospective new coders and manages multimarket tests.

Throughout her career, Eva has served an array of global consumer brands in their market research studies. She especially enjoys coding German surveys in-language as it helps her keep touch with and up-to-date on current thinking on specific topics that cross her project desk. Fascinated that international market studies done in different parts of the world produce such diverse outcomes, she recalls one particular project, coding a Hollywood movie trailer survey. While the survey results were quite positive for the lead actor in the Korean market, the German audiences ripped it apart.

An avid tourist, she was lucky to be able to travel, combining her earliest positions in Hotel Management with work in such leading destinations as Berlin, London, Prague, and Greece. In 1998, Eva relocated to Southern California, where she earned a A.A. in Liberal Arts from Santa Monica College. She has remained in the Los Angeles beachfront area and continues to enjoy life at home with her husband and bi-lingual six-year-old daughter.