Fill in the blank data mapping is the process of fields from one data source to another
About Embedded DataEmbedded data is any extra information you would like recorded in your survey data in addition to the question responses. It can be used to store information such as: Show
Embedded data consists of a field and a value. The field is the name of your variable (e.g., Gender, State, Age). The value is what your field will be set to in your data. Just as one question can have multiple possible answers, an embedded data field can have multiple possible values (e.g., a field called Gender might have a value of Female, Male, or Other). The value for your embedded data field can be pulled from data that you have uploaded into a contact list, information appended to the respondent’s survey link, built-in fields provided by Qualtrics, or values set in the survey flow. Warning: All embedded data field names were previously case-sensitive. For a vast majority of users, embedded data field names are no longer case-sensitive, meaning “test” and “Test” would be treated as the same field. However, we still advise matching cases as a best practice, since there is a small portion of accounts where this change has not been made. Warning: Embedded data may be visible to individual survey respondents and should not contain sensitive data that a respondent is not intended to view. Qtip: Want to watch a video on how to use embedded data? Visit Customizing Your Project on XM Basecamp for a guided learning experience. Access is included as part of your Qualtrics account. Using Embedded Data in Your SurveyOnce embedded data has been added to your survey, it can be used in a number of ways, including:
Creating an Embedded Data Element
Choose From DropdownWhen naming embedded data, click the blue dropdown arrow to see additional built-in options.
Attention: If you are creating your own special embedded data variables, here are some default fields that you should never name an embedded data field (not case-sensitive):
If you name an embedded data field one of these names, you will see the message, “The value for Embedded Data field X is left blank intentionally to prevent issues with survey metadata”, and no data will be recorded for that field. In addition, here is a list of existing embedded data you can use, but cannot set custom values for. Attention: If you are using your recipients’ phone numbers in the XM Directory, make sure to use “RecipientPhone” as your embedded data field. This will ensure that your phone numbers are compatible with the XM Directory. Embedded Data OptionsEmbedded data options allow you to determine which embedded data are eligible for text analysis, as well as change each embedded data’s variable type. If you’re interested in breaking out your reports by participant age or you need to assign multiple departments to one person based on an embedded data variable, you may have to change the variable type. Changing the variable type of your embedded data can allow for more flexible ways to record your data.
Qtip: Forgot to set your variable types before data collection? No worries! These settings can be changed retroactively. Embedded Data Variable Types
Qtip: If your data is not displaying, make sure it is compatible with the Embedded Data variable type. For example, text data will not display for a field set to the Number variable type. Setting Values in the Survey FlowOften the value of your embedded data is stored outside the survey, such as in a contacts list or appended to the end of the respondent’s survey link. However, you can also set the value manually in the survey flow. Every respondent who meets this branch condition will have their response flagged with an embedded data field called Gender set to a value of Male.To set a value in the Survey Flow
A contact list is a mailing list used for distributing surveys many ways on Qualtrics, including email, personal links, and SMS distributions (text messages). In addition to including names and email addresses for each recipient on this list, you can include any demographic or unique data you’d like in a contact list. For example, in addition to name and email, the contact list in the screenshot below includes the embedded data fields Position, State, and Project Number. All we had to do to include this information in the contact list was add those columns of data to our contact file before we imported it. However, just because the embedded data is in our contact list doesn’t mean it’s automatically included in the survey data. By adding an embedded data element in your survey flow, you can have this information saved in your results for use in your analysis. Qtip: Although you need an embedded data survey flow element to add embedded data to your recorded results, you do not need this element to use embedded data in piped text, branches, or display logic. To include information from your contact list in your survey data
Qtip: Forgot to follow these steps before launching your study? No worries! If there was embedded data in the contact list that you distributed the survey to, you can retroactively add fields to the survey flow after the survey is finished. Note that only embedded data that existed in the contact list at the time of response creation can be retroactively added to the survey flow. Embedded data added to the contact list after response collection cannot be added retroactively to the survey flow and pulled into your data set. Setting Values from the Survey URLIf you’re not distributing your survey to a contact list, you can still bring embedded data into the survey for each respondent by adding your embedded data field names and values to the end of the survey link. Let’s pretend we are preparing two versions of our anonymous link: one that indicates the respondent’s source is Facebook and one that indicates the source is Twitter. These anonymous links will take respondents to the same survey – the only difference is the social media “Source” added to the end. When ready to distribute, we’d only post the Facebook link on Facebook and the Twitter link on Twitter. When a respondent accesses the survey link, Qualtrics will read their survey link and know which “Source” the respondent came from. Embedded data can be added to any kind of survey link, and you can add many different embedded data to one link. To learn more with step-by-step instructions, see the Passing Information via Query Strings support page. Setting Values with Built-in Embedded Data FieldsIn addition to creating your own embedded data variables or pulling them in from other sources, you also have access to some built-in variables that Qualtrics records for every response. These elements can be added to the survey flow before or after you have collected responses by using the steps described in the Creating an Embedded Data Element section. You won’t need to set a value when you use these fields, because each one performs a special function in the responses (described below) and uses this to determine the value. Note that because of this, you will be unable to set custom values for these fields in the survey flow. The following built-in embedded data fields can be added to your survey:
Warning: A metadata field entitled “Password” will not load metadata on the EmployeeXM platform. Setting Values from Other SourcesIn addition to using embedded data from a contact list or in the survey link URL, you can also pull embedded data from other sources. Embedded Data in a Web ServiceA web service allows you to pull data from an external website into your survey. For example, you might want to pull in today’s top headline from CNN or customer details from your own internal database. Information drawn from a web service is saved as embedded data. For an in-depth look at using a web service to draw embedded data from another website, refer to our Web Service page. Embedded Data with SalesforceIf your Qualtrics account includes the Salesforce extension, you can pull embedded data into your survey from Salesforce using the trigger and email Survey feature. Embedded Data in Website FeedbackSee Embedded Data with Website Feedback. Embedded Data in XM DirectoryThe behavior of embedded data in XM Directory is almost exactly the same as what’s described on this page. One of the key differences, though, is the ability to manage embedded data on a directory level. See Manage Embedded Data & Refresh Embedded Data for more details. Qtip: XM Directory is not the same as CoreXM Contacts. If you do not have access to a brand-wide directory of contacts, you do not need to read the support page on managing and refreshing embedded data. Transactional DataTransactions allow you to record interaction data about events associated with your contacts by representing a specific interaction at a specific moment in time. You can set survey embedded data based on transaction data.
Qtip: In order to pull transactional data into a survey response, you need to make sure the response is connected to a transaction. That means you need to send the survey to a transaction group, a transaction batch created via API, or a transaction batch created by a linked survey distribution automation where the transactional data field is set. Removing Embedded DataIn this section, we will cover several ways to remove embedded data. Please pay careful attention to the warnings associated with each of the following instructions. Removing Embedded Data FieldsWarning: If you delete an embedded data field after you have collected data, all the embedded data’s values will be permanently deleted from all responses. The only exception is if the embedded data was originally stored in a contact list or query string – then you can add the embedded data field back to the survey flow to retrieve the data. However, you cannot do this with values originally set in the survey flow. Please do not delete embedded data from the survey flow unless you are absolutely sure you want to lose this data, or have not collected any data yet. You can delete entire embedded data fields inside the survey flow. This means removing the field itself and all data associated with it. To delete all embedded data in an element, click Delete in the lower-right of an element. You can also delete one field from an element at a time. In the example below, we want to delete City, but not Neighborhood.
Removing One Respondent’s Embedded DataIf you need to remove just one respondent’s embedded data value (or replace it with a new value), you should edit the response in Data & Analysis.
Best Practices and Troubleshooting Embedded DataNaming Fields
Setting Values
Example: Counters In this example, “Test_Value” will equal 2 when the respondent submits the survey because we used a Counter, the math operation of $e{ e://Field/Test_Value + 1 }, to increment “Test_Value” up by 1. Arranging Elements in the Survey FlowDo you ever wonder where your embedded data element is supposed to be in the survey flow? Here are some tips:
Example: Example: Qtip: Make sure you’re breaking your questions into multiple blocks, so it’s easier to rearrange your survey flow. FAQsRelated ArticlesWhat is field mapping in a database?A field mapping describes how a persistent field maps to the database. If necessary, it also contains data on how to link the field to the data of its owning object, and how to link the field to the data of any related objects (if the field represents a relation to one or more other persistent objects).
What is data mapping used for?Data mapping is the process of connecting a data field from one source to a data field in another source. This reduces the potential for errors, helps standardize your data, and makes it easier to understand your data by correlating it, for example, with identities.
What are the techniques of data mapping?Within data mapping, there are three main techniques that are used — manual mapping, semi-automated mapping, and automated mapping.
Which mapping is used to create and persist data?In a persistent project, you use mappings to persist to a data source. In a nonpersistent project, you use mappings simply to transform between the object format and some other data representation (such as XML). A descriptor represents a particular domain object: it describes the object's class.
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