This document describes what participants experience during a Tellet interview from start to finish.
Every interview consists of 4 stages:
Welcome & Consent
Screening Questions (optional)
Main Interview
Completion (immediate)
Welcome screen displays:
Company logo
Introduction text (a welcome message that varies depending on the configured response type — for recording-enabled interviews it describes the recording and sharing terms; for text-only interviews it describes the interview and sharing terms)
Language dropdown (if multiple languages enabled)
Privacy Policy link
Interview Terms link
Consent checkbox
"Let's go" button to begin
If enabled:
System detects browser language automatically
Participant can select from available languages via dropdown
All interface elements and questions translate to selected language
Can pre-set the language via a URL parameter, using either the full language name or its 2-letter code: ?language=Spanish or ?language=es. This works on both the welcome and consent screens.
How the starting language is chosen:
If the link includes a ?language= parameter, that language is used.
Otherwise, the participant's browser language is used (when language selection is enabled).
Otherwise, the project's default language is used.
For languages that read right-to-left — Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Urdu — the entire interview is laid out right-to-left, not just the text.
Requirements:
Participant must check consent checkbox
Checkbox text varies by project configuration:
For recording-enabled interviews: "I consent to the recording of [recording type] in this interview and to sharing the recording with the research client for research purposes."
For text-only interviews: "I consent to participate in this interview and to sharing my responses with the research client for research purposes."
Text automatically translates to selected language
Cannot proceed without accepting consent
What Happens:
System records consent timestamp
Saves language preference
Creates unique interview session
Moves to next stage (screening or main interview)
Filter participants before the main interview based on qualification criteria.
Display elements:
Progress indicator: "Question X of Y"
One question at a time
Company logo in corner
Clear question text
Single-select:
Radio buttons (circles)
One answer per question
Automatic selection on click
Multiple-select:
Checkboxes (squares)
Multiple answers allowed
"Select all that apply" instruction text
Numeric input:
Text box for number entry
"(Write in numbers)" label
Questions automatically translate to participant's selected language. The translation is prepared in advance while the participant reads the welcome and consent screen, so there is no wait at the screening step.
If participant qualifies:
Advances to next question
After last question, enters main interview
If participant doesn't qualify:
Sees custom disqualification message
Interview ends
If a panel Screened Out link is configured, the participant sees a short countdown and is automatically redirected there, the same as on the completion screen, with the option to cancel or copy the link instead
If a screening quota is full:
Sees a separate quota full message (they qualified, but the quota for their answer was already reached)
If a panel Quota Full link is configured, the same automatic countdown-and-redirect behaviour applies
Chat layout:
AI questions appear on left (neutral colour)
Participant responses appear on right (coloured)
Progress indicator at top
Input options at bottom
Company logo visible
Participants can respond using any combination of:
Text:
Type in text box
Press Enter or click send button
No setup required
Speech:
Click the microphone button
Browser requests permission (first use)
A visual indicator shows while recording
Speak the response
Click stop
The response is transcribed automatically
The AI responds based on the transcription
Video:
Click video camera button
Browser requests camera and microphone permission (first use)
Recording modal opens with live preview
Verify camera angle
Click record
Can pause/resume
Preview video
Submit or re-record
Features:
Camera switching (front/back on mobile)
Recording timer
Preview before sending
Image:
Click image button
Take new photo or select existing
Uploads automatically
AI behaviour:
Asks follow-up questions based on responses
Follows the whole interview as one conversation, from the first question to the last, rather than treating each question as a fresh start, so it doesn't repeat itself or hand back a canned "you mentioned" recap
References earlier answers when relevant
No time limits on responses
Progress advances as the participant works through the discussion guide questions
Interruptions:
Closing browser saves progress
Returning to interview shows "Welcome back!" message
Resumes exactly where left off
Works only on same device and browser
If the connection is interrupted:
A message lets the participant know and they can resend
Saved progress is preserved
If recording/upload fails:
An error message is shown
The participant can try again
They can switch to a different response mode
Participant sees:
Completion message (default: "Completed 🥳" or custom)
Input area disappears
Progress bar at 100%
Conversation remains visible for review
Three possible outcomes:
1. Simple Thank You:
Displays completion message
Participant can close browser
No automatic redirect
2. Panel Redirect:
Brief completion message
Automatic redirect to specified URL
Completion data passed to panel system
Triggers reward/credit
3. Custom Next Steps:
Completion message with embedded links
Follow-up surveys
Calendar scheduling
Incentive claim forms
Additional resources
If participant clicks link again:
Shows completion screen
Cannot add new responses
Conversation remains visible
Message indicates already participated
Your answers are saved to Tellet as you give them — nothing is lost if the browser closes. Stored locally in your browser (which is why resuming works on the same device only):
Session identifier
Interview progress
Language preference
Storage limitations:
Same device required
Same browser required
Clearing cache deletes session
Private/incognito mode session doesn't persist after closing
Automatic saves:
Each response saves immediately
Progress updates continuously
No manual save required
If the connection drops, your answer isn't lost — you can resend it when you're back online.
Indicators:
Red "Test chat" banner
Visible restart button
Responses are marked as test data and kept separate from real results (they can be deleted in bulk)
Unlimited restarts
No quota consumption
Real mode:
No test indicators
Clean interface
Data permanently stored
Counts toward quotas
Link invalid or interview unavailable:
An error page explains why (for example, the study is completed, has reached its maximum number of responses, or hasn't been published)
Chat expired:
In rare cases a conversation session can expire (for example, when the project closes while the interview is open)
The error page asks the participant to start again from their invitation link
Missing link details:
Required URL parameters are missing from the link
The participant is redirected to an error page
Typically occurs with panel integrations that require tracking parameters — check your link template
Browser without media-recording support:
A message lets the participant know their browser lacks media-recording support
On Android, Firefox shows a message recommending Chrome or another browser
Something fails to load:
Instead of a blank page, a friendly recovery screen appears with a reload option to try again
Camera/microphone denied — clear, browser-specific instructions to enable permissions, with the option to continue with text only.
Upload fails — an error message with a retry option and a suggestion to use shorter videos or a different mode.
Connection interrupted — the participant is notified and can resend the message; saved progress is preserved.
Language:
?language=Spanish or ?language=es - Pre-selects language (accepts the full language name or its 2-letter code)
Skips language selection step
Skip consent:
?skipConsent=true - Pre-accepts consent. When combined with a ?language= parameter, the consent screen is bypassed entirely
Use only in contexts where consent is obtained by other means
Input methods:
?inputMethods=text,audio,video,image - Restricts the available response modes
Comma-separated list of allowed modes: text, audio, video, image
voice is also accepted as an alias for audio
Only modes listed in the parameter will be available to the participant
Example: ?inputMethods=text,video shows only text and video options
Custom tracking:
Any additional parameters preserved in analytics
Examples: ?source=email, ?campaign=spring2024, ?userId=12345
A current version of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge
Internet Explorer (any version)
Very old or stripped-down mobile browsers on feature phones