LifeScan: Localizing a Mobile Health App in 26 Languages

Find out how Acolad helped LifeScan localize their "OneTouch" app to enter 26 different countries, achieving 1.4M savings since implementation.

About LifeScan
With a vision to create a world without limits for people with diabetes, LifeScan has specialized in blood glucose monitoring for more than 35 years. Over 20 million people worldwide depend on OneTouch brand products to help them manage their diabetes. LifeScan is headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and Zug, Switzerland, and has a 340,000 square foot state-of-the-art manufacturing and distribution facility in Inverness, Scotland. With more than 2,000 employees, the company operates in over 90 countries.

The Challenge

Simultaneous Global App Launch in Multiple Languages

Soon after starting to develop a digital app for their OneTouch line of products, LifeScan knew they had to launch it globally and in multiple languages at the same time.

The app was designed to help those using glucose monitoring products manage their condition more easily with the help of a smartphone or tablet.

The market potential was huge, and they planned to supply 26 countries with aggressive launch dates for each region. While it typically took about six months to get products ready to market, the new app launch schedule meant drastically reducing this time to stay competitive.

LifeScan needed a partner that would help them place the app on the market in the most efficient and high-quality way possible.

The Solution

Automating App Localization

Acolad had been working with LifeScan since 2009, providing onsite resources as part of a translation managed services model.

This long-term partnership model allowed Acolad to achieve a unique knowledge of LifeScan’s internal processes which combined with extensive product localization experience, resulted in the streamlining of the entire labeling process.

The strategy was essentially focused on the following areas:

Fully integrated development and localization teams
Automated CMS process for agile sprints
Automation of Android and iOS outputs from a single file within CMS
Seamless integration for localized builds
Automated screen generation for testing updated strings
Harmonization of Legal and Privacy content across all locales under GDPR regulations, to ensure mandatory information is communicated consistently with traceability, reducing the risk of fines for non-compliance.