Have you ever tried to “translate” an IKEA manual?
Have you ever opened an IKEA instruction sheet and realised there’s almost nothing to translate? Just arrows, friendly stick figures, and that tiny Allen key.
It looks simple — but it’s actually one of the most sophisticated translation strategies in global communication. IKEA has built its entire brand on a visual-first, text-minimal approach. The goal? To make their products understandable everywhere without translating hundreds of pages into dozens of languages.
It’s efficient, consistent, and cost-effective — a true global success story.
But here’s the catch: minimal doesn’t always mean easy.
When “no text” feels harder to interpret
If you’ve ever assembled a flat-pack wardrobe, you know that even the clearest pictures can be tricky. One wrong screw, and you’re undoing half the work.
That’s because pictures, like words, depend on shared understanding. What feels intuitive in one culture can be confusing in another.
So while IKEA’s manuals avoid the need for translation, they still require careful localisation thinking — just in a different form. Every gesture, expression, and arrow needs to communicate meaning across cultures.
What we can learn as translators and localisers
The IKEA approach works brilliantly when content is practical and universal: furniture, electronics, or user interfaces. In these cases, design plus minimal text can be more powerful than words.
But in other areas — marketing, UX writing, customer service — cutting out text can lead to misunderstanding. Here, tone and nuance matter. That’s where transcreation earns its keep.
Studies back this up
“Can Icons Outperform Text? Understanding the Role of Pictograms in OHMD Notifications” (CHI/ACM, 2023) — icons can outperform text only when users recognise them and encoding density is appropriate; otherwise ambiguity rises quickly.
📄 Read the paper: shengdongzhao.com/assets/publication/3544548.3580891.pdf
Nielsen Norman Group’s research on icon usability shows that even familiar icons often need visible labels for clarity. Testing in and out of context is essential.
🔗 Read more: Icon Usability | How to Test Digital Icons
Other brands that speak visually
IKEA isn’t alone. Brands like Apple, Tesla, and Dyson also use design-driven communication, relying on sleek visuals and minimal words to connect with audiences worldwide. Even McDonald’s has run global campaigns that need no translation — just an image of fries and the golden arches.
Each of these brands understands that sometimes, design is the language. But they also know when to let words carry emotion, persuasion, and culture.
When less really is more — and when it’s not
The takeaway? Going “text-free” isn’t about skipping translation. It’s about designing communication that travels well.
Minimalism can be powerful, but it requires deep cultural awareness — the same kind of awareness professional translators bring to every project.
So next time you open an IKEA box or a wordless instruction sheet, remember: it’s not that translation isn’t needed — it’s that translation has already happened, quietly, through design.
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