AI can generate creative fast, but soul gets lost. Matt Harris (Research &amp; Insight Lead) and Oli Bussell (Creative Lead) at Canva sit on opposite sides of the table—data and instinct—and prove the two only work together. They break down how to test storyboards early instead of waiting for the final cut, why bringing a single consumer&#x27;s voice into the room beats any statistic when defending or reshaping an idea, and how to use insight as a creative challenge to solve rather than a verdict that kills bold ideas. You&#x27;ll hear why the best partnerships treat research as a steer, not an answer—and where the human touch still beats the algorithm every time.<br>See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How Consumer Insights Shape Creativity Across Markets

Inside Insights

Welcome to Inside Insights, where marketing strategy meets consumer truth, with your host, Steve Phillips. According to Canva's 2026 State of Marketing and AI report, 70% of consumers say AI-generated advertising feels like it's missing its soul, even as 99% of marketers plan to increase their AI investments this year.

That's creating a new challenge for marketers because AI can help teams move faster than ever before, can generate ideas, build storyboards, accelerate production across markets almost overnight. But speed doesn't guarantee better creative and you need better creative for better results. When you're launching campaigns across multiple countries at once, how do you harness the power of AI and make sure consumer insights are helping to shape creative decisions and still ensure that human-driven great creative comes through?

I'm Steve Phillips and today I'm joined by Matt Harris, Research and Insights Lead for Europe at Canva, and Oli Bustle, Creative Lead for Europe. Together, they recently helped launch five campaigns across four European markets in balancing different languages, cultures and creative expectations while moving at remarkable speed. Today we'll explore how consumer insights can help shape creativity across markets, why the best research doesn't replace creative instinct,

and what happens when consumer insight and creative have to move together faster than either function is used to. Matt, Oli, welcome to Inside Insights. Matt, when you're developing campaigns across multiple markets at once, how do consumer insights shape creative decisions differently than they would if you were building, say, for a single audience in a single market? Matt Harris, Yeah, it's good to be here, first of all.

How Consumer Insights Shape Creativity Across Markets

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.

How Consumer Insights Shape Creativity Across Markets

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast, not the earnings call.

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.