In the fast-moving world of advertising, visuals are never just eye candy—they’re the soul of every story a brand tells. For years, creative ad agencies have poured their passion into designing imagery that connects with people on a visceral and emotional level with every campaign driven by a single desire: to capture attention and leave a lasting impression. But as the pace of the world accelerates, the challenge of meeting this goal and staying ahead of the curve becomes harder by the day. And that’s where artificial intelligence is aiding the cause—not just as a tool, but as a catalyst for creativity.
“According to a report by Statista, the global market for AI in advertising is projected to reach $107.5 billion by 2028, driven by its ability to optimize creative processes and improve targeting.”
AI is changing the way agencies think about what’s possible. With the power of AI, complex tasks that once required hours can now be executed in a fraction of the time. This, in and of itself opens up a whole new world of possibilities for creative minds, but it’s more than just speeding up processes—it’s giving Art Directors and storytellers more time to focus on what really matters: creating memorable visuals that capture, inspire, and spur to action.
“A 2023 Adobe study found that 72% of creative professionals who use AI tools say it allows them to experiment more freely, resulting in higher-quality visual content.”
Imagine agency creatives, equipped with AI, collaborating not just to produce beautiful designs, but to craft fresh, unexpected visual experiences that resonate deeply with audiences. AI enables them to explore impossible ideas, experiment with near-endless iterations, and refine their visions in ways that were once impractical to execute, if not seriously out of budget. It’s a partnership where technology amplifies creativity, helping ideas come to life in ways that break through the clutter of everyday advertising.
At its core, AI isn’t taking the heart out of creativity—it’s enabling agencies to put more heart into it. By freeing Art Directors from the constraints of the practical, it allows them to dive deeper into the essence of a project, telling new stories that genuinely connect with their audience. To that end, it’s clear those embracing the new AI frontier will likely emerge as leaders in the art of visual storytelling as they continue to transform the creative landscape. Consider the case below:
Case in Point: The Successful Evolution of an Everyday Image
Let’s explore the evolution of an image for a client of ours showcasing how AI played a pivotal role in making the concept more compelling to drive better results.
Step 1: Initial Concept
Our client required a new “hero” visual to be applied across multiple communication channels. In this case, the topic was somewhat abstract and might not have been entirely familiar to a broad audience. It centered on the notion that employers must consider four critical areas regarding benefits without passing the costs onto employees.
As a first step, our creative team searched the usual sources for a conceptual stock image that would effectively support the content and context. We anticipated this task could be more challenging than usual because of the nature of the subject—and it was. Most of the initial images we identified seemed too tired or contrived, not terribly distinct or on brand. Eventually, though, we identified an image that cleverly addressed the topic, employing four building blocks as a metaphor. The image at its core met our basic objective, and could serve as a “base” image.” As it stood, however, the team felt the image lacked the sophistication and high-tech, disruptive vibe we were aiming for; it seemed too elementary for a sophisticated audience. Below, you can see the original, unaltered image alongside a “rough concept” developed to communicate the basic concept.
Original image
Working concept
Step 2: Enhancing the Concept with AI
Using or experimenting with artificial intelligence to enhance an image can still be risky business. For all of its wondrous capabilities, we’re all too familiar with viral photos where AI fails. Human hands with extra fingers, scary composited faces, unintended hybridization of subjects and backgrounds—you’ve certainly run across them if you’re on social media.
That said, in the hands of skilled Art and Creative Directors, AI can open up a world of new possibilities for creating, composing, and editing visuals. We mentioned above the challenge of how to take an ordinary image as a starting point and elevate it to a new level that better represents the brand and goals of the campaign. Below is the result of numerous, detailed prompts wherein we transformed the original image by changing the wooden blocks into glass cubes as well as changed the setting using AI. This became our improved “base” image.
Enhanced image
This dramatic upgrade made all the difference in positioning and supporting the client campaign subject as sophisticated, contemporary, and dynamic. To achieve this transformation by any other means would have required either a substantial amount of time via traditional retouching or the expense of an elaborate photoshoot. Using AI, we achieved our goal in roughly half the time with a reasonable amount of effort. Another benefit of creating a distinct, new image was that it is one-of-a-kind and wholly “ownable” by the client. Naturally, we leveraged this fact by applying the image everywhere we could to generate maximum awareness and maintain continuity across the campaign.
Step 3: Hands-On Customization—The Human Touch
Of course, with AI, as with other things, a human touch is better. Most things are not perfect straight off-the-rack or out-of-the-box. In this case, our Creative Director took the enhanced AI image and manually added the final details to bring the concept to life. Details included adding custom illuminated icons, a dramatic glow to the glass cubes, ambient lighting for atmosphere, contrast for the headline, and general retouching. With these things completed, the campaign’s hero image was applied across the entire campaign, generated the desired awareness, and served to distinguish the client with a relatable, unexpected, on-brand visual. Mission accomplished!
Final image
Conclusion
“Gartner predicts that by 2025, 30% of outbound marketing messages from large organizations will be generated with AI, further blurring the lines between automated and human-driven creativity.”
At Envision Health, we believe as AI continues to evolve, its role in visual creation for truly creative ad agencies will only expand and clients will know and see the difference. By embracing these technologies, agencies have a real opportunity to enhance creativity and deliver highly personalized, compelling visuals that deliver results for their clients.
Key Takeaways of Using AI in Creative Development:
- Visuals are central to storytelling and brand connection, and agencies are embracing AI to find new ways to capture attention and leave lasting impressions.
- AI is an evolving tool rapidly changing the way advertising agencies are imagining and creating visuals.
- As a catalyst for creativity, AI is enabling agencies to save time by leaving traditional and practical limitations behind.
- Creative agencies are leveraging AI to empower creative teams to focus more on ideation and strategy in order to create better connections and produce breakthrough visuals.
- A skilled human touch can add sophistication and relevance to AI assisted visuals balancing out where AI alone may fall short.
Let’s Connect!
I’d love to hear your thoughts on how creativity and AI can help set your healthcare business apart—always with a thoughtful human touch. If you’re interested in exploring new ideas or just having a great conversation, feel free to reach out at gregscott@envhs.com.
No pressure, just an open invitation to chat and collaborate. Looking forward to connecting!
-Greg Scott, Head of Creative, Envision Health