Stacking Growth | The B2B Marketing Podcast

Being a Designer in the AI Era

Nov 18, 2025

Monica Beesting, Lead Designer at Refine Labs with a rich background in museum and graphic design, discusses the intersection of creativity and technology. She shares how AI can enhance creativity without compromising brand authenticity. Monica emphasizes the importance of human art direction, ethical boundaries in using AI, and tips for effective team collaboration. As she navigates the pressures of adopting new tools, her goal remains clear: to produce original visuals over generic stock imagery, even as trends in low-quality AI emerge.

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ANECDOTE

Museum Design Launched Her Visual Storytelling

Monica started as a museum designer and built skills in clear informational storytelling.
She learned to translate dry facts into compelling visuals for varied audiences.

ANECDOTE

Client Project Sparked AI Experimentation

Monica experimented with AI for a client to create scenes that didn't exist in stock imagery.
That project let her realize AI can realize unusual story-driven concepts like a giant squid carousel.

INSIGHT

Human Ideas Still Drive Creative Work

AI expands what you can create but cannot replace the human who conceives the idea.
Monica compares her role to an art director who still must connect and sequence visual storytelling.

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0. Summary
This episode explores how Refine Labs lead designer Monica Beesting navigates creativity, design workflows, and authenticity in the AI era. Listeners gain practical insight into how human-driven creative direction remains essential even as AI tools expand what’s possible in modern marketing.

1. Speakers and Roles
Steph Cragnola – Host; marketer guiding conversations about growth, change, and modern marketing challenges.
Evan Hughes – Host; marketing practitioner offering perspective on industry shifts and AI adoption.
Monica Beesting – Lead Designer at Refine Labs; former museum designer turned marketing creative who brings deep experience in visual storytelling, brand identity, and conceptual design.

2. Topics Covered

How designers adapt to the rise of AI in marketing
Using AI to extend creative capability without losing brand voice
Human art direction vs. AI-generated imagery
Ethical boundaries and intellectual property considerations
Collaboration patterns inside modern marketing teams
Emotional and professional pressures surrounding new creative tools
Maintaining quality and authenticity in saturated content environments
Individual creative processes and where AI fits within them

3. Questions This Video Helps Answer

How should creatives use AI without losing their unique voice or standards?
What does “art direction” look like in an AI-driven workflow?
How can brands maintain authenticity when AI-generated content becomes widespread?
What are healthy boundaries for using AI in creative work?
How should marketing teams think about tool adoption and individual creative processes?
How do you balance efficiency with originality in a crowded content landscape?

4. Jobs, Roles, and Responsibilities Mentioned

Designer / Lead Designer
Art Director
Creative Team / Graphic Designers
Marketers
Interns (museum, marketing)
Developers / WordPress implementation
Client-facing creative roles

5. Key Takeaways

AI expands creative possibility but still requires strong human direction to produce cohesive, meaningful visuals.
Each designer must identify their personal boundaries and ethical comfort level with AI tools.
Creative tools should reduce friction, not introduce complexity—adoption should be purposeful, not reactive.
Internal collaboration, especially inside design teams, remains crucial for troubleshooting and skill building.
Unique, human-driven storytelling continues to differentiate brands as AI-generated content becomes ubiquitous.
Designers can embrace AI as a way to bring imaginative concepts to life—not as a replacement for original thinking.

6. Frameworks and Concepts Mentioned

Art direction for AI-generated images
Image curation vs. image creation
Conceptual storytelling
Workflow efficiency vs. creative integrity
Ethical use of AI and avoiding IP infringement