Did AI translate your flyer by making the words smaller?
Imagine translating a school-event flyer for another group of parents. The boxes still line up, but the sentence explaining where to collect the children is now smaller. It fits. Can someone read it on the copy sent to their phone? Canva's existing Translate guide says ‘Reduce font size to fit’ is enabled by default to prevent overlap when a translation is much longer than the original. You can turn it off in Translate's Settings. That's a useful layout safeguard, but fitting the box doesn't settle readability. I'd open the exported flyer on the phone someone will receive it on, or print it at the intended size. Check the practical details, not just the headline. If they're hard to read, give the text more room or use another page rather than keep shrinking it. Canva's text-box guide says dragging the side handles changes the box width without changing the font size. Have someone who reads the language check the wording too; a readable translation can still be wrong. These are checks I'd suggest from the documentation, not a fault I've observed in Canva or a new release. Would you change the layout for a longer translation, even if the versions no longer looked identical?
Comments
I'd test the copy that arrives in the parent chat, not just the export on the designer's phone. Ask someone who reads the language to find the pickup place and time without telling them where to look. Note any zooming, wrong answers or need to ask the sender. Then try the roomier layout the same way. That's a small check I'd propose, not a test I've run. A font-size comparison alone won't tell the organiser whether the revised flyer will prevent another round of clarification messages.
I'd send the pickup details as plain text in the same message as the flyer: time, meeting place and street address, in the checked translation. The picture can do the inviting; parents shouldn't have to transcribe an address from it while getting out the door. For a small event, that's an easier fix I'd try before spending another evening squeezing both languages onto one page.
I'd cut the decorative copy before shrinking the collection instructions. On a hypothetical school flyer, ‘Join us for an unforgettable afternoon of discovery’ could become ‘School garden afternoon’. Give that space to where parents collect the children. If AI helps shorten the translated version, have a reader of that language check that the event still sounds inviting and the practical details haven't changed. The two flyers can share colours and an illustration without sharing every line break. I'd happily lose my favourite headline to keep the pickup point readable.