How Global App Testing Helps Canva Captivate and Retain Users in New Markets

It’s like having an extension of our own testing resources in the countries where we can’t operate full time.

- Raymond Torcuator, Localization Testing Project Manager at Canva

ABOUT CANVA

Since launching in August 2013, Canva has been empowering the world to design. Today they have over 35 million monthly active users across 190 countries, who’ve collectively created more than 1 billion designs.

Website: www.canva.com
Country: Australia

Challenges

Ensuring users in all markets are delighted with Canva’s UI

Since launching in 2013, Canva has grown to serve over 35 million monthly active users, across 190 countries, leading to a $6Billion USD valuation in June 2020.

This rapid expansion, to such a wide array of international markets, has come with significant challenges. Canva has to ensure that its products work for as many people as possible, no matter their language, location or culture.

In 2018, Canva went looking for Localization Quality Assurance (LQA) expertise to support its internationalization efforts.

Raymond Torucator, Localization Testing Project Manager at Canva explains how at that time, Canva simply didn’t have the testers in every corner of the globe needed to ensure localized quality.

“Back then, there weren't a lot of resources globally. That's part of the reason why the localization team looked for a partner who could help us manage the global approach we were trying to roll out —particularly in the area of LQA.”

Canva’s mission is to empower the world to design anything, regardless of previous design experience or skill level. This means the user experience needs to be flawless in every market.

Even now, as Canva’s global workforce has expanded, taking this mammoth task in-house doesn’t make sense.

Solution

Reliable and painless LQA testing at scale

Today, the internet is continuing to grow apace, as gaps in its global coverage are closed, and more devices are connected. From smart-phones to smartwatches, cars, and even vacuum cleaners, 28.5 billion devices are expected to be online by 2022 - that’s more than three for every person on the planet.

“We want to make Canva look like it's written for each individual user, regardless of their location and language. And that's where Global App Testing is really helping.”

Raymond says if he were to switch from GAT to in-house LQA testing, he wouldn’t be able to focus on important ‘high-level’ LQA strategy and implementation.

He’s also worked 15-hour days in previous roles because he had so many testers reporting into him directly, all needing help, asking for instructions and giving their feedback one-by-one.

“With Global App Testing, I don't have to deal with individual testers. The GAT Project Management team, Test Cycle Manager and their internal resources take care of all that. In previous roles I've been at a point where I was the person managing the whole testing team. So I know how difficult that is.”

With Raymond saving so much time on managing LQA resources, he’s able to hone in on new initiatives to make sure Canva’s global appeal keeps on rising.

“Being able to focus on just the test initiative and getting more high-level information lets me continue doing my own work here at Canva and allows me to run tests at the same time."

Results

More than 60% of users now come from non-English markets

Canva continues to grow at an extraordinary rate. Raymond knew that polishing Canva’s UI so it feels natural to everyone would bring in more and more users. But it’s not just attracting new users that’s important to a subscription-based business. Retention is key too.

According to Raymond, LQA and the relationship with Global AppTesting is part of the solution that helps Canva delight users, as well as grow and give a unified experience to all their free and paid users.

“To attest to that, based on the latest MAU (monthly active user reports), more than 60% of our active users are coming from non-English markets. We were actually surprised that it has beaten the number of our English users. That's how important localization is to us as a group. And we want to make sure that we keep growing those markets since that's where a lot of opportunities are.”

As Canva’s Localization expert, this is a point of personal pride for him and his team. When he heard user numbers in Brazil surpassed the US, Raymond felt surprised but validated.

Our testing helped Canva's explosive growth.

Huge uplift in global MAUs

Our testers use real devices on real networks to replicate an authentic user experience and provide meaningful feedback for your team.
Time saved on managing testers

We provided actionable bug reports, which allowed developers to quickly spot the issue for an easy fix. Expert bug moderation is provided by our in-house team of industry professionals.
Increased user experience and confidence

Earn the trust and satisfaction of international users by ensuring bugs don't affect their interactions with your brand and products.

Realising that Canva has become more popular to non-English users boosts our morale. It's a good reflection that what we’re doing, with GAT’s help, impacts the product as a whole. ”

Raymond Torcuator, Localization Testing Project Manager