New tips, every week. This is where Melissa shares what's actually working in presentation design and AI — from slides to social media marketing. Expect hands-on tips for PowerPoint, Keynote, Canva, Claude, Midjourney, Google Flow & Veo, Nano Banana, Topaz Photo & Video, Buffer, and more as new tools earn their spot.
Slide Zoom - Clickable Thumbnail Navigation
Insert → Zoom → Slide Zoom turns any slide into a clickable thumbnail menu. Create a central hub slide with Slide Zoom thumbnails of your key topics. Clicking a thumbnail zooms directly into that section. When that section is finished, a "Return to Zoom" feature automatically brings you back to the main agenda to pick the next topic.
Master the Selection Pane in PowerPoint
Alt + F10 opens the Selection Pane. Rename every object. Future-you (and anyone editing your deck) will thank you. This is a must-know if you like to use morph animation in PowerPoint.
Morph: The most versatile transition in PowerPoint
Duplicate a slide, move one object, apply Morph. PowerPoint animates seamlessly. Looks like Keynote magic. In the selection pane, rename the object to start with !! for more control.
Save frequently offline when working in Sharepoint
Working in a live deck with other team members? Make sure you’re backing up locally. Even though there are versions you can go back to online, sometimes they fail.
Tips by Melissa - Keynote & General Presentation Design
Look at your slides at 200% Zoom
Low resolution images seem like they’re fine at 100%, but if you zoom in to 200%, it's a better test of whether they'll hold up when projected. Always check each slide this way, so your images are crisp.
Lock Layers You're Done With
Right-click → Lock. Stops you from accidentally nudging your background image while moving text or other objects. Sounds small. Saves real time.
Bullet Points Are a Last Resort
Ask: Could this be a diagram? An infographic? Represented with iconography or images? Bullets are what you use when the better idea didn't show up.
Use the eyedropper tool for color matching
Click any shape → Fill → Eyedropper. Pull a color from any image on screen. Instant brand-matching without hunting hex codes.
Canva
The Position Panel Is your best friend in Canva
Right-click → Position. Use it instead of guessing alignment with your eye. Align to page, distribute evenly, layer order. Speed unlocked.
Magic Resize in Canva saves time
Built a square post? Magic Resize resizes it to a story, a thumbnail, a banner. Stop manually rebuilding the same idea for every aspect ratio. It’s not perfect, but it does save time.
Use frames for consistent cropping in Canva
Elements → Frames. Drop any image in. It auto-fits the shape. Need to reuse a layout later? Simply drop a new image right over the top of the old and move it into position until it fills the shape. Easy peasy.
Build a Template Master Folder in Canva
Keep one folder per content type (tips, quotes, new-product marketing). New post = duplicate the closest template and swap content.
Claude
Claude the design Critic
Before delivery, export to PDF, send to Claude, and ask Claude to critique each slide. It catches what you’ve gone blind to after 4 hours in the file, and can help you tighten the storyline.
Give Claude your audience first
Don't ask 'write me slide copy.' Ask 'writecopy for a skeptical CFO who has 90 seconds to get my message.' The output difference is night and day.
Create a Soul.md file for Claude
Ask Claude to interview you one question at a time. Cover your brand voice, values, audience, vocabulary rules, and personality. Once finished, have Claude synthesize your answers into a Soul.md file it will use from now on to help you with content.
Ask Claude to cut, not Add
Most slides have too many words, not too few. Ask: 'Cut this in half without losing the point.' Then ask again. Watch what survives.
Charts don't belong as screenshots
If you need to use a chart you found online, don't drop it in as an image — ask Claude to rebuild it for you using Excel. Now it’s fully editable and you can change it to your brand colors.
Choose your language model wisely in Claude
You hardly ever need the latest language model if you’re working on a presentation. Using the latest language model will burn through tokens and cause you to have to stop working, which breaks flow. When in doubt, ask Claude which one to use.
Build a Reusable Prompt Library for Claude
Save your best prompts in a notes app. 'Rewrite this slide title to lead with the insight.' Reuse forever.
Treat Claude Like a New Employee
You wouldn’t expect a new employee to just know your brand and what you like straight out of the gate. You would spend the time training them on your brand. This is how to get the best from Claude as well.
