18.1 Designing in Canva

What This Feature Does #

Design images and videos in Canva and bring them straight back into Peikly. Canva opens in its own window, so nothing you were doing here is lost. When you press Return in Canva, the finished design is added to your Media Library (or to your post, or to an AI draft, depending on where you started).

Prerequisites #

• Your subscription plan includes Canva design integration. If it does not, none of the Canva buttons appear.
• You are a CompanyAdmin, or a CompanyAdmin has switched on Design in Canva for you (Users > Data access > Media Library).
• You are allowed to upload media files, because a design that comes back is saved as a library file.
• You have a Canva account. A free one works; some features (resizing, brand templates) depend on your Canva plan.

Connect Your Canva Account (Once) #

Each person links their own Canva account. Click any Design in Canva / Create in Canva button and, if you have not connected yet, Canva’s sign-in opens first and carries on automatically afterwards. You can also manage it from the top bar: Connections > My connections > Canva (Disconnect there; your designs stay in Canva).

Create or Edit From the Media Library #

1. Open Media Library and choose Create in Canva. Under Bring it back as, choose what you want to receive: An image (PNG), A photo (JPG), A video (MP4) or A PDF document. Then pick a size (Instagram post, Story/Reel, WhatsApp header, email banner, and more). If your design will contain a video, choose A video. Peikly cannot tell what is inside your design, and an image export of a design with a video in it is only a picture of one frame.
2. Design in the Canva window, then press Return (the button at the top left of Canva).
3. The design appears in the library with a purple Canva badge. Use the Canva source filter to see only these files.
4. To change a file later, open it and choose Edit in Canva. For a file that came from Canva this reopens the original design; otherwise Canva starts a new design from the file. Update from Canva brings in the latest version of the original design.
5. Edited versions are saved as new files; the earlier file is never replaced, so posts that already use it do not change.

Videos: Find Your Video in Canva’s Uploads #

Canva does not let other apps place a video on a new design. When you choose Edit in Canva (or Finish in Canva) on a video, Peikly sends the video to your Canva account and opens a design of the right size, but the page starts blank. This is expected:

1. In Canva, open Uploads in the left panel, then the Videos tab. Your video is the most recent one.
2. Drag it onto the page, make your changes, and press Return.

Pictures are placed on the page automatically, so they do not need this step.

Use Canva From Any File Picker #

Wherever you choose media (email and WhatsApp templates, the Publishing Wizard, and so on), the picker has a Canva tab. Start a New design, or click an existing design to bring it in. It is saved to the library and selected for you.

Publishing Wizard #

In step 2, Design in Canva suggests sizes for the platforms and post types you chose in step 1. A design with several pages becomes a carousel, in page order. Use the palette icon on any selected picture to edit it in Canva; the result replaces it in the same place. Choose An image or A video in the menu to decide what Canva sends back (a Reel needs a video).

AI Drafts: Finish in Canva #

On an AI draft, Finish in Canva opens the picture or clip in Canva. If you would rather place your logo yourself here, turn off the AI logo switch first (7.2.3) so the AI does not stamp it too. The Canva version replaces it, costs no AI credit, and the previous version is kept one step back: Undo last change restores it. For a video, adding text with the assistant is switched off while the Canva version is in use.

Errors #