images of branded templates

Canva for Teams Design Platform

UC Davis Canva for Teams Platform

The Canva for Teams platform at UC Davis provides access to easy-to-use branded templates across all channels that are pre-approved and customizable. It limits access to just the colors and fonts within UC Davis brand standards, making it easy to ensure consistency and compliance.

This one-minute video offers a quick overview of Canva features. To learn more, visit Canva.com. 

New Subscription Period: July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024

If you would like to begin enhancing your productivity and creativity, the UC Davis Canva for Teams platform offers annual subscriptions with two-tiered pricing:  

  • Individual Seats: $115 (down 56% from the previous year)
  • Brand Kits: $1,400 (down 49% from previous year)

The Brand Kit package includes ten seats, custom templates, and capacity for unit-specific brand assets such as color palettes and logos.

If you have already been a 2022/23 Canva subscriber, your subscription will automatically be extended through June 30, 2024 at no additional cost. (For further details, see the email you should have received from Strat Comm on April 25, 2023 and let us know if you want it resent.)

To become a new subscriber, please complete this online subscription form by June 30, 2023. New subscriber recharges will be billed two weeks after the form is submitted. If you’re not yet ready to sign up, you may also opt in for the next available six-month window (January 1 through June 30, 2024) at half the annual subscription price.

What’s New In Canva?

For Aggies in fiscal year 2023/24, not only is Canva less expensive than before, it’s also easier and more powerful to use. Whether you’re just getting started, or if you’re a longtime user wanting to see what’s changed, there is a high-level interactive handbook just for you.

Choose Your Own Instructional Adventure

We’ve got some UC Davis Canva for Teams training opportunities coming soon. In the meantime, these two interactive handbooks below (produced by Canva, not Strat Comm) provide a solid starting point or refresher course. Please note that UC Davis users will see some minor differences and customizations in their actual Canva environment not represented in these general handbooks.

The Member Handbook for Large Teams is for learning the basics of navigating the environment and working collaboratively.

The Designer Handbook for Large Teams is for learning to set up brand assets and publish templates. 

Here’s a summary of what’s new in the UC Davis Canva for Teams platform:

Design Elements Unlocked

Due to popular demand, ALL the design elements have recently been unlocked. You now have access to not just the UC Davis brand elements but also the built-in Canva elements. Use your new flair tools to your heart’s content — with tasteful brand-conscious restraint following the university brand guidelines, of course!

Brand Kit Enhanced

Canva brand kits had already included container sections for Logos, Fonts and Color Palettes. Canva has now added sections for Photos, Graphics and Icons. Anyone with “Designer” access to your team’s brand kit may populate those containers with popular and/or useful items. Login and look for the new “Brand Hub” menu item (at left) to get started.

Folders Expanded

Each unit using Canva (whether licensed by individual seats or community “brand kit”) will be assigned a root folder to contain all projects, templates, assets and designs. Sub folders can be added as needed. When creating new designs, make sure to keep them in your unit’s root folder, as Strategic Communications does periodically clean up the enterprise environment and delete stray folders and files.

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

Subscriptions

  • Can multiple people use the same "Individual Seat?"
  • Generally, no. Seats are for individuals. Interns are an exception. They may share a common seat, but they cannot use it at the same time.
  • How can we transfer a seat when there’s staff turnover?
  • Just notify Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu) and marketing@ucdavis.edu from Strategic Communications and we’ll take care of it.
  • Is the UC Davis Canva for Teams environment suitable for creating confidential documents? 
  • Yes, this tool has been approved by IET for security and risk. Unless the seat holder publishes their work to a shared folder, it will remain visible only to the seat holder.
  • Isn’t this a big expense for smaller cash-strapped units?
  • A Canva subscription remains less expensive than the Adobe CC subscription. It also offers greater ease of use, more sharing options, and is well suited for relatively simple projects.
  • If we don’t purchase this, will we still have access to UC Davis photos, logos and other resources in the Brand Communications Guide?
  • Absolutely!
  • Will documents created in Canva for Teams be sharable with others in the unit without accounts? If we make a great PowerPoint template for the department, can we share it with others who don't have Canva for Teams?
  • Yes, a template can be shared via a link to anyone with just a free Canva account. Additionally, you can download the design as a PDF or PPT and share it universally. See this video for extra help.

Access and Setup

  • What information do I need to create a Canva for Teams account?
  • A UC Davis email address is required, and you must have completed the Canva for Teams subscription form with your department information and recharge number.
  • Can I merge accounts?
  • There is no way to merge accounts. The interface does enable users to toggle between accounts.
  • Can I transfer templates between accounts?
  • Yes. From one account, you can create a link to a template, then go into your other account and paste the link, which will create a clone of that template in the destination account.
  • Can I transfer ownership of files between team members?
  • Yes. You can refer to this Canva link for instructions on how to transfer ownership and what that does.
  • How should I upload logos (and vector assets) to my Canva account?
  • When working in print, all department logos and other non-photo graphic elements should be uploaded as vector files. While JPEGs and PNG files are used for electronic publication, vector files are scalable without losing resolution and produce better results in print publications. ​​​​To use your vector logos (file formats including .ai and .eps) in Canva, they must be converted to SVG files. Never use PNG, JPEG or other image versions of logos for print. You can refer to this Canva link for more help. When uploading, be sure to add them to either your unit’s Brand Kit, if you have one, or to your unit’s root folder. Contact your unit’s folder owner for more.
  • Can I set up an approval workflow for my team?

  • Yes, please reach out to Canva administrators Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu ) or marketing@ucdavis.edu from Strategic Communications and send them the email of the person you would like to add as an approver for your unit. Once added, individual templates can be set so that when used, they get routed to that individual for approval.

  • Can I create a workflow where a team member is the designated approver for ALL work of that team?

  • No, although users with Designer status can publish a design as a template and designate an individual as an approver. When another user creates a design from the template, it will get routed to that designee. 

Brand Kit

  • Will there be Brand Kits developed for those who aren't using Canva for Enterprise? For example, for those who need to use InDesign, Photoshop, etc.?
  • The Brand Communications Guide provides trained designers with guidelines for producing on-brand materials for UC Davis. For non-designers or those looking for an expedient way to produce branded communications, we recommend getting a Canva account and using the available pre-approved templates. We do not offer templates for Adobe users at this time.
  • Must we have our own Brand Kit in order to use our unit’s logo?
  • No, you can (and should) upload your own logos and assets into your unit’s root folder, which shares them with the right people on your unit/team. Brand Kits are useful for large units with many shared assets and/or a need to constrain color and font options.
  • Does my department need a Brand Kit?
  • Brand Kits are excellent tools for large units with many brand design assets or for units that need to restrict the number of colors and fonts in their brands. Many smaller units with only a handful of logos or custom assets can simply store them in a folder structure of their own choosing within their unit’s root folder.
  • How do I create my department’s Brand Kit?
  • Only Canva administrators can create a new Brand Kit. Template designers have the capability to edit Brand Kits, but regular Members will not. If you want to create your own Brand Kit, you can contact an administrator Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu), Lori Arcangel Wright (larcangel@ucdavis.edu), or marketing@ucdavis.edu to start building your own Brand Kit.
  • Can we add someone to our brand kit after it is already set up?
  • Yes, Please reach out to Canva administrators Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu ), Lori Arcangel Wright (larcangel@ucdavis.edu), or Jasmin Francis-Bush (jafrancisbush@ucdavis.edu) from Strategic Communications and they can send an invitation.
  • Can we have more than ten people on the same brand kit?
  • Yes, however you will need to pay for additional seat licenses beyond the ten allotted in the standard Brand Kit package.
  • What changes have been made to foldering from when Canva first launched at UC Davis?
  • Each unit that uses Canva for Teams has a root folder where assets like designs, templates, and elements should be stored. It is up to each unit’s administrator how to structure any subfolders. Units with Brand Kits will also have their Brand Kit added to that root folder and anyone with access to the folder will have the ability to choose between their unit’s Brand Kit and the main UC Davis Brand Kit. Units without their own Brand Kit will still be able to use the main UC Davis Brand Kit.
  • How do I create a template for my team to use?
  • Templates can be created by those with Designer status. Once a design is ready, go to the “Share” button in the top right corner of your screen, choose the “Brand Template” button just underneath the purple “Copy Link” button, and choose somewhere in your unit’s folder in the drop-down menu. Make sure not to publish to the root “Brand Templates” folder.
  • Can we add/remove someone to our brand kit after it is already set up?

  • Yes, Please reach out to Canva administrators Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu ), Lori Arcangel Wright (larcangel@ucdavis.edu), or Jasmin Francis-Bush (jafrancisbush@ucdavis.edu) from Strategic Communications and send them the email of the person you would like to add or remove.

Design

  • Do you have any tips for working with logos and vector assets?
  • Yes! Logos and vector assets are used in the SVG file format in Canva. In order to create SVGs for upload: Remove unnecessary layers, stray anchor points, and invisible objects. Make sure to expand all strokes, paths, and text boxes (Select your artwork > Object > Expand). Group together shapes with the same color and avoid using textures and gradients. Scale your vector art to 200px wide. With your artwork selected, fit the artboard to your artwork (Object > Artboards > Fit to Selected Art). Save as an SVG file (profile of SVG 1.1 selected) with CSS Properties set to “Presentation Attributes.” SVG images must be under 3 MB in size. When using an SVG asset within Canva, the artwork can be recolored and scaled like most other Canva elements. If you’re working with an SVG asset that has grouped vector objects within it, each group can be colored separately. For example, a unit logo signature SVG asset can have both Aggie Blue and Aggie Gold applied to different parts of it.
  • Do the animations created in a Canva presentation translate to PowerPoint?
  • No. For animated presentations, we recommend using the URL conversion option (that is, creating a web-based presentation with a shareable link).
  • My team has a lot of photos. Will we need to upload them to your campus repository or can we upload directly to Canva?
  • You can directly upload your folders to Canva.
  • How does a presentation template work for the rest of your team that isn't using Canva? How do they use the template? Does it just convert to PowerPoint?
  • You can convert to PowerPoint and you can also create the presentation as a shareable website link.
  • How does that work for someone who is going to a conference? Can they work through Canva to edit their document, then convert to PowerPoint and download it?
  • Yes, you can edit through Canva and then convert or publish as a landing page when ready to present.
  • For the option to create a webpage, will the URL remain active indefinitely? Or would we use these as a form of presentation only?
  • It is available indefinitely. If you delete the design or resave it in a new folder, the URL will no longer work.
  • How do I upload videos?
  • Check out this video starter pack that explains the process of uploading video.

Groups

  • Can I control group access for my department seats?
  • If you are an Administrator for your team's group, you can add Members to your group. Lexi Trucco (ljtrucco@ucdavis.edu ), or marketing@ucdavis.edu can help to create a group for your team. Provide the names/emails to one of these administrators and they can update group access and add or remove team members.

Printing

  • How is Canva connected to the campus printer?
  • Repro Graphics is the preferred campus printer. In order to print templates, download it as a PDF, choose CMYK, and print on an Office printer or send it to Repro Graphics or call them at 530-754-1010. If the color or image goes to the edge of the design on any side, that is called a “bleed” and such designs require crop marks. When your design is ready, instead of making a PDF for Repro Graphics to print from, just share the design with (link) and they’ll prepare it for printing.