Making the Best Use of AI: Why Plugins, Appsal intelligence is powerful on its own. 

It can generate ideas, analyse information, improve writing, create plans, suggest solutions and help us think through a problem.

However, AI becomes considerably more useful when it is connected to other specialist tools.

What many people still call plugins are increasingly described as apps or connectors. These allow an AI system such as ChatGPT to work alongside services including Canva, cloud storage, calendars, spreadsheets, research tools and business applications. Instead of simply telling us what to do, the AI can help move the work into the application where it will be completed. nges AI from being merely a clever conversational assistant into something closer to a creative director, project coordinator and production assistant.

The difference is not simply speed. Used properly, these connections can improve the quality, consistency and usefulness of the final result.

AI Is Powerful, but It Cannot Do Every Job Equally Well

One of the mistakes people make when using AI is expecting one system to perform every part of a task perfectly.

ChatGPT may be excellent at:

• developing an idea;

• researching a subject;

• organising information;

• writing a detailed creative brief;

• suggesting a visual structure;

• reviewing a draft;

• identifying weaknesses;

• producing revised instructions.

Canva, meanwhile, specialises in:

• creating layouts;

• combining text and graphics;

• applying fonts and colours;

• producing social media graphics;

• preparing presentations;

• resizing designs;

• working with templates;

• producing editable visual content.

The two tools have different strengths.

ChatGPT can decide what the design needs to communicate. Canva can help turn those instructions into an actual visual design.

That is the real value of connecting AI systems to specialist applications.

Think of the AI as the Director

A useful comparison is a film production.

The director does not personally operate every camera, build every set, adjust every light and edit every frame. The director decides what the production is trying to achieve and coordinates the specialists who make it happen.

AI can take a similar role.

It can help determine:

• the audience;

• the objective;

• the central message;

• the visual hierarchy;

• the emotional tone;

• the words that should appear;

• the information that should be omitted;

• the most suitable format.

It can then pass a structured set of instructions to Canva.

This is much more effective than entering a vague instruction such as:

Make me a good social media image about AI.

Canva may still produce something attractive, but “good” is subjective. The tool does not yet know who the image is for, where it will be published, what message matters most or what should receive the viewer’s attention.

The more precise the direction, the more controlled the result.

A Practical Example: Creating a Social Media Image

Suppose I have written a blog called:

Making the Best Use of AI

I want a square image for LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

My first instruction might be:

Create a social media image about using ChatGPT with Canva.

This might generate a reasonable starting point. However, it leaves most of the important creative decisions to the system.

A stronger instruction would be:

Canva, create a 1080 × 1080-pixel social media graphic promoting a business blog called “Making the Best Use of AI”.

Show a professional workspace in which an AI conversation develops into a polished graphic design. Use a clear left-to-right visual journey: an idea or prompt on the left, an AI processing stage in the centre and a finished social media design on the right.

Use a modern, intelligent and practical style rather than science fiction. Avoid robots, glowing humanoid faces, excessive circuitry and meaningless streams of computer code.

Use a dark navy, white and warm gold colour palette. Add subtle blue highlights. Keep the background uncluttered.

The main headline must read: “Making the Best Use of AI”.

Add the smaller supporting line: “Better prompts. Connected tools. Better results.”

Make the headline the strongest visual element. Leave generous margins around all text and keep important content away from the edges.

Add “Philip M Russell Ltd” discreetly at the bottom.

The finished image should look professional, educational and suitable for a business audience.

That instruction controls:

• the dimensions;

• the purpose;

• the audience;

• the composition;

• the style;

• the colours;

• the headline;

• the supporting message;

• the branding;

• the elements to avoid.

The design tool is no longer being asked to guess what I want. It has been given a proper creative brief.

Canva’s ChatGPT app can create, edit and preview designs from within a conversation, with the option to continue customising the result in Canva. irst Result Should Be Treated as a Draft

One of the biggest misunderstandings surrounding AI is the belief that a prompt should produce a perfect result immediately.

Professional creative work rarely operates that way.

A photographer does not expect every frame to be the final photograph. A writer revises a first draft. A designer experiments with layout, spacing and visual hierarchy.

AI-generated work should be approached in the same way.

The first result gives us something concrete to examine.

We can then ask:

• Is the headline easy to read?

• Is the purpose immediately obvious?

• Is the image too busy?

• Does the background compete with the text?

• Does it look like our business?

• Is the supporting text too small?

• Does the image contain unnecessary generic AI imagery?

• Will it still work when viewed on a mobile telephone?

• Is there enough contrast?

• Is the most important element receiving the most attention?

This is where ChatGPT becomes useful again.

Using ChatGPT as an Art Director

After Canva has produced the first design, the result can be reviewed by ChatGPT.

A useful review instruction might be:

Act as an experienced social media art director. Review this design for clarity, visual hierarchy, mobile readability and professional credibility.

Identify the three most important weaknesses. Then write precise editing instructions for Canva. Do not redesign it completely unless necessary. Preserve the central concept and brand colours.

ChatGPT might then recommend changes such as:

Increase the headline size and reduce the amount of decorative background detail.

Move the finished-design panel slightly to the right so that it does not compete with the central AI symbol.

Increase the contrast behind the supporting line and shorten it to improve mobile readability.

Reduce the number of glowing interface elements because they make the design appear too much like a generic technology advertisement.

Those instructions can then be sent back to Canva.

The process becomes a creative loop:

Idea → brief → design → review → correction → final design

This is much more powerful than asking for a single image and accepting whatever appears.

Write Editing Commands, Not Vague Opinions

When improving a design, vague reactions are not particularly useful.

Saying:

I don’t really like it.

does not tell the AI what needs to change.

A controlled editing command should identify:

1. what is wrong;

2. what should change;

3. what must remain unchanged;

4. why the change is needed.

For example:

Keep the existing layout and navy-and-gold colour palette. Remove the robot illustration and replace it with a clean visual showing a written prompt becoming an editable Canva design. Make the image feel practical and businesslike rather than futuristic. Do not change the headline or company name.

Another useful command would be:

Preserve the background image and overall composition. Enlarge the headline by approximately 15 per cent, move it slightly upwards and add a subtle dark overlay behind it. Increase the contrast without covering the main subject.

These are production instructions rather than general comments.

The clearer the correction, the less likely the system is to alter parts of the design that were already working.

A Seven-Part Formula for Better Canva Instructions

When asking ChatGPT to write instructions for Canva, I find it useful to include seven elements.

1. Purpose

What is the image intended to achieve?

Is it promoting a blog, advertising a course, explaining a scientific idea or announcing an event?

2. Format

Specify the required size and destination.

For example:

• 1080 × 1080 pixels for a square social post;

• 1200 × 628 pixels for a blog or link preview;

• 1080 × 1920 pixels for a story;

• A4 portrait for a printable information sheet;

• 16:9 for a presentation slide or YouTube thumbnail.

3. Audience

A design for A-level students should not necessarily look like a design for company directors.

State who needs to understand or respond to the image.

4. Main Message

Decide what the viewer should understand within the first few seconds.

One strong headline is usually better than several competing messages.

5. Visual Direction

Describe the scene, layout, focal point, photographic style or illustration style.

“Professional photograph of a teacher using AI” is still broad.

“Over-the-shoulder photograph of an experienced teacher using an AI assistant to develop a colourful science worksheet, with laboratory equipment softly visible in the background” is far more useful.

6. Brand Controls

Include colours, logo position, company name, preferred style and any fonts or visual conventions that matter.

Where supported, connected design workflows can also apply brand assets and produce editable content rather than leaving the user with an unchangeable flat image. Canva has also introduced technology that can convert generated imagery into layered, editable designs. egative Instructions

Tell the system what must not appear.

For example:

• no robots;

• no distorted hands;

• no meaningless code;

• no excessive neon lighting;

• no tiny text;

• no clutter;

• no American classroom imagery;

• no unrelated icons;

• no invented company logos.

Negative instructions are particularly important when trying to avoid the familiar, generic appearance of AI-generated advertising.

The Importance of Keeping Designs Editable

A completely finished flat image may look impressive, but it can become a problem when something needs to change.

Perhaps the date is wrong. The headline needs shortening. The image needs resizing. A logo must be moved. The same design is required for LinkedIn, Instagram and a website banner.

Editable design elements are therefore extremely valuable.

Text should remain editable. Backgrounds should be replaceable. Logos should be movable. Individual objects should be adjustable. Colours should be changeable.

This allows AI to create the first version without taking control away from the human user.

The objective should not be to remove people from the design process. It should be to remove unnecessary repetitive work while preserving human judgement.

One Design Can Become a Complete Campaign

Once the main image has been approved, ChatGPT can help create instructions for a family of related materials.

For example:

Using the approved square design as the master style, create:

• a 1200 × 628-pixel blog header;

• a 1080 × 1920-pixel story;

• a LinkedIn banner;

• a presentation title slide;

• an A4 promotional poster.

Preserve the navy, white and gold palette, the central visual concept and the company branding. Adjust the layout for each format rather than simply stretching the original. Keep all text editable.

This is where the combination begins to save substantial time.

The AI is no longer creating one isolated graphic. It is helping establish a consistent visual campaign.

The same approach can be used for:

• course advertisements;

• sailing event announcements;

• science experiment videos;

• company blog promotions;

• educational worksheets;

• YouTube thumbnails;

• presentation slides;

• posters;

• photographic exhibitions;

• product information.

AI Can Also Help Before Canva Is Opened

The connection between ChatGPT and Canva is useful, but the preparation can begin even earlier.

ChatGPT can first help decide:

• which words belong on the image;

• which words belong in the accompanying post;

• which visual metaphor would communicate the idea;

• whether a photograph, diagram or illustration would work best;

• which image dimensions are needed;

• how the same campaign should vary between platforms;

• which details are essential;

• which details would create clutter.

For example, I might ask:

Give me five visual concepts for an article about connecting AI to specialist tools. Avoid robots, human brains and glowing circuit boards. Each concept should be understandable without a long explanation.

ChatGPT could suggest:

• an orchestra conductor coordinating specialist instruments;

• a central control desk connected to different creative tools;

• a rough sketch passing through several specialist workstations;

• a workshop in which the AI supplies plans while specialist machines build the result;

• a relay race in which each application completes the stage it performs best.

I can then select the strongest idea before asking Canva to produce anything.

That prevents time being wasted developing the wrong concept.

Connected AI Requires Sensible Judgement

Apps and connectors can make workflows more capable, but they should be used carefully.

Before enabling a connection, it is sensible to understand what information the application may receive and what actions it can perform. OpenAI explains that an enabled app may use relevant conversational context to help fulfil a request. ns we should avoid casually including confidential client information, private student details, passwords, financial data or other sensitive material in a design workflow.

Every final design should also be checked by a person.

AI can:

• misspell words;

• invent details;

• misunderstand branding;

• produce inappropriate imagery;

• create poor contrast;

• position text outside safe areas;

• use an unsuitable visual style;

• alter details that should have remained fixed.

Connection does not remove the need for inspection. It makes informed human supervision more important.

My Own View: The Skill Is Becoming Direction

The more I use AI, the more I realise that the most valuable ability is not simply knowing how to type a prompt.

The real skill is learning how to direct the process.

That means being able to say:

• what the work is for;

• who it is for;

• what success looks like;

• what must remain consistent;

• what needs changing;

• what should be removed;

• when the result is good enough to publish.

A vague prompt transfers nearly every decision to the machine.

A detailed prompt keeps the human in control.

This is particularly important in my own work because I may move between teaching, photography, scientific demonstrations, sailing, video production, music and business administration. The same visual style will not suit every project.

An A-level physics graphic needs clarity and scientific credibility. A sailing photograph needs movement and excitement. A company announcement needs professionalism. A YouTube thumbnail needs immediate impact.

AI can help with all of them, but only when it is given suitable direction.

Conclusion: Connect the Intelligence to the Right Tool

AI is impressive when it can produce an answer.

It becomes far more useful when it can help us complete a process.

Connecting ChatGPT to Canva illustrates the wider opportunity. ChatGPT can develop the idea, write the brief, create the words, suggest the composition and review the result. Canva can produce the layout, manage the visual elements and turn those instructions into an editable design.

Neither tool replaces the other.

More importantly, neither replaces the person directing the project.

The best results come from combining:

human purpose, AI reasoning and specialist applications.

The future of productive AI is not one machine trying to do everything. It is a collection of capable tools, connected intelligently and directed by someone who knows what the finished work needs to achieve.

The first prompt may create something interesting.

The complete, controlled workflow can create something genuinely worth publishing.