Reusing slides from an existing presentation can save you a ton of time when creating new slides decks. Thankfully, Google Slides makes it easy to import slides from other presentations right into the one you’re currently working on. In this article, I’ll walk you through the complete process step-by-step.
Why Import Slides?
There are a few great reasons to import existing slides:
- Saves time – Creating presentations from scratch is time consuming. Importing slides lets you skip repetitive layout and design work.
- Consistency – Maintaining consistent branding and messaging across presentations keeps your content cohesive. Importing slides helps achieve that consistency with less effort.
- Leverage previous work – If you or colleagues have already created slides you want to reuse, importing them makes perfect sense. No need to recreate the wheel!
In summary, leveraging existing slides by importing them into new presentations boosts your productivity. The time savings really add up for recurring presentations like status updates, reports, and common pitch decks.
Step 1: Open the Destination Presentation
First, open the Google Slides presentation you want to import slides into. This is the destination presentation that will contain the new slides.
To access Google Slides, navigate to slides.google.com and open the desired presentation file. Alternatively, you can open a presentation from Google Drive by double clicking on it.
Once the destination presentation is open in Google Slides, you’re ready to move on to importing.
Step 2: Access the Import Slides Option
The “Import slides” option allows you to browse and select an existing presentation to pull slides from. Here’s how to access it:
- Click on the File menu.
- Select Import slides. This opens the import dialog box.
Import slides menu option
The keyboard shortcut Ctrl+I (Cmd+I on Mac) will also open the Import slides dialog box.
Either method takes you directly to the next step – choosing the source presentation.
Step 3: Select the Source Presentation
In the Import slides dialog, navigate to and select the Google Slides presentation containing the source slides you want to reuse.
The dialog box allows you to access the following locations:
- Google Drive – this is where your Google Slides presentations are stored by default.
- Local device – you can also upload a PowerPoint PPTX file from your computer.
- Slides home screen – easily access commonly used presentations here.
Import slides dialog box
Once you’ve selected the source presentation, Google Slides will display thumbnail previews of all slides within it.
Step 4: Choose the Slides to Import
In this step, pick the exact slides from the source presentation that you want to reuse in the destination presentation.
The import dialog displays an overview of all available slides. Hover over each thumbnail to preview the slide.
To select a slide for import:
- Check the box below each slide you want to reuse.
- Optionally click the All checkbox to select all slides at once.
- Click the slides/checkboxes again to deselect as needed.
Once you’ve made your selections, scroll down and click the blue Import slides button.
Selecting slides to import
This adds the slides into the destination presentation. They will be inserted after the current slide you have open.
Step 5: Rearrange and Edit Imported Slides
By default, Google Slides adds all imported slides sequentially. If desired, rearrange the imported slides to integrate them with existing content:
- In the thumbnail pane, click and drag slides to place them in the desired position.
- Use the toolbar, right click menu, or keyboard shortcuts to make edits to imported slides.
- Change the theme, layout, fonts, colors, and design at will!
The imported slides are now a part of your presentation. Customize and tweak them as needed.
Note: Imported slides retain their original theme and formatting by default. To make them visually match the new presentation, check the “Keep original theme” option before importing.
And that’s it! With these five simple steps you can swiftly reuse slides from other Google Slides presentations. Importing slides saves time, maintains consistency, and prevents duplication of effort.
Tips for Working With Imported Slides
Here are some additional pointers for importing and reusing slides efficiently:
- Rename confusing slide titles – The imported slides retain their original titles. Rename any titles that seem confusing or unclear out of context.
- Consolidate multiple versions – Importing the same slide from different presentations can create duplicates. Consolidate any redundant versions.
- Cite sources – If reusing slides from third-party presentations available online, make sure to cite the original creator.
- Use keyboard shortcuts – Learn shortcuts like Ctrl+C (copy), Ctrl+V (paste), and Ctrl+D (duplicate) to efficiently reuse and tailor imported slides.
- Organize with sections – Group related slides in sections to keep your presentation organized. Rename section headers appropriately.
Leveraging existing slides through Google Slides’ simple import tool can save you tons of time when building new presentations. With the steps in this article, you’ll be able to import slides confidently.
Let me know if you have any other questions!