The entire layout system is kind of a convoluted mess. I frequently have to export basic maps to powerpoint in order to make them visually appealing and to generally speed up the process of designing maps.
I think it would make a lot of sense to implement some of the features offered by powerpoint. It is much simpler and more straightforward. In particular, using the drawing box. This would make it easier to label (tying labels to features using nodes, manually positioning locations of labels, better color options, etc.)
Powerpoint also offers a wider array of drawing tools (shapes) that would be nice to have access to.