I get questioned at least once a day about the best way to learn CorelDRAW. I’m sure that is because I’ve been providing training on CorelDRAW for more than seventeen years now. Typically the question comes with comments about how the user needs to use CorelDRAW, their current level of experience and something related to their budget. I do my very best to advise them based on the criteria provided to me. Before I provide my suggestions, I have to comment a bit on the budget restrictions I’m given.

I got an e-mail from someone who had just purchased a business where CorelDRAW that was an integral part of all of their production processes. It included several costly machines so I’m sure purchasing this business was a significant investment. The buyer had absolutely no experience with CorelDRAW. But I was given the caveat that the buyer absolutely couldn’t afford coming to Arizona for training. Sorry if this comes out sarcastically, but the comment just makes no sense to me. The buyer could afford many thousands of dollars to buy a business that revolves around CorelDRAW, but they can’t afford to spend a very small fraction of that to get training on it? I hear the same thing constantly from people who buy high dollar equipment for engraving, wide format printing, digital garment printing and more. The cost of the training is only a small fraction of what you spent on the equipment and that equipment is driven by CorelDRAW. So I ask each of you to think about your budget seriously as I describe some of the options available. Don’t worry, there are options for every budget.

No matter the experience level, I truly believe every CorelDRAW user can get great value from my CorelDRAW Unleashed books. Users who don’t get their money’s worth on the books are not using them. CorelDRAW X4 Unleashed gives you over 1100 pages of written instruction and 14.5 hours of video for $75. Ten years ago you would have paid over $500 to get that same content! For new users, a training resource like this is invaluable as it will get them up and running as quickly as possible. Of course, they do have to spent time reading, watching the videos and practicing what they’ve learned. While experienced users will know some of the information included, they will still pick up numerous tips to increase their productivity.

Recently a buyer of the CorelDRAW X4 Unleashed book said “I bought the premium edition, and it is great. There is so much learning information that I have not even accessed yet. The information is precise and easy to understand.  The movies that are included help make everything very clear. I went through the e-book once and I am going through it again.”

I also get asked regularly when the CorelDRAW X5 Unleashed book will be available. The short answer is that it will be available in June 2010. I don’t have the exact date yet as I am still completing parts of the training material. My goal is to provide the most complete training and I won’t release it until I am happy with the result. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be outlining some of the features of the book and it will be made available for pre-order in the near future.

To learn the most in the least amount of time, I recommend the CorelDRAW Unleashed Training Boot Camp. As the Boot Camp includes a copy of the CorelDRAW X4 Unleashed ebook (and soon the CorelDRAW X5 Unleashed ebook), we gladly send the book to new users in advance as the Boot Camp assumes that attendees know the basic functionality of CorelDRAW. Some users look at the cost of the class and immediately dismiss it, as with the e-mail I described earlier. Yet they don’t consider the value of their increased productivity and creativity after attending the class.

A recent attendee said “I use CorelDRAW in less than 5% of my work. Yet Foster’s class was worth far more than the cost and time invested because it’s clearly going to both increase my quality and reduce time dramatically.”

I’ll again ask you to consider the cost of the equipment you use. Are you getting the most out of that equipment? If not, is it your lack of CorelDRAW knowledge that is holding you back? Be honest with yourself. Sure, I want to have more people attend the training classes. I take my responsibility very seriously and that is to deliver you more value than the money you invest. There are three more Boot Camps scheduled in 2010. That means only 36 more people will have this learning opportunity in 2010. If you delay, you may not get a seat!

Sometimes you have multiple users who need CorelDRAW training and it would be costly to send them all to Boot Camp. That is why we created the On Site Boot Camp where a customized version of the training is brought to you. I will work with you to customize the content of the class to give your organization the best bang for your buck. These sessions can also be presented to trade organizations or to groups of your customers. If you want to sell the seats in the class to cover the cost, I will do my best to help you fill as many seats as possible.

If you are a regular CorelDRAW user and something has you stumped, I can help you get those questions answered in a Phone Consultation. I ask that you provide the question in advance so that I can do any necessary research to get you the best answers. You won’t pay a dime for the time I spend researching your question. Then I’ll call you at an agreed upon time and we’ll go over your questions together. Your cost is dependent on the length of the call.

Someone who recently went through a phone consultation with me said the following: “I just wanted to say thank you again for the phone consultation you provided me recently, and at such a reasonable price. I feel almost embarrassed at the price I paid because the information you provided to me will save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in reduced art production time in the future. I know I have you in my back pocket with the one-on-one phone consultations. In our company, manufacturing awards and recognition products as well as wearables and ad specialties, almost every product is touched by Corel. How could we possibly afford not to know it as well as we can?”

Each of the options described has a cost and that obviously is a direct benefit to me. CorelDRAW training is my job and I take it very seriously! Yet all of these options give you a greater value than the money you invest. If you simply won’t spend any money, there are many complementary resources on the Graphics Unleashed Web site. There are also numerous other training products available in the Graphics Unleashed Media Marketplace. It is a good time to look at your current level of CorelDRAW knowledge and to take action on improving your skills if needed.