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Software training firm hopes to follow instructional DVDs with Web expansion
By Jennifer Davies
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
November 11, 2007
CARLSBAD – John Bell is the first to acknowledge the irony behind his business, Total Training.
The Carlsbad company makes instructional DVDs for a variety of computer programs, including Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.
CHARLIE NEUMAN / Union-Tribune
"It's ironic that I have a training company," said Total Training founder John Bell. The Carlsbad company is a leader in instructional DVDs for computer programs.
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When he was starting the company in 1996, Bell, a novice in video production, signed up for a film school certification program, only to quit as his schedule became overwhelming.
"I was learning more on the job than I was at school," he said. "It's ironic that I have a training company."
Still, Bell, who never went to college and never finished the film certification program, said the idea behind Total Training makes sense with his approach to education.
"I liked the idea about people being able to learn what they want to learn and not having to waste time on the other stuff," he said.
For Bell, it is an exciting time for Total Training and the education business. Until last summer, Total Training concentrated on producing DVDs that unlocked the secrets of some of the most popular computer programs.
Now the company has moved its offerings online, making it easier to reach potential students, Bell said.
CHARLIE NEUMAN / Union-Tribune
Dave Murcott, vice president of product development at Total Training, worked at a computer that showed one of the company's classes.
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The company has about 50 employees, with half in Carlsbad and half at Total Training's production facilities in the New York City suburb Valley Cottage.
Even though online education long has been technically possible, Bell said he waited until he thought the experience could match that of viewing a DVD.
"We could have been online back in 1998, streaming one frame per second," he said.
In the past, the company would charge a fee for one DVD, $129 for eight hours of instruction in the intricacies of Photoshop. Now a customer can spend $299 a year and get access to all of Total Training's online library.
So far, online sales have been good and have begun to limit the shipping expenses that surrounded the DVD business, Bell said.
Seth Taylor, a graphic designer based near Salt Lake City, said he first used Total Training's materials when he wanted to flesh out his skills in Photoshop and After Effects, a graphics program for post-production video.
Taylor said what separates Total Training from similar companies is that it covers all levels of experience without being repetitive or too rudimentary.
"They explain things really clearly," Taylor said. "Every step of the way they are giving you viable information."
He was so pleased with Total Training that he has used several of its other products, persuading his company to pay for some of the training.
CHARLIE NEUMAN / Union-Tribune
Instructor John Ulliman is onscreen, teaching a lesson in Adobe Flash CS3, a popular and extensive Web site production program.
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Bell said Total Training's client base is evenly divided between companies that purchase the products for employees and individuals who want to learn at their own pace.
Bell said his company is always trying to separate itself from the crowded field of computer training firms by using top-notch instructors and professional production values. Every tutorial is now filmed in high-definition.
Phil Bates, CEO of Artbeats, a stock footage company in Oregon, said Total Training is one of the premier computer training programs. Artbeats provides footage for Total Training to use in tutorials on such programs as After Effects.
The real competition is not other companies who provide similar online and DVD tutorials but traditional education outlets, Bell said. A n entrepreneur who started the company when VHS was the preferred medium, Bell said the Web is finally ready to shake up the education world.
"We are really at the beginning of a new way people are learning and accessing information," he said. "There are so many possibilities. ... That's what gets me excited – all the possibilities."
View original at Sign on San Diego by The Union-Tribune
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