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10 Free Video Tutorials For Learning Sketch.app

YouTube is the best place to teach yourself anything in the modern era. Techie subjects are covered in greater detail because most tech-savvy people also know how to record videos and get them online.

One of the newer design programs, Sketch, has been giving Photoshop a run for its money. This is an OSX-only program, but it’s made specifically for web and mobile designers.

It can feel a little strange coming from an Adobe background, but with the right tutorials anyone can learn it, and in this guide, I’ve curated the best Sketch tutorials to get you started with the basics and beyond.

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iOS Calendar in Sketch 3

ios calendar tutorial

Mobile iOS apps are simple to design because they come with screen restrictions and clear guidelines for the designer. That’s why this iOS video tutorial is a great place to start learning Sketch.

Over the course of a half hour you’ll learn the fundamentals of icon design, vector creation, color selection, and keyboard shortcuts. The narration is easy to follow, and you can do all of this on your own with just a copy of the program.

If you’re hoping to learn more about icon design or mobile app design, then this video is for you.

Intro to Sketch for Web Design

intro web design sketch video

Alternatively you might be looking to use Sketch for website design. In that case you’ll love this brief intro from London designer Charli Marie.

If you’re a complete beginner then picking up Sketch can be a hassle, but this is particularly the case for websites where you need to consider responsive layouts, grid systems, and more intricate nuances like textures/patterns on the page.

Granted this video will not make you a complete Sketch master or an expert web designer. But it’ll offer a very clear introduction to the program so you can get up and running fast.

Simple Menu UI/UX

uiux sliding menu sketch

Diving into the more detailed side of design is this Sketch 3 tut covering how to make a sliding nav menu.

This video follows a very simple process of designing a slide out menu on top of an existing interface. Most mobile designers need to do something like this since the sliding menu is the most common choice for responsive menus.

And you can follow this tutorial with the newer version covering another method of designing a vertical slide-out menu.

Nike Store UI Redesign

nike store ui redesign

Another way to practice design is by re-creating interfaces. For example this tutorial teaches you how to redesign a Nike product page in Sketch 3.

It spans about half an hour with guides on working with vectors, basic page shapes, color schemes, textures, and pretty much everything else you’d need to learn.

This video will not make you an expert, but it’s definitely a fun way to get started in this design software.

Dropbox UI/UX Redesign

dropbox ux sketch video

Here’s another cool example from the same YouTuber teaching you how to redesign Dropbox in Sketch. It’s just about the same length of time, and the process feels similar, but there’s also a very unique methodology in this video.

You’ll learn more about matching the colors/textures/icons with Dropbox’s branding and how to design around the company’s image. So you’re not just learning how to use Sketch, but also how to design with specific goals and criteria.

Definitely a unique tutorial for web designers and the final result is fantastic.

Minimalist Website in Sketch 3

minimalist freebie sketch

If you’re looking for a simpler introduction, you might try this tutorial created by Hacksaw Academy. It’s one of the newest videos in this list, and it teaches you how to create a minimalist website mockup from scratch.

In total the video spans 15 minutes which isn’t too long for a design tutorial.

But the final result is also very simple, so beginners won’t feel too overwhelmed. This makes for an excellent starting point to pick up Sketch, but I recommend going beyond this tutorial if you really want to master the program.

Design a Landing Page

landing page video series

Designer Adam Rasheed went above & beyond with his landing page video tutorial covering all the major aspects of Sketch.

This tutorial breaks up into five parts with the very first video totaling over 90 minutes long. Talk about detailed!

You’ll learn about the proper workflow used to create a web page mockup and how you can follow this in future projects. Plus Adam gets into detail on how to create certain page elements like navigation menus, signup forms, and thumbnail galleries.

Basic iOS App Mockup

simple ios mockup sketch

The entire SketchCasts YouTube channel is full of great advice for beginners and experts alike. Sketch has a lot of features, and this channel covers all of them in practical lessons.

I specifically recommend starting with their iOS app mockup tutorial which feels more like a wireframe than a mockup. But you’ll learn all the fundamentals of designing a page by setting dimensions, grids, and proper alignments.

All the techniques you’ll learn in this video apply to professional design work no matter what type of interface you’re creating.

Button System with Nested Symbols

buttons nested symbols

If you wannt to get a little more technical then check out this tutorial on nested symbols in Sketch. This is a unique property of the software and you could learn it through other guides online.

But this 30-minute tutorial shows you visually how to create a Sketch library of buttons using nested symbols in your work. It’s an incredibly practical approach to nested symbols, and you’ll take a lot away from the experience.

However this is not really made for absolute beginners. You should at least have some comfort tinkering in Sketch before diving into this video.

Flexbox for Sketch App

sketch flexbox video tutorial

Modern web designers need to follow responsive techniques. This holds true for frontend development and basic mockup design/wireframing.

In Sketch this process is super easy and this tutorial shows you how it’s all done. This video guide uses the auto-layout plugin made solely for Sketch as a responsive design tool. If you’re a web designer moving into Sketch then this video is a must-watch.

But you can also read through the written article if you prefer that instead.

Fast Prototyping with Sketch, Invision and Craft

invision craft sketch tutorial

Before tackling a full mockup you may want to prototype your website or application. This is like a visual plan for how all your pages fit together and how users traverse the interface.

With this video tutorial you’ll learn how to setup Sketch and how to connect it with two other programs: InVision’s backend along with the free Craft plugin.

An excellent guide for skilled designers who want to work more with prototyping in their day-to-day.

These are my top picks for free Sketch video tutorials but there are many more released each year. If you want to continue the search, try browsing YouTube to see what else you can find.

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10 Tips for Effectively Promoting Your Brand with Video Content

Whether you’re just getting started with website videos or you think you’re a veteran, there is always something you can learn. Web design and content marketing trends shift on a dime – and your business must be aware of the changes on the horizon.

It’s vital to connect with your audience in meaningful ways, and video content offers a fantastic medium for doing just that.

Videos on your website have proven results in terms of leads and conversion rates. YouTube reports mobile video consumption increasing by 100% every year, and analysts predict video will comprise 80% of all web traffic by 2019. Companies are already seizing this immense opportunity, and video ads now account for roughly 35% of all online ad spending.

Perhaps the most compelling statistic to encourage you to explore video content for your own brand is that an entire third of the time people spend online is spent consuming video content. If you haven’t considered what video content can do for your brand, you’re missing this third of internet traffic.

If you want to implement video content or improve your website’s existing video content, consider the following tips for marketing video content more effectively.

1. Assess Your Current Content Marketing Strategy

Modern marketing professionals understand the need to constantly benchmark their campaigns’ progress, assess the returns on their various marketing investments, and measure engagement among their audiences. If you want to improve your site’s video content or wonder what kind of video content would work well for your brand, start by assessing your current content marketing strategy. Figure out what works, what doesn’t work, and what may work better with some adjustment.

Once you assess your current situation, expect opportunities for improvement to crop up throughout your marketing campaign. Take the time to explore video content related to your industry or niche and see what your target consumers seem to enjoy, and then start brainstorming ways to generate compelling, engaging video content of your own.

2. Make Your Content More Interesting

Video provides the perfect opportunity to recycle popular pieces of content and augment existing content in various ways. For example, did you have a blog post last year that was particularly popular? Did a social media post go viral? Think of the marketing success you’ve seen recently and see whether any specific pieces of content jump out at you. Consider repurposing older content into new, engaging video content that will delight your audience.

video production

Consider live events as well. The Periscope app for Twitter and Facebook Live has proven very successful to various marketing campaigns. Live events encourage your target audience to quickly find you and engage with you, and they are far more likely to share these events on social media. Even after the event concludes, you can use the recording on your site or your company’s YouTube channel.

3. Encourage Sharing

Live events lead to the next tip, which is to make your video content shareable. Social media may be the most powerful marketing tool since the invention of the World Wide Web, and it is foolish to discount or undervalue the impact social media has on modern life. Maintaining a social media presence for a business can be difficult.

You need to determine which platforms and networks your customers prefer and focus your attention there. While it may be tempting and even seem logical to create profiles for your company on every social media outlet, casting a wide net like this is far more trouble than it’s worth.

Additionally, your audience will more than likely prefer one or two outlets. Younger crowds will typically appreciate Twitter and Instagram, whereas older audiences tend to prefer Facebook and LinkedIn for the professional end of things.

social sharing

Once you’ve committed to a social media platform, fill your page with compelling content. Video is incredibly shareable, and your target consumers can enjoy video content while working or performing other daily tasks, making it a great opportunity for you to engage with your audience on a consistent basis.

Videos typically go viral faster than any other type of content, so don’t forget this when generating video content for your audience. A fantastic video could quickly spread across social media and provide an incredible boost to your brand recognition and conversion rates. However, a gaffe or poorly timed video could be fruitless or, worse, endanger your brand’s reputation.

4. Stay in Touch with News

Some of the best video content campaigns are in touch with the times and popular culture. For example, the Arby’s marketing team regularly releases short stop-motion videos of its food and branded paper products. In these shorts, an artist uses Arby’s bags and boxes (and sometimes condiments) to create portrayals of scenes and characters from new movie and video game releases.

These clips delight younger audiences, and if you browse Arby’s social media profiles, you’ll more than likely see quite a few comments from consumers saying things like, “I’m buying Arby’s today just because of this ad.”

5. Know Your Audience

Arby’s video marketing tactics are successful, because it knows it younger audience members and their interests. The company found a way to capitalize on this using a few bits of paper and cardboard and a video camera. That is an incredible return on investment for a large company, and its content reaches droves of fans.

6. Be Authentic

Modern audiences and consumers are very discerning and wary. The average person on the internet has learned to ignore things like banner and sidebar ads automatically unless they’re immediately recognizable and valuable.

Strive for authenticity in your video content. You might consider doing a tour of your company grounds or a behind-the-scenes look at some of your processes. You may also want to livestream company events or find other ways to incorporate video content into the other ways you engage with your audience.

video editing

Your consumers will appreciate seeing the more human side of a brand and can sniff out dishonest marketing easily. Authenticity and honesty are the keys to generating interest and enthusiasm around your brand.

7. Generate Brand Awareness

Two of the biggest benefits of video content are its shareable nature and the higher-than-average propensity for going viral and reaching hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of people. To have a compelling effect, create video content that generates excitement and enthusiasm around your brand.

Instead of encouraging your consumers to share your content simply by asking them to do so, make them want to share your content by creating fun and valuable videos.

8. Reap the SEO Benefits

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a mainstay of modern marketing. Marketers are always tweaking their sites’ keywords, keyword density, content refreshes, link history, and various other elements to achieve the most positive SEO results possible. On the flipside, search engines Bing and Google are constantly adjusting their algorithms to keep the playing field as level as possible for everyone.

youtube mobile app

Video content is valuable, and there is so much video traffic that search engines now incentivize companies to feature videos on their websites for better SEO. You may want to invest in a video hosting provider or simply embed videos form your company’s YouTube channel.

9. Multi-Device Engagement

One of the best aspects of video content is that consumers can enjoy it on various devices. Mobile devices have finally overtaken desktop computers and comprise the lion’s share of internet traffic, so make sure your video content responds beautifully across devices.

10. Stick to Short and Sweet

Creating effective video content doesn’t have to be a large-scale production. Some of the most successful video marketing campaigns didn’t cost any more than the time it took to record them. When creating video content for your brand, keep things short and simple. A curious consumer is far more likely to watch a two-minute video than a 10-minute one, so get your point across quickly and effectively, and don’t rely too heavily on pageantry.

Ultimately, every brand will have different opportunities and face different challenges in the effort to create effective video content. These tips are just to get you started thinking about ways to create or improve video content.

Your biggest opportunities lie in your existing content strategy, how well you know your audience, and your business goals. Approach video content with a clear goal in mind and filming will be much easier than you may expect.