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Show, Don't Tell

🀫 Show, Don't Tell #5 - The only way to gate your demos


Read Time: 3.3 minutes

Welcome to our 5th edition of Show, Don't Tell. A newsletter to help you build REMARKABLE interactive demos...3 tips at a time.

This week:

  1. The art of the soft pitch
  2. How to make forms feel special
  3. How to add gates with good memories

Let's get after it...

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We are Navattic fanatics.

We had the idea for this newsletter after hundreds of hours spent building Navattic demos for our past companies and current clients. We love making remarkable interactive demos, and want to share helpful tips and examples so you can too.

A huge thanks to Navattic for helping make this a reality. If you want to create a better experience for your buyers, go check them out.

They have a free plan you can start using today!

​→ Try Navattic​

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Tip #1 - Don't Force the Issue

Let's be real. Not everyone who lands on your demo page is ready for a full-blown sales conversation. Vertice gets this, and they've found a brilliant way to handle it.

On their demo request form, they've added this gem: "Not ready for a demo yet? Take a self-guided tour of our platform below."

They then positioned their gate a few steps into the demo so buyers are able to engage in the demo before being asked to provide their email.

We like this approach because it:

  • Captures high-intent prospects who are not ready to talk
  • Gives breathing room to those still in research mode
  • Builds trust by not forcing the issue

Remember when we talked about Gameball's nurture-first approach a few weeks ago? This is another great example of meeting prospects where they are, not where we want them to be.

​→ See how they did it​

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Tip #2 - Give Them Something

Nicholas Wealth Management just showed us how to make a gate feel like a VIP entrance.

They ask for your name right at the start, but instead of filing it away in a CRM somewhere, they immediately put it to work. As soon as you enter the demo, everything is personalized – from the greeting to the sample data at the top.

It's like going to a fancy restaurant where the waiter in a tuxedo says your name all night. Sure, you had to give them something to get going, but what came next was worth it.

Pro tip: If you're asking for information upfront, make sure prospects see immediate value from sharing it.

​→ Check out how they made us feel special​

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Tip #3 - The One-and-Done

GoCo just pulled off something that had us slow-clapping at our desks. They've mastered the art of the one-and-done form.

Here's how it works:

  • You hit a gate on your first demo
  • Fill out the form once
  • POOF! All their other demos are magically unlocked

Remember our chat about Jellyfish's progressive gating a few editions back? GoCo takes it one step further across all their demos.

Our advice: use one gate to rule them all.

​→ Check out how they did their one-and-done form​

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It Pays to Personalize Your Demos

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In Navattic's 2025 State of the Interactive Demo Report they found some of the highest performing marketing + sales demos were personalized in some way - whether by industry, persona, use case, or actually calling out prospects by name (like the Nicholas Wealth Management example above πŸ‘†)

Read about how their customer, Slope, used personalization variables to take their demo to the next level.
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​→ See how Slope took personalization to the next level​

Don’t have time to build remarkable Navattic demos? We do.

​DemoDash is an agency 100% focused on making interactive demos your top product marketing asset. We’ll map your story, build your tours, and help you measure the impact.

​→ Learn more at demodash.agency​

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So that’s it. Our 5th edition of Show, Don’t Tell.

3 useful tips to help you build remarkable interactive demos.

Tune in next Tuesday for more juicy goodness from DemoDash.

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P.S.

If you know anyone else who would love these tips, please consider sending them this edition so they can subscribe πŸ™
​

​Jason and Eric​
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Show, Don't Tell

Learn how to create remarkable interactive demos that make your SaaS product easy to understand and buy. 3 practical tips and examples every Tuesday.

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