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Show, Don't Tell

🤫 Show, Don't Tell #80 - Your demo mission


Read Time: 3.5 minutes

Welcome to our 80th edition (yep, 80) of Show, Don't Tell. A newsletter to help you build REMARKABLE interactive demos...3 tips at a time.

This week is all about:

  1. a second step that explains what the thing actually is
  2. a demo that hands you a mission instead of a menu
  3. a midway gate that teases what you haven't seen yet

Let's get after it...

Supported By:

  • Navattic is our favorite interactive demo platform ❤️
  • It's easy to build demos of your product, that feel like the real thing
  • With HTML screen captures, easy editing, lots of sharing options, and powerful analytics
  • Try building your first demo for free!

Tip #1: Explain the Demo Before They Take It

Get in your prospects shoes for a second. You’ve just been dropped into an interactive demo for a product you've never seen before.

Demo: “First, click on this..."
Me: “Wait... what is this demo even about?”

Glasswall has a great example of how to start your demo with some context. They open with a welcome, as expected. But the second step explains the product in a nutshell. Now that the penny's dropped, it’s easy to say "let's explore the demo together."

The instinct is spot on. It gives people the high-level "what is this" BEFORE you get too far down the rabbit hole.

Nobody explores confidently when they don't know what they're looking at.

This is the cousin of a lesson from Edition #33 — don't assume everyone knows how demos work. Glasswall goes one further and makes sure you know what the product is, too.

See how Glasswall sets the table

Tip #2: Hand Them a Mission, Not a Walkthrough

We loved "Meet Lindsay" a few weeks back (Edition #76). It gave us a character to follow.

Genetec flips the camera around so instead of watching someone, YOU'RE the someone.

You fill out the form and it says:

"You're in. Your task is to set up your security system and configure your cameras and doors. An intruder will try to access your building, and your job is to investigate and perform a forensic search. Ready?"

Then it drops you in.

In terms of storytelling, it doesn’t get much better than this. It flexes the same muscles as a persona demo. But by making it your mission, it makes you feel like you’ve got a job to complete. Not just taking another demo.

Go accept Genetec's mission

Tip #3 - Tease What They Haven't Seen Yet

Any gate (even one that’s halfway through the demo) can feel like a toll booth. But HireVue figured out a way to make theirs feel like a movie trailer.

Partway through their demo you hit the gate. And instead of a bare form, there's a custom image teasing the stuff you haven't seen yet.

Human psychology tells us that FOMO is a real thing.

A little sneak peek can be all you need to go from "I've had enough" to "give me more"

And HireVue is ready to capitalize on it.

In our opinion, it flips the ask from "give us your email to continue" to "don't you want to see what's next?"

See what HireVue dangles at the gate

Everything you need to know about capturing and editing screens in Navattic 👇

Screen captures are the building blocks of your interactive demo. You simply can't have a demo without them!

So we created a 101-level intro on how to create/edit them in Navattic.

If you're new to Navattic or still feel like you've barely scratched the surface with screen capturing and editing, this is a video you won't want to miss.

PLUS, you'll get a sneak peek of their new In-line and Copilot editor, which brings Navattic's capture editing, and new AI editing capabilities, directly into the demo builder.

→ Watch the tutorial video now!

Ask the Dash Bros 🎙️

A live, FREE coaching session to help you build better interactive demos (and make them your top marketing asset.)

In these 45-minute coaching sessions, Eric and Jason answer your questions about demo strategy, distribution, sales enablement, and any other challenges you're facing with interactive demos.

The next session is Wednesday, August 25th at 12PM ET.

→ Register now - It's 100% Free

So that’s it. Our 80th edition of Show, Don’t Tell.

3 useful tips to help you build remarkable interactive demos.

Tune in next Tuesday for more advice from DemoDash.

P.S.

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

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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