When making your pitch to a potential customer, you only have a few seconds to grab their attention and make them want to know more. Being able to create a demo that customers can immediately interact with is one way to increase interest. A well-made interactive demo can be used to provide instant access to the core features of a product without the need for a sign-up or other friction. A strong demo also provides a curated experience that shows your product’s best features in a way that matches the customer’s needs exactly. Interactive demo software can help you create this type of experience for your brand, but with so many options, it’s hard to decide which is best for your product.
Below, we’ll explain the different types of interactive demo software available and then offer our list of the 10 best solutions for you to consider.
What Should You Be Looking For In Interactive Demo Software?
As with most software choices, you want to begin by clearly defining your goals for the software. In the case of demo or brand management software, you want to identify who is the target and what is the specific purpose of the demo.
For example, is this going to be used for marketing teams or does it need more advanced features aimed at development or solution teams who want to show more than just ad copy?
To help you narrow your choices, there are four main types of demo software. These each cater to a specific use case and we’ll outline each one in the next section
The Different Categories of Demo Software
There are four main categories that demo software can fall into. However, there can be crossover and overlap when it comes to specific software options. Make sure to choose the option that fills your needed role the most.
a. Product Tour Software
If you offer B2B SaaS products, then this is likely the type of demo software you’re most familiar with. Product tour software allows you to create a curated and annotated walkthrough of key areas of the software. These walkthroughs can be standalone, but they are usually part of a website. Often, these are on the homepage or landing page of the SaaS website.
You’ll want to use product tour software mostly for automated sales channels where leads are landing on pages and looking for more information before they take more action.
b. Video Demo Software
Video demo software allows you to make compelling videos that feature a representative showing off the software as they use it. A good video software tool should have features to help you make a video that is more than just a screen recording with a voice-over.
In this category, look for features so you can easily add overlays, voiceovers, searchable voice-to-text, and other tools to maximize the video for your target audience.
c. Live Demonstration Demo Software
Live demonstration software takes things further than the two previous tools.
With live demonstration software, you create a specific experience with your software product. This curated experience feels like actually using the software, but it’s preconfigured with specific data to showcase specific workflows relevant to the customer. This type of demo can showcase specific data and pre-populated areas within the software to create a clean and fast-paced demo. This means you can also tailor different demos for different audiences by swapping out pre-configured data that is geared to specific industries or business types.
d. Sandbox Demo Software
Sandbox or proof of concept demo software is designed to create a demo product that is as close to the final version as possible.
The goal is to let your audience get a true feel for the product that is less of a curated experience than with a live demo.
The 10 Best Interactive Demo Software Tools
Here is our list of the 10 best interactive demo tools. We built the list to include a range of options covering the four main categories we explained previously.
1. Walnut
Walnut is a popular option in the product tour category of demo software tools. Walnut allows you to capture your software’s interface and then create a guided tour through annotations and graphical overlays.
Once you’ve captured your software’s front end, you can make different product tours for different audiences and even specific clients.
Walnut is also easy to use. With its no-code interface, you can create product tours. The tool also focuses on sales copy, so you can be more expressive in describing different features.
Best Features
- The no-code tour building interface is fast and easy to use.
- Focus on sales-related copy allows for more marketing input.
- AI tools for building text can work well when you need ideas or are on a deadline.
- Built-in analysis to see how customers are interacting with your demos.
Limitations
- Despite being easy to use, minimal onboarding help can initially leave customers feeling lost when learning the Walnut workflow.
- Only basic API support for integrations and added functionality.
- Menus can be overly complicated for more advanced features.
Pricing
Walnut only offers custom pricing. You can request a free demo via their website.
2. Consensus
Consensus is a strong demo tool for those looking to create product video demos. You can create several variations of your video and then personalize each one depending on the lead or situation.
Beyond videos, you can also create interactive tours, which share the same amount of interactivity and personalization options found in the video demonstrations.
The main attraction of Consensus is the ability to create a series of videos, which allows users to branch off and focus on the information that is most important to them.
Best Features
- Solid integrations with many applications like Salesforce or Zapier.
- API access allows for custom integrations.
- The Buyer Board feature allows insights into how demos are being shared among a prospect’s organization.
- Create templates so you can quickly build a series of videos to tell a compelling story.
Limitations
- Content management can be cumbersome and requires users to re-upload content that has already been used in other videos.
- Analytics (“Demolytics” in Consensus) are relatively deep but are hard to access within the tool.
- No automation for entering a large number of prospects or granting permission requests.
Pricing
Consensus does not publish its pricing, but it’s based on a per-seat annual license. Pricing starts between $10K and $12K annually.
3. TestBox
TestBox is a hybrid demo tool that works well for both sandbox uses and live demonstrations. The TestBox platform operates on top of your existing software, and you can configure access to various features within your software through TestBox. Each sales team member can access their own environment for sandbox use. This allows for customization depending on the type of lead they are pursuing. TestBox also has strong proof of concept tools with the ability to add annotations and walk-throughs anywhere.
Best Features
- Works great for both live demonstrations, sandbox demos, and proof of concept use cases.
- Built so sales team members can create personalized environments that allow them to see what’s going on with their leads.
- Quickly add data for a live demonstration as needed, and each instance can be wiped clean to start over with a new customer.
Limitations
- Lacks many administration tools for centralized management.
- Limited ability to create integrations.
- Some users have noticed intermittent slow performance.
Pricing
TestBox is competitively priced, and a free demo is available.
Testbox Convert: $100/user/month
- $33K for 15 users annually
Includes:
- Unlimited live demos
- Unlimited POCs
- Custom, PII-free data
- Data and use case personalization
- Implementation by TestBox
- Dedicated customer success manager
- Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, and Marketo integrations
- Custom integrations upon request
4. Navattic
Navattic is focused on ease of use and is perfect for non-engineers or others looking for a no-code way to build live tours.
Marketing teams can build their own tours as needed, and no coding is required. There’s also a way to build navigation into each tour so customers can click on specific areas they want to learn about.
Everything built with Navattic can easily be embedded across your website, knowledge base, or landing pages.
Best Features
- Integration with Salesforce, Hubspot, and many other apps to gain better insights into customer behavior.
- A fast and efficient workflow lets you quickly build a custom tour.
- A slick navigation system for tours gives customers the freedom to choose what they want to see.
- Affordable compared to many other demo software options.
Limitations
- Only works for guided tours and can be limiting for those needing more technical options.
Pricing
Navattic has very affordable and simple pricing, considering how powerful the platform is.
Base Plan: $500/month
- Unlimited licenses
- Unlimited interactive demos
- Unlimited demo views
- Unlimited integrations
Growth Plan: $1,000/month
- Everything in the Base plan
- Multi-team functionality
- SSO and Directory Sync
- Multi-language support
- Dedicated CSM
- Demo coaching
5. Demostack
Demostack is a great choice if you need something more in-depth than a simple guided tour or walkthrough.
Demostack works with your software’s front end and back end to provide hands-on functionality when customers are demoing the product.
Sales teams will love the added features and the ability to get customers to use the actual menus and other features within the software.
If you need a sandbox or proof of concept demo tool, Demostack is a great option.
Best Features
- Strong content management tools to speed up your demo workflow.
- Built-in analytics and tracking for sales and marketing teams.
- Collaboration tools to bring in different teams when creating a demo.
Limitations
- The editor and menus can look dated but perform well.
- It will require onboarding and training to get up and running quickly.
Pricing
Demostack only offers custom price quotes. But all pricing includes unlimited demos, sandboxes, and a dedicated support contact.
6. Reprise
Reprise is a tour builder, but it also has some added functions that make it similar to a demo or sandbox tool.
Reprise works similarly to Walnut or Navattic on the surface. But there is automation, so you can grab all your screenshots and content with one function. This saves time and keeps all your content nice and tidy when moving to the editor.
If a tour isn’t enough, Reprise can also use your software’s code to provide something close to a sandbox demo or proof of concept.
Data can also be imported via a browser extension to provide custom experiences tailored to specific customers.
Reprise is a unique tool that blurs some of the boundaries seen in typical demo software.
Best Features
- The flexible platform works as a simple tour builder and can also create working demos complete with custom data.
- Analytics built around the customer journey gives sales teams and marketing teams great insight into their leads.
- Integrations with CRMs such as Salesforce and most other popular options.
- Different features, like overlays, are available as separate modules.
Limitations
- More difficult to use than Walnut or Navattic, but you get more flexibility.
- The editor can be finicky, with a few frustrating bugs causing display issues.
Pricing
Reprise doesn’t offer specific pricing. However, they offer three separate modules to help you manage costs and only purchase the options you need for the type of demo you’re building
7. Arcade
Arcade may be the perfect fit if you need a simple video tool to do guided walkthroughs and explanations for customers.
Arcade is a budget-friendly option that lets users create videos as they explain and walk through their software’s features.
Beyond just being affordable, Arcade is also lightweight and easy to use. A simple Chrome extension is all that’s needed to perform every task and produce your demo.
For smaller sales or marketing teams that need a lightweight and efficient demo tool, Arcade is a great option.
Best Features
- Only takes a few minutes to blend video, screenshots, and overlays into a compelling demo.
- Budget-friendly options make it perfect for smaller teams just getting off the ground.
- Works with a simple Chrome extension and uses few resources.
- Despite being budget-friendly, there are still analytics and other advanced features that are often found in more expensive options.
Limitations
- Lacking some integrations, but Arcade has been adding new integrations regularly.
- Some features lack intuitive controls, which can be frustrating at first.
Pricing
Arcade has affordable pricing options that are perfect for small teams on a budget.
Free Plan: $0
- 1 user
- 3 published Arcades
- Arcade watermark
- Chapters
- Background music
- Synthetic voiceover
Pro Plan: $32/month
- 1 user
- Unlimited Arcades
- Remove Arcade watermark
- Insights
- Blur (redaction)
- Video editing
- Pan and zoom
- GIF & Video export
- Intercom support
Growth Plan: $42/month
- Up to 10 users (billed per seat)
- Collaborate on Arcades
- White-labeled Arcades
- Custom themes
- Advanced Insights
- Advanced Branching
- Advanced permissions
- Audience Reveal
- Forms
- Integrations
- Priority support
Enterprise Plan: Contact Arcade for special pricing and options for teams with more than 10 users.
8. Saleo
Saleo works a bit differently from our previous entries and is more of an add-on for your current demo workflow. Saleo is designed to quickly modify your demos to offer more personalization options. This means you can quickly tailor demos without having to go back and start all over again. A simple browser extension captures your walkthrough in an existing demo environment. You can then set the data or other parameters specific to your intended lead. The result is you get a new personalized demo without going through your original demo creation process or data management.
Best Features
- Quickly add personalization options for increased conversions.
- Set up custom data quickly before a call to offer customers a better experience.
- Using Saleo is easy once you get through the initial setup.
Limitations
- Creating data tables is initially time-consuming and difficult, but it is necessary to take advantage of Saleo’s features.
Pricing
Saleo doesn’t offer public pricing. Contact Saleo for a custom quote and a free demo of the software.
9. Demoboost
Demoboost is an option for walkthroughs during calls with features catered toward sales. Unlike the other entries on this list, Demoboost doesn’t use a screen capture method. Instead, all captures are handled via HTML and CSS, so some light coding is required to get the best results.
One standout feature of Demoboost is the collaboration tools. Marketing and sales team members can all annotate demos as they are being created. It’s great for situations where different team members need to add language or request features within a demo before it goes off to a lead.
Best Features
- Sales-focused features keep things simple without the software being a jack-of-all-trades.
- A streamlined collaboration system works great when the same demo needs input across teams.
- Analytics combined with built-in A/B testing to track which demos perform the best.
- Solid customer support offers unlimited help when building demos.
Limitations
- HTML and CSS capture, which may not be a good fit for some applications.
Pricing
Contact Demoboost for custom pricing and packages.
10. Storylane
Unlike Demoboost, Storylane allows for both screen capture/video capture along with HTML/CSS capture.
This allows you to choose the workflow that is best for your team and your demo needs. Unique features allow you to include lead-generation forms and widgets inside the demos you create.
These can be easily added and are great for landing pages and other lead-generation locations.
Overall, Storylane’s screen capture workflow is one of our favorites. The system can capture your screens as you go and compile them in your editor, where they are prepared and ready to go.
Best Features
- Use screen capture or HTML/CSS, depending on which works best for your team.
- Strong collaboration features allow demos to be shared and gain input from various team members.
- Lots of integrations with popular sales software and CRMs.
- Solid customer support helps with onboarding and reducing the learning curve.
- A free plan is available
Limitations
- It can be difficult to understand the different capture methods.
- Some minor data elements don’t fully integrate with Hubspot or other CRMs.
Pricing
Free Plan: $0
- 1 Creator
- Capture screens
- Unlimited Viewers
- Multiple Guides
- Zooming In
- Analytics
Starter Plan: $40/month/user
- Unlimited demos
- Capture screens and video
- Multi-flow product tour
- AI Assistant
- Blurring (Redaction)
- Lead Capture
- Buyer Reveal
- Export Leads
- Zapier Integration
- Hubspot Integration
Growth Plan: $100/month/user
- Demo HTML Editor
- Personalization
- Clickable Live Demos
- Custom Lead forms
- Advanced Integrations
- Advanced Analytics
- Dedicated Support
- Buyer Reveal
Enterprise Plan: Contact Storylane for custom pricing and packages.
Help Choosing The Right Demo Software
The first step in deciding which tool is right for you is to carefully decide what type of demo software you need and what team will be primarily using it.
Marketing teams may only need simple screen capture functions to complete the job. Other teams may need to build complete bespoke demos using your product’s existing front-end and backend code.
Another thing to consider is that the more complicated the demo tool, the more important the vendor’s onboarding services are. Take your time with the demo and make a detailed list of learning curve issues. Then, ask the vendor how they will address those issues during onboarding and deployment.
Finally, try to set your budget early to help you narrow your choices further. You can always expand your budget later if your list of requirements changes, but it’s best to have a solid baseline so you know how far your budget is growing from your initial projections.
This helps you focus on your ROI goals, so the software you choose always positively contributes to your team’s win percentage.
