Software Demo Script Template
Fill in a few boxes and get a demo script with a cue for every click, zoom and pause. Copy it into your notes or print it. The example below is already filled in. Free, with no signup, and nothing you type is uploaded.
Steps to show, with a cue for each
DEMO SCRIPT: Acme Ledger for finance leads
1. Open with the result
SAY “Here is the result: Close the books in two days, not six. I will show you how in 4 steps.”
CUE [PAUSE] Stop for two seconds on the field or screen before you type or click.
2. Their situation
ASK “You told me month-end close takes six days. Is that still the biggest issue?”
CUE [WAIT] Ask, then keep the mouse still until they answer.
3. Show it, one step at a time
DO Step 1: Open the close checklist
CUE [CLICK] Move to it, stop, say what it is, then click.
DO Step 2: Show days to close fall from six to two
CUE [ZOOM] Enlarge the number, read it aloud, then zoom back out.
DO Step 3: Open the approval field before you submit
CUE [PAUSE] Stop for two seconds on the field or screen before you type or click.
DO Step 4: Mark the step that removed the delay
CUE [DRAW] Circle the part that matters, then clear the drawing.
4. The impact
SAY “Back to the result: Close the books in two days, not six.”
CUE [ZOOM] Enlarge the number, read it aloud, then zoom back out.
5. The next step
ASK “Can we book a 30-minute trial with your own close data next week?”
Leave a box empty and the script uses a plain stand-in phrase. Typing, cues, copy and print need JavaScript; without it the page shows the example script. Your text stays in this browser.
How to write a software demo script
- Fill in the five boxes. Your product, who is watching, their problem in their own words, the result you will show first, and the next step you will ask for.
- Add up to four steps. Write each as one thing you do on screen. Pick the cue that fits: click, zoom on a number, pause on a field, or circle something with a pen.
- Check the length. The line above the script adds your spoken words at 130 words a minute and three seconds for each cue. Cut a step if it runs past your slot.
- Copy or print it. Press Copy script for plain text you can paste into a note or a doc. Press Print for a clean black-and-white page.
Then say it out loud once against the clock. The cues are the part people skip, and they are where a demo goes wrong: a pointer that wanders, a number nobody can read.
Why the script runs in this order
The script opens with the result, not a tour. Peter Cohan’s Great Demo! method is often summed up as “do the last thing first”: start with the most impressive thing the product does, because you have about a minute to hold the audience (as summarised by Theresa Shafer, March 20, 2007). The template applies that idea; the five-part layout is ours, not Cohan’s.
| Part | What it does | Cue it carries |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Open with the result | Shows the outcome before any feature, then promises how many steps it takes. | PAUSE |
| 2. Their situation | Repeats the problem in the buyer’s words and checks it is still the biggest issue. | WAIT |
| 3. One step at a time | Each step is one action on screen and one cue. | CLICK ZOOM PAUSE DRAW |
| 4. The impact | Returns to the result and puts the proof where everyone can read it. | ZOOM |
| 5. The next step | Asks for one concrete thing. | none |
The four cues, and how to do each on Windows
A cue is a stage direction for your hands. Each has a free way to do it, and a SHARA way for when the free way is not enough. Checked on October 31, 2026.
| Cue | What the viewer needs | Free, without SHARA | With SHARA |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLICK | A pointer they can follow and a click they can see | “Move and stop; move and stop”: move the mouse deliberately to the target, take your hand off it while you talk, then repeat for the next point (Cohan, 2008). If the cursor races, lower the pointer speed in Windows. | The cursor halo (Ctrl+Win+H turns it on or off) and the basic click animation. Both free. |
| ZOOM | A number they can read from the back of the call | ZoomIt, a free Microsoft Sysinternals tool: Ctrl+1 zooms, the scroll wheel zooms further, Esc leaves. Ctrl+4 starts LiveZoom. | Live Zoom, up to 8×, from the Magnifier (Ctrl+Win+G). Included free for your first 14 days, then a one-time upgrade. |
| PAUSE | Time to read a field before it changes | A script rule: stop moving and count two seconds. This is our suggestion, not a standard. | Spotlight, a Magnifier mode, dims the screen around the pointer so the field stands out. Same 14 days. |
| DRAW | A circle around the part that matters | In a PowerPoint slideshow, Ctrl+P turns the cursor into a pen and Ctrl+A ends it (Presales Collective); slides only. ZoomIt: Ctrl+2 to draw, E erases all. | The Pen over any app; Ctrl+Win+B clears. Free. |
The [WAIT] cue is added for you after every question: ask, then keep the mouse still.
Tips for a demo that holds attention
- One result, three or four steps. More steps than that and the result gets lost. If a step does not move the buyer toward the result, cut it. This is our advice, not a rule.
- Move and stop. Move to the target, take your hand off the mouse, then talk. Cohan describes the opposite, a mouse that never stops, as one of the quickest ways to make a remote audience look away.
- Say what you are about to click. Name the button before you reach it, so viewers look where you are going instead of searching for the pointer.
- Test the share first. Small type and thin lines vanish in a call. The screen share test shows what viewers can actually read before you start.
- Rehearse with a clock. Run it once against the presentation timer. If you run over, remove a step rather than speaking faster.
Who it is for
Sales engineers and founders
Plan a product demo around one result and a few steps. See how SHARA helps in sales demos.
Trainers and technical instructors
Script a software walkthrough so every click, number and field is easy to follow. See how technical instructors use SHARA.
Privacy
Everything you type is processed by your browser and is not uploaded. It is kept in one place on your side: this browser’s local storage, so the boxes are filled next time. Press Clear to empty them, or clear site data to remove it. The copy button puts the script on your clipboard and nowhere else. The site counts visits and button use in aggregate and never records what you typed.
Learn more
How to make a tutorial video
Script, record and make a screen recording readable with a halo, keys and zoom.
Show mouse clicks in OBS
Make clicks visible in a recording when OBS has no click highlight.
How to share screen on Teams
Screen, window and PowerPoint Live, with sound, and what viewers see.
Demo script template questions
Is the software demo script template free?
What should a software demo script include?
How long should a software demo be?
Does it save or upload my script?
What do the cues in square brackets mean?
Can SHARA do the zooming and drawing cues?
How do I rehearse the script?
Make every cue easy to follow, in any app
The script tells you where to click, zoom and pause. SHARA helps your viewers see it: a cursor halo and click animation that follow you through any Windows app, and a Pen to circle what matters, all free. Live Zoom and Spotlight, which enlarge or dim around the part you are discussing, are included free for your first 14 days, then it’s a one-time upgrade.
Free forever: cursor halo, click animation, Pen, Laser, Arrow, Text, Eraser, Screenshot and the Ctrl+Space Wheel. Every Pro tool is free for your first 14 days, with no card and no account. After that, Pro is a one-time purchase ($19.99 in the US).
Mashyo makes SHARA. Demo advice from Peter Cohan’s Great Demo! method as summarised by Theresa Shafer, ZoomIt shortcuts from Microsoft Learn and the PowerPoint pen tip from the Presales Collective, checked on October 31, 2026. By Mashyo, founder of SHARA. Last updated: October 31, 2026.