A practical guide to choosing the right interactive demo format based on your team’s goals and product complexity.
Interactive demos are a great way to help people get a feel for your product, without needing to hop on a sales call. They give prospects the space to explore at their own pace, and when done right, they lead to real engagement and conversions — not just surface-level clicks or views.
If you’re thinking about building one, there are two main ways to go about it: screen capture and HTML capture. While the end experience feels similar for users, each method has its own strengths and trade-offs. And the right choice often depends on your team’s workflow, the level of interactivity you need, and how much flexibility you’re after.
In this guide, we’ll walk through how both methods work, where they’re most useful, and what limitations to keep in mind.
Screenshot-based interactive demos are exactly what they sound like: a series of product screenshots stitched together to walk users through a flow. On their own, they’re just static images — but with a little layering (think clickable hotspots, tooltips, and maybe even a voiceover), they become an interactive experience.
And though it doesn’t give buyers a full-blown product experience, it’s enough of a feel to help them understand what your product does — and why it matters.
One of the biggest benefits to incorporating interactive demos (as opposed to videos), is how they break the monotony of passive ‘viewing’. Here are some interactive elements that you can use:
Hotspots to show viewers where to click to go to the next step
Tooltips to add extra context to features and workflows
Checklists to help users track their progress
Some interactive demo software also supports micro-animations like zooming and panning which are great ways to draw your audience’s focus to a particular section of your UI.
Another option to make the demo experience interactive is using branched narratives. Instead of a linear presentation, you use multiple ‘decision points’ that lead to different narration paths. This allows viewers to choose the aspects of the product most relevant to them — ensuring a meaningful experience.
Pros of using screen capture-based interactive demo tools:
Easy to create:
Screenshot-based demos are incredibly straightforward to build. No need for developers or complex setups — just record your product screens, add interactive elements like hotspots or tooltips, and you’ve got a demo. This makes it a great option for teams who want to move quickly.
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Lightweight:
Since these demos rely on static images rather than heavy code or animations, they’re quick to load and easy to share. This makes them super accessible for buyers on slower networks or mobile devices.
Affordable:
Screen capture-based interactive demo tools are usually more cost-effective compared to alternatives like HTML demos or sandbox environments. They don’t require heavy backend support or specialized coding, so they’re a great option for teams with limited budgets.
Can be made from existing videos:
If you already have product videos, screen capture-based demos make it easy to repurpose that content. By following your cursor’s movements and extracting frames from videos, you can turn them into interactive walkthroughs — putting years of product videos and Loom recordings to good use.
Cons of using screen capture-based interactive demo tools:
Limited interactive elements:
While you can add clickable hotspots or tooltips, the interactions are relatively basic. Users can follow the flow and explore key features, but they’re still limited to a predefined path. If your product relies heavily on user customization or deep interactivity, these demos won’t be able to replicate that.
Mobile accessibility can take a hit:
While these demos are generally lightweight, they don’t always translate perfectly to mobile. Depending on the tool, screen resolution, and interaction elements might not adapt as smoothly on smaller screens. This could make the demo harder to navigate or less visually appealing for mobile users.
Comes with guardrails:
These demos are highly curated and controlled experiences. This means users don’t get to explore freely like they would in a live environment. While this keeps things simple and straightforward, it also means they don’t get the full “real-world” experience of using your product.
Stable UI with infrequent changes: Use for products with a consistent UI that doesn’t change often, as you’ll have to manually update these demos to match the latest UI.
Quick, simple walkthroughs: Showcase core features or workflows in a clear, non-technical way — perfect for getting a demo up and running quickly.
In emails and web pages: Embed lightweight demos in emails or on web pages to ensure fast load times and easy access for users.
Sales leave-behinds: Create reusable demos that prospects can revisit after a conversation or share with their team.
Support ticket resolution: Build step-by-step visual guides to walk users through troubleshooting steps or solutions without requiring extra context.
HTML capture-based interactive demo tools capture your product’s live front-end—the actual HTML code behind your UI. Like screen capture-based demos, they allow you to create “clickable” product walkthroughs.
However, HTML-based tools offer far more customization options. You can edit UI elements, use text triggers, and more, giving you a lot more control over the demo’s visual experience.
Pros of using HTML-based interactive demo tools:
More options for UI element editing:
With HTML demos, you can directly manipulate UI components, such as buttons, menus, and forms, to match your product’s exact design. This allows for more detailed and customized demos that reflect how your product actually works.
True product experience:
HTML demos are accurate, pixel-perfect replicas of your product’s user interface, allowing users to experience your product as if they were using it live. One of the best ways to give users a curated yet authentic product demo experience.
Scrollability:
A standout feature of HTML interactive demos is that users can scroll through the entire screen, unlike static demos that are limited by the recording device's screen size. This ensures a more complete experience, allowing users to explore the full length of your product’s UI.
Cons of using HTML-based interactive demo tools:
Can’t use existing videos to create them:
Unlike screen capture-based demos, which can easily be created from existing screen recordings or videos, HTML demos require you to capture the actual live front-end code of your product. This means you can’t repurpose a simple demo video or pre-recorded walkthrough to create an interactive HTML experience.
Limited real-time data integration:
While HTML demos offer more control over the visual experience, they are still disconnected from the live product and don't integrate directly with real-time data. This means you're working with static data. For a more dynamic, real-time experience, you'll need to consider advanced product simulations like sandbox environments.
When are HTML demos right for you?
When you want to show live UI changes: Highlight interactive elements, new updates, or live features as they appear in your product in real time.
During live demos: Allow your sales team to walk users through the product, providing a full experience with no surprises or bugs.
Sales leave-behinds: Offer a more immersive, interactive follow-up experience that lets prospects explore your product at their own pace.
You have a solid mobile experience: Showcase your mobile-optimized UI with responsive demos that adapt seamlessly across different screen sizes.
Creating your interactive demo — whether with screen capture or HTML capture — is just one part of the equation. A bigger factor in the demo experience is how you guide customers through it. This is where AI demo agents come in.
Unlike just video demos or interactive walkthroughs, AI demo agents understand who your buyer is and what they’re looking for. Using Natural Language Processing (NLP), they answer questions in real time, adapt the flow based on user input, and stitch together the most relevant parts of your demo.
The result? A demo experience that feels more like a thoughtful conversation than a canned tour — and one that can run 24/7, without your team doing any heavy-lifting.
At Layerpath, we’ve spent the last year helping teams create polished, interactive demos with ease. Now, we’re taking things a step further with Path — our new AI demo agent.
Path isn’t a chatbot or even AI SDR. It’s a full-stack GTM agent built to speak like your best sales rep, guide buyers with clarity, and qualify pipeline as it goes. In other words, you’re not just showing your product anymore — you’re selling it.
We’re now onboarding design partners. If you’re looking to create a funnel with more clarity, stronger intent signals, and fewer email back-and-forths — now’s the time to sign up. See you on the other side!
And if you’d like to try our demo creation tool, it’s free to use. You can sign up for Layerpath and get started immediately.