Planning a product demo video: script, demo data and recording checklist

Start from one job, not a feature tour

A product demo works when the viewer sees their own problem solved, start to finish, in the time they are willing to give. Pick one job, such as sending a first invoice or setting up a weekly report, and cut every feature that does not serve it. Features you leave out can go in a second video.

Length sets the word budget. This guide assumes clear narration at about 140 to 150 words a minute, which gives a 90-second demo roughly 200 to 225 words. That is a planning assumption, not a measured rate for your voice: read your draft aloud with a timer and cut until it fits with room to breathe.

Sample 90-second script outline

Write narration and on-screen action in two columns so you know exactly what to click while you say each line. The timings below add up to 90 seconds.

Build a clean demo account and data

Never record in a real customer or personal account. Names, emails, bookmarks, recent files and autocomplete suggestions leak into frames you will not notice until a viewer does. Create a dedicated demo workspace and a separate browser profile with no extensions, history or saved logins.

Fill it with believable fake data: realistic company names, round but not suspicious numbers, and enough rows that lists do not look empty. Use the reserved example domains for email addresses: IANA maintains them for documentation and they cannot be registered, so nothing points at a real person or company. [6] Reset the account to the same starting state before each take so retakes match.

• Dedicated demo account and browser profile
• Fake but plausible names, amounts and dates
• No real emails, phone numbers or addresses on screen
• A reset script or checklist to restore the starting state
• Bookmarks bar hidden, unrelated tabs closed

Screen, resolution and notification prep

Decide the export first and set the capture to match. Screen Studio exports MP4 at 720p, 1080p or 4K up to 60 fps, and GIF up to 1080p. [1] Its export guide notes that a 4K export takes about four times as long as HD, that 60 fps produces larger files and suits fast motion, and that 24 or 30 fps is standard for most online video. [3] For a software demo watched in a browser, 1080p at 30 fps is usually the efficient choice; 4K helps only when small interface text must stay sharp.

Silence the machine. On a Mac, open Control Center, click the Focus section and choose Do Not Disturb for a set duration such as one hour. [5] Screen Studio also lists recording utilities for hiding desktop icons, resizing the recorded window and showing speaker notes. [1]

Screen Studio is macOS only, priced at $9 a month billed yearly or $29 monthly with every feature on both plans. [1] If you are not buying a recorder, macOS's Screenshot toolbar (Shift-Command-5) records the whole screen, a selected portion or, on macOS Tahoe 26 or later, a selected window, with options for microphone, showing mouse clicks and a start timer. [4]

Take strategy: record in segments

Record each beat of the script as its own take rather than performing all 90 seconds at once. A stumble in step three then costs one 15-second retake, not the whole demo. Pause with the cursor still for two seconds at the start and end of each segment so you have clean cut points.

Click deliberately. Screen Studio's auto zoom focuses on the areas where clicks occurred; where there is no click, an auto zoom has nothing to target and you switch it to manual. [2] Avoid exploratory clicking, which creates zooms you then have to delete, and keep the cursor still while you talk over a static screen.

Record narration separately if you can. Reading the script while operating the product splits attention; recording the screen first and the voice to picture afterwards usually gives cleaner timing.

Review checklist before you export

• Watch once with sound off: does the screen alone tell the story?
• Listen once with eyes closed: does the narration make sense without the picture?
• Pause on every frame with text and check for real names, emails, tokens or URLs.
• Check every zoom lands on the thing being described.
• Confirm the final frame holds for at least two seconds for a thumbnail or end card.
• Export at the planned resolution and frame rate, then watch the exported file, not the project.
• Caption the final export and check product names in the captions.

Sources & verification

Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.

1. Screen Studio: Homepage, pricing and FAQ Accessed 30 Oct 2026
2. Screen Studio Guide: Auto zoom Accessed 30 Oct 2026
3. Screen Studio Guide: Explanation of export settings Accessed 30 Oct 2026
4. Apple Support: How to record the screen on your Mac Accessed 30 Oct 2026
5. Apple Mac User Guide: Turn a Focus on or off Accessed 30 Oct 2026
6. IANA: Example domains Accessed 30 Oct 2026