AI prompts for explainer and product-demo video

The main explainer structure

Write a [2/3]-minute explainer script for [PRODUCT OR CONCEPT], for [AUDIENCE] who currently [WHAT THEY DO INSTEAD].

Structure: a concrete 15-second scenario of the problem happening to one specific person → why the current workaround fails → what this does differently, in one sentence → how it works in three steps → what changes for them → one clear next step.

Rules: no feature lists, no jargon the audience would not use themselves, one governing analogy carried through the whole script, and every abstract claim followed by a concrete instance.

In practice: Write a 2-minute explainer script for an API status monitoring tool, for engineering managers who currently find out about outages from customer tickets.

Finding the metaphor the whole video hangs on

I need to explain [CONCEPT] to [AUDIENCE] who already understand [THEIR DOMAIN].

Give me 8 analogies drawn from their domain. For each: the mapping, where it holds, and — importantly — where it breaks down and would mislead them. Then recommend the one that survives the most scrutiny.

In practice: The 'where it breaks' column is what stops a clever analogy from creating a support ticket later.

Narrating a product walkthrough

Write a screen-recording demo script for [PRODUCT]. The user's goal is [GOAL].

Format as a table: what is on screen, the exact click or action, the narration line, and the on-screen callout text.

Rules: narrate the intent before the click ("to catch this early, I'll set a threshold") not the mechanics ("now I click settings"). Never narrate anything the viewer can see. Maximum 8 steps — if the flow needs more, tell me which to cut.

In practice: Intent-before-click is the difference between a demo and a tutorial nobody finishes.

Making the draft comprehensible

Rewrite this script at a level [AUDIENCE] can follow with no prior knowledge of [DOMAIN].

List every term you replaced and what you replaced it with. Do not simplify the actual claims — only the language. Flag anything that cannot be simplified without becoming wrong, and suggest how to introduce it properly instead.

Script: [PASTE SCRIPT]

In practice: Ask for the replacement list — sometimes the jargon was load-bearing.

Specifying the visuals for an animated explainer

For each paragraph of this explainer script, describe the motion graphic: what appears, how it animates in, what the viewer's eye should follow, and what stays on screen as an anchor.

Rules: one new visual idea per paragraph, build on the previous frame rather than replacing it where possible, and no visual may require more than 4 elements.

Script: [PASTE SCRIPT]

In practice: Building on the previous frame is what makes an explainer feel like one argument rather than a slideshow.