Roles & Permissions - Custom Roles

Consensus ships with eight Standard Roles that cover most user types out of the box. When the standard set doesn't fit, you can build Custom Roles with a precise mix of permissions. This article walks through both — plus Group Owner permissions and Demo-level access.

Click Settings (gear) in the lower-left, then choose Manage Users & Access. Switch to the Roles & Permissions tab, as shown below:

Roles & Permissions tab — Standard and Custom Roles listed side by side, plus the Add Role button

Each Standard Role is built around a typical job on your team. Here's what each one is designed for:

• Admin — full access to every feature, including creating Custom Roles. Only Admins with Admin Demo Access can grant a role with that permission.
• Content Manager — manages content shared with them, sends DemoBoards, creates folders, archives and unarchives demos.
• Content Author — builds and edits demos and Dynamic Tours, copies existing demos, and shares DemoBoards and Public Links. Content Authors can only delete demos they've created themselves.
• Public Link Manager — creates Public Links, copies existing demos, builds their own demos, and manages Public Link Lead Forms and Email Templates. Public Link Managers don't share DemoBoards.
• Sender/Tracker — creates DemoBoards, tracks sent DemoBoards, creates Mail Merge Links, uses Consensus SNAP. Can't copy, edit, or delete demos.
• Sender/Tracker SNAP Creator — same as Sender/Tracker plus the ability to create Single Video Demos in SNAP and edit their own SNAP demos.
• Dynamic Tour Creator — creates personalized, interactive Tours through your product, including Dynamic, HTML, and Sandbox Tours. This role doesn't include demo or DemoBoard permissions.
• View Only — sees data on every page but can't edit or manage anything.

The reference guide below shows exactly which permissions each Standard Role includes, grouped by area. If you're deciding which role to assign, it's often quickest to find the task in the left column and read across.

Roles & Permissions Reference Guide — permissions included in each Standard Role

When the eight Standard Roles don't map to a real-world title (e.g., an SE who can edit demos but only delete their own, or a sales manager who needs reseller permissions but not internal demo access), build a Custom Role.

Starting from a Standard Role saves time, since most of the permissions you need will already be in place.

1. On the Roles & Permissions tab, click Add Role.
2. Set the role name and pick a Standard Role as a template via the Access dropdown — that pre-fills the permission set.
3. Tweak individual permissions: add anything missing, remove anything you don't want. Permissions are grouped by area, so feature-level access such as Demos > ScreenPal can be turned on or off for just this role.
4. Click Save. The new role appears in the table and can be assigned to users from the Users tab.

Here's the Add Role page with the Access dropdown:

Add Role page — Custom Role builder with the Access dropdown for starting from a Standard Role template

Any user can be designated as Group Owner. This adds three special abilities on top of their existing role:

• Personal Demo Access — see and manage personal demos created by users in their Group and Subgroups.
• Group Management — manage their own Group and Subgroups, assign Demos they have access to, and assign other users as Group Owners.
• User Management — edit users within their Groups and Subgroups (profile updates, "Forgot Password" resends, etc.).

Admin Demo Access is a high-privilege permission that gives a user full access to every demo in the account — equivalent to what an Admin role sees. Two safeguards apply:

• Only users who already have Admin Demo Access can grant it to others.
• Users without Admin Demo Access see the toggle as disabled in the role builder, and can't see roles that include it.

You'll find it as a checkbox in the role builder:

Admin Demo Access checkbox

Inside the role/permission system, every demo also has its own access level that determines what individual users can do with it:

• Can Use — create DemoBoards or Public Links from the demo. The only access level available when granting to a Group or "All Users."
• Can Edit — modify DemoPlayer elements (videos, logos, documents, features).
• Can Manage — manage backend aspects (Demo Access settings, tracking, archiving, unarchiving, deletion).
• Is Owner — full administrative access. Demo Owners (and System Admins) are the only ones who can permanently delete or restore a deleted demo.

Access levels are set from the demo's permission dropdown:

Demo permission dropdown

These access levels can be updated at any time after the user has been granted access — no need to remove and re-add to change levels.

What's the difference between a user's role and their Demo Permissions? A role decides which features someone can use across Consensus, such as creating demos or sharing DemoBoards. Demo Permissions decide what they can do with one specific demo (Can Use, Can Edit, Can Manage, or Is Owner). Both apply together, so a user needs the right role and the right access level on a demo to work with it.

Can a Sender/Tracker copy a demo? No. Copying demos is included in the Admin, Content Manager, Content Author, Public Link Manager, and Sender/Tracker SNAP Creator roles. If a Sender/Tracker needs it, your admin can assign a role that includes copying or build a Custom Role with it turned on.

Who can create or edit Custom Roles? Only Admins. If you don't see the Add Role button on the Roles & Permissions tab, your role doesn't include it.

Can I limit a specific feature to certain users? Yes. Build a Custom Role and turn that feature's permission on or off. For example, Demos > ScreenPal controls access to ScreenPal. Then assign the role to just those users.

Why can't I see some roles in the list? Roles that include Admin Demo Access are hidden from users who don't have Admin Demo Access themselves. Ask an Admin with that permission to review or assign those roles.