Last updated on April 7th, 2026 at 01:09 pm
Introduction
Which sales funnel should you build first?
That’s the question most people ask when they’re starting an online business. But there’s a better question to ask first, because “sales funnel” isn’t one thing. It’s a category. Some funnels are built to collect emails. Others are built to make sales. And others are built to book phone calls. Same term, completely different jobs.
So the question that helps is: what am I trying to accomplish right now? Once you know that, picking the right funnel gets a lot easier.
This post breaks down the 9 most common types of sales funnels and what each one does. By the end, you’ll know exactly which one to build first.
New to funnels? Start with this guide to understand how sales funnels work.
Lead Generation Funnels
These funnels are designed to build your email list. The goal is simple: get someone to give you their email address in exchange for something valuable. Once they’re on your list, you can follow up and build a relationship before asking for the sale. Getting an email is easier than getting a credit card, which is why you start here.
1. Squeeze Page Funnel
What it is: The simplest funnel you can build. One page with a headline, an opt-in form, and a call to action. The visitor gives you their email and gets a free resource in return.
This is where most people should start. It works for basically every business type.
What makes this funnel work is how simple it is. You need a headline, an image or short description of what they’re getting, and an opt-in form. No long sales copy, testimonials, or complicated design. Just a clear offer and a way to opt in.
The free resource you’re giving away is called a lead magnet. It could be a PDF guide, a checklist, a video training, a template, a cheat sheet, anything that solves a small problem fast. Here are 18 lead magnet ideas that get people to opt in. The better the lead magnet, the higher your conversion rate.
Your headline does most of the heavy lifting. It needs to create enough curiosity that someone is willing to trade their email for whatever you’re offering. If the headline is vague or boring, conversions drop. If it’s specific and compelling, conversions go up.
Common mistake: People overdesign squeeze pages and tank conversions. The page should load fast, look clean, and have one goal. Every extra element you add (images, testimonials, long explanations, multiple CTAs) reduces conversions. Keep it simple.
Best for: Any business that needs to start building an email list. Coaches, consultants, ecommerce brands, SaaS companies, service providers. This is the universal starting point.
Learn how to build your first squeeze page here
2. Survey Funnel
What it is: Instead of sending everyone to the same squeeze page, you ask a few questions first. Based on their answers, you route them to a customized landing page and follow-up sequence that speaks directly to their situation.
The first question is the “bucket question,” which determines which segment they fall into. For example: “Are you a coach, an ecommerce seller, or a service provider?” That’s a bucket question. It sorts people into categories so you can customize what they see next.
Each segment gets a different case study, different messaging, and ideally a different follow-up email sequence. If you’re a coach, you see a landing page with coaching examples and testimonials from other coaches. If you’re an ecommerce seller, you see ecommerce examples. The offer might be the same, but the way it’s presented changes based on who’s reading it.
This works well when you serve multiple customer types and one message can’t speak to all of them. ClickFunnels uses survey funnels because it serves coaches, ecommerce sellers, service providers, consultants, and more. Each group needs different messaging.
Survey funnels take longer to set up than a basic squeeze page. You’re building multiple landing pages and multiple email sequences instead of just one. But conversions are typically higher because the messaging feels personalized.
Best for: Businesses that serve distinct customer segments with different pain points and goals.
3. Summit Funnel
What it is: A virtual event where you interview 15 to 30 experts in your industry. Registrants watch for free during a limited window. You offer an “all-access pass” to keep watching after the live window closes.
This is a list-building play that uses other people’s audiences. Each guest speaker promotes the summit to their email list, sending you traffic you didn’t have to pay for. You’re borrowing their credibility and their reach.
The free event builds your authority by association with the guest speakers. If you’re new to a market and no one knows who you are, interviewing 20 established experts positions you as someone worth paying attention to.
Revenue comes from the all-access pass, which is usually priced under $100. Not everyone buys it, but enough people do to make the summit profitable. The bigger win is the email list. You can move those registrants into your next funnel and continue selling to them long after the summit ends.
Summits work well for getting into a market quickly when you don’t have a large list yet. If you’re launching a new business or entering a new niche, a summit can build your list faster than almost any other strategy.
The tradeoff: This one requires more moving parts than the other funnels on this list. You’ll need to coordinate with guest speakers, manage the production schedule, and handle promotion. But if you’re trying to break into a competitive market fast, it’s one of the most effective list-building strategies available.
Best for: New businesses trying to build a list fast, or established businesses launching into a new market. Requires more production effort than a squeeze funnel but delivers bigger list growth in a shorter window.
Low-Ticket Buyer Funnels
Getting someone’s email is step one. Getting them to pull out their credit card is step two, and it’s the harder step. These funnels are designed to turn a lead into a buyer with a low-priced offer, usually between free-plus-shipping and $100. The goal isn’t necessarily to profit here. It’s to get a customer. Once someone has paid you even $7, they’re significantly more likely to buy from you again.
4. Book Funnel / Free-Plus-Shipping Funnel
What it is: You offer a physical product (a book, a report, a DVD, a sample kit) for free. The customer just pays shipping. Then you present one or two upsells to increase the average order value.
The two-step order form is important here. Step one asks for shipping info. Step two asks for credit card details. Splitting this into two steps increases conversions because people don’t see the credit card form until they’ve already committed by entering their address.
Conversion rates on the shipping address form are often higher than a simple email opt-in. A physical product in the mail has higher perceived value than a digital download, so people are more willing to take that first step.
The sales page follows a three-block structure. Emotion at the top, usually delivered through a video that tells a story and hooks people in. Logic in the middle, with bullet points showing what they’ll get and why it’s valuable. Fear or urgency at the bottom, using scarcity or a limited-time offer to push people over the edge.
The order form bump is where a lot of the profit comes from. An order form bump is a small add-on offer that appears on the checkout page, typically a complementary product or an upgrade. A good percentage of buyers will add it, and it often covers ad costs by itself.
The front-end offer isn’t designed to be hugely profitable. The goal is to acquire customers at breakeven or a small loss, then make profit on the upsells and on the next funnel in the sequence. You’re buying customers, not just making sales.
And this funnel works for more than books. It works for any physical or info product you can ship. Supplement companies use it to send sample packs. Coaches use it to send physical workbooks. The format is the same.
Common mistake: People try to sell too much on the front end. The book (or whatever you’re giving away) should be valuable enough to justify the shipping cost, but the profit comes from the upsells. Don’t overload the sales page trying to convince people. The offer should be obvious. If you’re giving away a free book and they just pay $7.95 for shipping, that’s already a no-brainer. Don’t complicate it.
Best for: Authors, coaches, course creators, or anyone selling information products. Also works for physical product businesses that can create a compelling sample or starter kit.
5. Cart Funnel
What it is: Similar structure to the book funnel, but designed specifically for physical or ecommerce products. The key difference is in the upsells. Instead of selling the next logical solution (like you would in a book funnel), you sell more of the same product at a discount.
The front-end product should be your best-selling, most interesting product. Lead with what people already want, not what you think they should want.
The headline is more direct than a book funnel. Ecommerce customers respond to clear offer descriptions rather than curiosity-driven copy. If you’re selling a kitchen gadget, the headline should tell them exactly what the gadget does and why they need it.
Product demos work well on the sales page. Show the product in action. A 60-second video of someone using the product will convert better than paragraphs of text.
First upsell: more of the same product at a discount. If they just bought one jar of face cream, offer them three jars at 20% off. Second upsell: a complementary product. If you sell hot dogs, sell buns. If you sell shampoo, sell conditioner.
The product selector on the order form lets customers choose quantity before they even hit the upsells, which increases average cart value. Instead of forcing everyone to buy one unit, let them pick two or three right on the order form.
Best for: Ecommerce businesses, physical product companies, anyone selling tangible goods.
6. Challenge Funnel
What it is: You sell access to a short-term challenge (usually 5 to 30 days) where participants work toward a specific result. The challenge is delivered through daily training, often with a community component like a Facebook group. At the end, you present your core offer.
Here’s why challenge funnels work. When you stack a challenge funnel before a webinar funnel, businesses consistently see dramatically higher registration rates, show-up rates, and sales conversions compared to running webinars to cold traffic. The challenge builds trust and proves value before the pitch, which makes people far more likely to register, attend, and buy.
This is one of the most effective funnels for building a relationship before asking for the bigger sale. By the end of the challenge, participants have gotten a result and they trust you. They’ve seen your teaching style. They’ve experienced what it’s like to work with you. When you pitch your main offer, they’re already sold.
The price is typically low, somewhere between $20 and $100. The goal is to get people engaged, not to profit on the challenge itself. You’re using the challenge to build trust and prove value before you ask for the bigger commitment.
The hook needs to be specific and believable. “Build your first sales funnel in 30 days” works. “Transform your life” doesn’t. People need to know exactly what they’re signing up for and what result they’re working toward.
Near the end of the challenge, you present the next offer. This can be through a webinar, a direct pitch, or a limited-time discount. Some challenge funnels don’t include a webinar at all. You can present your offer directly at the end of the challenge with a limited-time discount, and a portion of participants will buy without needing a full presentation.
Common mistake: People make the challenge too hard or too vague. The result needs to be achievable within the timeframe. If someone can’t complete the challenge and see a result, they won’t show up for the pitch at the end. Keep the challenge simple, focused, and winnable.
Best for: Coaches, course creators, SaaS companies (teach people to use your product), membership businesses. Especially strong when your offer needs people to experience a result before they’ll commit to a bigger purchase.
Presentation Funnels
When your offer costs more, you need more time to build perceived value. You can’t sell a $997 course with a short sales page the way you’d sell a $7 book. Presentation funnels give you 20 minutes to 3 hours to make your case, answer objections, and present your offer. These work for both cold traffic (people who just found you) and warm traffic (your email list), but warm traffic converts significantly better.
7. Webinar Funnel
What it is: You invite people to a free online presentation where you teach something valuable, then pitch your product at the end. It can be live or automated.
This is the workhorse funnel for selling offers in the $200 to $2,000 range. ClickFunnels was largely built on the back of webinar funnels in its first year. Russell Brunson ran live webinars every week, sold annual ClickFunnels subscriptions, and scaled the company from zero to millions in revenue.
The structure: 45 to 90 minutes. First portion is education and value. Last portion is the pitch. The transition from teaching to selling is where most people struggle, but it’s the most important part of the webinar.
The registration page needs a strong, specific hook. What will they learn? What result will they walk away with? Vague promises don’t get registrations. Specific outcomes do.
The confirmation page matters more than people think. Use it to build excitement, reduce no-shows, and start the indoctrination process. Indoctrination is the series of emails and content that warm people up to your offer before the pitch. Send reminder emails, share testimonials, tease what they’ll learn. The more touchpoints you have between registration and the live event, the higher your show-up rate.
Once you’ve got people showing up, you need to decide whether to run your webinar live or automated. Live webinars convert better than automated ones, but automated webinars scale better. An evergreen webinar is a pre-recorded presentation that runs on autopilot, typically with a countdown timer to create urgency. Many businesses start live and transition to automated once they’ve refined the presentation.
Follow-up is critical. Not everyone who attends a webinar will buy immediately. Many attendees need follow-up emails before they’re ready to commit. Don’t assume someone who didn’t buy on the webinar isn’t interested. They might need more time, more information, or more trust before they’re ready.
Common mistake: People try to teach too much and don’t leave enough time for the pitch. A webinar isn’t a training. It’s a sales presentation disguised as a training. The teaching portion should build value for your offer, not solve the problem completely. If you solve the whole problem in the webinar, no one needs to buy what you’re selling.
Best for: Course creators, coaches, consultants, SaaS companies selling annual plans or premium tiers, anyone with an offer that needs explanation.
Get the full step-by-step guide to building a webinar funnel
8. Video Sales Letter (VSL) Funnel
What it is: A single long-form video does the selling. The page is simple: a video, a headline, and a buy button (sometimes hidden until after the video reveals the price). Upsells follow the purchase.
This works for offers that need more explanation or demonstration than a static page can provide, but don’t require a full live webinar.
The VSL follows a similar persuasion structure to a webinar: problem, solution, proof, offer. But it’s pre-recorded and available 24/7.
The key difference between a VSL and a webinar is timing. A webinar is an appointment. People register and show up at a specific time. A VSL is instant gratification. They click, they watch, they buy. There’s no waiting.
Hiding the buy button until the price reveal can increase conversions because it forces people to watch the full pitch before deciding. If the buy button is visible from the start, some people will scroll down, see the price, and leave before they understand the value.
VSLs work well for offers that are hard to explain in text or that benefit from a visual demonstration. If you’re selling software, show it in action. If you’re selling a system, walk people through the steps on screen.
Best for: Offers in the $47 to $497 range that benefit from a video explanation. Good for products that are hard to explain in text or that require a demo.
High-Ticket Funnels
When you’re selling something at $3,000 or above, most people won’t buy from a video or a webinar alone. They want to talk to someone first. High-ticket funnels are designed to qualify applicants and get the right people on a call with your sales team. These funnels almost always sit at the end of a funnel stack, meaning people arrive here after they’ve already gone through other funnels and know who you are.
9. Application Funnel
What it is: Instead of pitching your offer directly, you have prospects apply to work with you. The application qualifies them (budget, readiness, fit), and qualified applicants get a phone call where the sale happens.
The positioning shift matters. You’re not selling. They’re applying. That changes the power dynamic and increases perceived value of the offer. When someone has to apply, the offer feels more exclusive.
The application form should filter out people who aren’t a fit. Ask about their current situation, their goals, their budget range, and why they want to work with you. The goal is to weed out tire-kickers and only book calls with people who are serious and can afford what you’re selling.
After the application, qualified prospects schedule a call. The call is a conversation where you qualify fit, answer objections, and present your offer. It’s not a hard pitch. It’s a consultation that leads to a sale if they’re the right fit.
This funnel is typically the last step in a funnel stack. People arrive here after they’ve already gone through a lead funnel, maybe a book funnel, maybe a webinar. They already know you and trust you. The application is just the final step before the sale.
Best for: High-ticket coaches, consultants, agencies, masterminds, done-for-you service providers. Any offer above $3,000 where a phone conversation is needed to close.
How to Pick the Right Funnel for Your Business
If you’re looking at this list and feeling overwhelmed, don’t worry. You don’t need all 9 funnels. Most businesses only use 2 or 3. The key is picking the right one for where you are right now. Here’s how to figure out which one to build first.
By business stage:
If you don’t have an email list yet, start with a squeeze page funnel or a challenge funnel. Get people in the door.
If you have a list but no one has bought from you yet, build a low-ticket buyer funnel. Book funnel if you’re selling an info product or coaching. Cart funnel if you’re selling a physical product. Getting someone to pay you even $7 changes the relationship.
If you have buyers but you’re only selling low-priced offers (under $200), build a webinar funnel or VSL funnel to sell something higher-priced.
If you’re already selling offers in the $200 to $2,000 range, add an application funnel to sell your premium program (usually $3,000 and up).
By product type:
Physical product? Cart funnel.
Info product under $100? Book funnel.
Info product $200 and up? Webinar or VSL funnel.
Service or coaching over $3,000? Application funnel.
By traffic source:
Cold traffic from ads typically needs a lead funnel first. You can’t ask someone who just found you to buy a $997 course. Build trust with a squeeze page, then move them to a buyer funnel.
Warm traffic from your email list can go straight to a buyer funnel or presentation funnel. They already know you.
The key:
Funnels work best when they’re stacked. A squeeze funnel feeds into a book funnel, which feeds into a webinar funnel, which feeds into an application funnel. Most successful businesses run on 2 to 3 funnels working together, not just one.
Pick the funnel that matches where you are right now, build it, and move to the next one when you’re ready.
Start Building Your First Funnel
The hardest part is picking which funnel to build. Once you know that, the rest is easier than you think.
Most businesses start with a squeeze page funnel. It’s simple, it works, and you can have it live in under an hour. ClickFunnels gives you the pages and templates already built, so you’re not starting from scratch. No developer, no designer needed.
Pick the funnel that fits where you are right now, build it, and see what happens.
Start your free trial and see how fast you can go from idea to live funnel.