Source: https://business-hacks.com/clickfunnels-review/
🔵https://linktr.ee/clickfunnelsaffiliate
ClickFunnels lets anyone build sales funnels that convert leads into customers 24/7 without relying on an expensive tech team…or so the company claims.
But is it worth the money? And what does it even do? In this ClickFunnels Review (UPDATED for 2022), I’ll cover everything you need to know to make an informed decision.
If you’re serious about scaling your business, ClickFunnels is worth every penny. But, there are definitely a few things you need to know BEFORE you spend hundreds of dollars. You don’t want to end up like some of the other entrepreneurs I know that lit $300 on fire. With this review, you won't!
ClickFunnels – Why All the Hate… and Love?
ClickFunnels is the most popular sales funnel software. So why is there so much hate going around the web?
Is it deserved? Is ClickFunnels actually legit or is it overhyped? Or worse, is it a scam?!
You’re in a pretty tough spot if you ask me. There’s a ton of dishonest information out there – with a tool of this caliber, everyone and their dog is going to publish their own Clickfunnels Review…
On the one hand, there are people who swear by ClickFunnels, saying it changed their lives. It's borderline software worship. Like these people:
On the other hand, you’ve got smear campaign videos and articles published on the regular.
Who to believe?
Let me just say this first: ClickFunnels has helped me scale big time. I don’t know where I’d be without it. And the nearly 100,000 other users aren’t just throwing money away for no reason either.
ClickFunnels works if you actually need it and know what you’re doing.
I recommend reading through the features, reading the pros and cons, and checking out my in-depth breakdown of pricing so you can make that decision for yourself.
OK, ready? Let’s hack some funnels!
What is ClickFunnels? Is ClickFunnels Legit?
Would this guy lie to you? I doubt it.
ClickFunnels is a service that simplifies the creation of sales funnels, or tools that enable entrepreneurs to scale their businesses by attracting targeted leads and turning them into customers.
What sets them apart from competitors is that they give you everything you need to attract visitors, turn those visitors into leads, and convert those leads into customers (and then follow up!).
If you know what you’re doing, you can set this up to be automatic. That means your sales funnels are growing your company 24/7 while you’re sleeping, eating, traveling, and focusing on other things.
It's the ultimate sales strategy.
At least theoretically…
What’s the Difference Between a Sales Funnel and a Website?
A website is a static page with your company’s information. Think of it like your store. There’s a sign with your logo, an entrance, some extra information, and maybe even a product or two lying around.
A sales funnel is like an expert salesperson that identifies passing customers, shows them the product they’re looking for, and sells it to them after nurturing their trust. And this salesperson is working round-the-clock while you’re off growing your company.
Sales funnels look something like this:
Here’s a more simplified version:
Basically, it’s a marketing campaign with multiple steps in which each step is designed to take the customer to the next one. Breaking the buyer’s journey down into smaller, more digestible steps makes it more likely that your lead will buy from you.
Still with me?
Cool.
Why Use a Sales Funnel? Can’t I Just Run Ads?
OK, you get the funnel metaphor now.
Your sales funnels are shaped like inverted pyramids, and as your visitors draw closer and closer to becoming customers, more drop off and the only ones left are those that are actually interested.
Sure, you could just bombard someone with an ad and hope for the best, but that’s asking for a big commitment right away. Good luck with that.
Think of it like marriage: Do you just pop the question to a random stranger? Sure, why not? It’s not going to work, though.
You’ve got a much better chance if you exchange info, go on dates, start a relationship, move in together, and then succumb to increasing familial and societal pressure to follow accepted social norms.
If you nurture them through your sales funnels, there’s a much better chance they will say yes.
How Does ClickFunnels Make Building Sales Funnels Easy?
There'll be a lot more in-depth talk about features in this Clickfunnels review, but here’s a quick overview.
Before ClickFunnels, you needed a team of trained tech pros and marketers to design a funnel and then build separate pages connected to each other.
Now, the game is totally different.
ClickFunnels made it so easy that anyone with even basic web experience could build a profitable funnel and online presence. If you can post on Facebook, you can build create funnels.
They do this with:
Funnel templates
A visual editor
Email integration (your data is pushed to any email marketing software)
Landing page builder
There’s a ton more. I’ll get to that in a second.
Theoretically, if the company is being 100% honest, you’ll get everything you need to:
Guide visitors step-by-step through the sales process
Point them to the product or service they need
Follow up even if they leave the page
Sounds nice. So why all the hate and confusion? Is it actually legit?
Here’s my opinion…
Is ClickFunnels Legit?
YES. ClickFunnels is 100% legit. Every business needs to attract new visitors, educate them, sell them products, and follow up whether they buy or not. That’s exactly what ClickFunnels provides.
Nearly 100,000 people are currently using, including me.
Plus, Russell Brunson is a pretty well-respected guy in the online business industry.
He has a pretty informative (if not a bit over the top) YouTube channel with over 100k subs.
clickfunnels tutorials and support on youtube
The last thing I’ll say is that they also offer a 14-day free trial. So, if it actually is a scam, you can get your money back and be on your way.
I’m not saying ClickFunnels is the greatest thing on Earth or that it’s even the best sales funnel tool out there. I’m just saying that it’s a 100% legit company that I’ve personally used, and it’s well-known around the online business world.
Moving along…
ClickFunnels Features
There’s really no way to be impartial about ClickFunnels’ features.
There are features, and then there are FEATURES. ClickFunnels has the CAPS LOCK version.
This tool brings all of your marketing and funnel creation into one product. Yes, it’s expensive, and there are definitely a few minor bugs here and there, but it’s basically like having your own digital marketing team in one tool.
Let me break down the most important features for you.
Usability/UX
ClickFunnels is designed to be as easy-to-use as possible and you'll feel it the second you log into your Clickfunnels account.
This can limit functionality from time to time, but it’s a good thing overall. This is another tool that easily passes the grandma test (assuming your grams has a minimum of web experience).
The funnel design interface is modern and simple. You’d have to try to screw this up:
And building landing pages isn’t much harder either. You just place elements from their library into predetermined widgets on the page and boom—you’ve got a landing page.
Even I, one of the least artistically inclined people on Earth, can easily turn this:
Into something like this:
OK, I didn’t really make that, but this is to prove a point.
POINT PROVEN.
When it comes to UX, no other tool comes close in my opinion. ClickFunnels is definitely #1 for new funnel/landing page builders.
Funnel Builder
I’m not sure if the name gives it away, but ClickFunnels is mostly for building sales funnels.
That’s what drew me to it in the beginning, and it’s probably the main reason you’re reading this review.
Marketing aside, you really can build your own sales funnels very quickly with little to no tech experience. Maybe not in “minutes” like the company claims but easily in under an hour for basic funnels. That’s not bad at all considering this funnel will theoretically grow your business while you sleep.
Here’s How it Works
First, you tell the tool why you need this sales funnel:
Generate leads: This is where you create a funnel designed to get names, numbers, and email addresses and sent to your email marketing software.
Generate sales: If you need quick funnels for cheap products, longer sales pages/videos for more complex/expensive products, or if you’re trying to launch a new product. There are specific templates to follow that ClickFunnels provides. Huge value here. You just copy/paste and then fill out each page.
Online events: This is for webinars that you either host on a 3rd-party software or run forever (Evergreen) within ClickFunnels. You probably don’t need this yet.
You just click what you need and the tool sets up all of the pages you need to accomplish that goal. It’s literally an instant sales framework.
I mean, it’s not perfect, and high-level marketers usually make tweaks, but for 90% of people, this saves hours of time and thousands of dollars wasted on a myriad of services and marketing tools.
From there, you can adjust the funnel to how you want it:
You can even create simple order forms to reduce cart abandonment:
I don’t want to sound like I’m evangelizing ClickFunnels here, but it’s really hard not to. Their funnel builder is AWESOME.
ClickFunnels Landing Pages
Landing pages are the individual pages within your funnel that are designed to accomplish a goal.
This is where you try to get phone numbers, emails, addresses, and shoe sizes. Or, if you’re lucky, sell a product or two.
ClickFunnels’ landing page templates and drag and drop builder let you build professional-looking, highly converting sales funnels quickly with very little experience (are you noticing a pattern here?).
When I first started in online business, I made barebones landers with basically just a headline, some sales copy, and a sign-up form. Even that increased my conversions exponentially. I had no idea it was so easy.
It sounds cheesy, but I agree with the company that it helped me feel “uncuffed” from designers and other high-priced team members.
Templates
Worried that you have no idea what a landing page is supposed to look like?
Don’t be.
ClickFunnels has a ton of tested templates ready to go for any type of business. You just choose the one you want, make whatever changes you want, and slap it in the funnel wherever you want. Have it your way.
There are templates for upsells, event pages, sales pages, and even membership sites.
The company claims these have been tested and are high-converting. I tend to agree, but sometimes the pages feel a little stale or boring. Maybe I’m just used to them after all this time.
Still, they get the job done, especially if you’re just starting out.
You've also got the option to easily do A/B testing between the different templates, copy changes, and even entire funnels.
I covered the drag and drop builder a bit above in UX, but I’ll go into a bit more detail here.
ClickFunnels’ Editor
The drag-and-drop editor makes it easy to customize a page to look EXACTLY how you want it to.
I’ll say it right off the bat: ClickFunnels editor is NOT the best landing page builder out there in terms of capability.
It’s not as comprehensive as something like InstaPage, and there are a few bugs that might annoy you once you get to higher levels (I’ll cover all that further below—you should know about it before you buy).
But all-in-all, it’s probably THE BEST option when you factor in value, ease-of-use, and functionality.
They fit together like this:
building blocks of a landing page
SECTIONS are like the structure for your house—the foundation, walls, and roof. ROWS are like the different rooms in your home where you’ll add more detail. And ELEMENTS are the pieces of furniture and weird decorations your grandma has in each of her rooms.
ClickFunnels is stupidly easy.
If I can do this, anyone can. It’s kind of like paint by numbers. All of the hard work is done for you. You just fill everything in. If you’re handy with code, you can still add in your own HTML, CSS, or Javascript code.
Once you have the structure in place, you add in elements (there are dozens), and voila.
But again, don't let this intimidate you – it'll look a lot nicer when you start adding some elements like text, images, videos, buttons, forms, etc. And just like every other landing page builder, you'll likely just start with a pre-built template that you can tailor to your own online marketing needs.
Some other ones I use to add some instant spice to my landing pages are:
SMS Signup
Surveys
Progress Bars
Facebook Comments
FAQ Blocks
Countdown Timers (Huge for CRO)
Custom HTML
FAQ: Are ClickFunnels Pages Mobile-Friendly?
This is a huge perk for using ClickFunnels: your pages are automatically mobile responsive.
No work needed. Thanks, ClickFunnels.
ClickFunnels Editor Summary
ClickFunnels is my favorite landing page builder and sales funnel tool. There's a reason so many of the leading experts in online marketing are such huge advocates of it.
I can just click a pre-made funnel template, adjust the landing pages inside the template, and boom—I’ve got a high-converting sales funnel that grows my business while I sleep (or write one of these reviews).
It’s not the most functional and the funnel templates aren’t the best out there, but there’s no simpler way to build funnels. You literally can’t screw this up unless you try. When you combine usability, professional quality, convenience, and functionality, ClickFunnels is the best out there in my opinion, even with my gripes about it.
Clickfunnels Integrations
I won’t go into too much detail here. You can follow up with your different online services on your own if need be. There’s SMS, email marketing tools, payment gateways, marketing platforms, and pretty much anything else you need to market or sell products online.
Capture leads, let your funnels do the heavy lifting, use other marketing tools to send them offers later on. Profit.
The most popular ones are:
ActiveCampaign
Actionetics (ClickFunnels’ own email marketing tool)
Constant Contact
Drip
Ever Webinar
Facebook
Hubspot
Mailchimp
SalesForce
Twilio
Zapier
Stripe
Shopify
In my experience, all of these apps run smoothly, and adding them is as easy as clicking a button on your Clickfunnels dashboard. If you want to add a new integration, click the button that says— and pay close attention to this — ADD NEW INTEGRATION.
FAQ: Does ClickFunnels Have Autoresponders?
Yes, they’re part of the email follow up process.
The Rest of ClickFunnels Features
I’m going to lump the rest of the features together since funnels, landing pages, and integrations are the core online marketing TOOLS. Everything else is butter on the lobster (I didn’t want to say icing on the cake, I'm dieting).
Share Funnels
This is my favorite bonus feature. Generally, anything that makes me money without having to think or work is cool in my book.
Share Funnels allows you to duplicate entire online marketing funnels directly from someone else’s account. That means if I were nice enough to share a super successful funnel that has worked for me (I’m not, just saying as an example) then you could have that exact funnel in your account instantly.
That means if you’re going to sell an ebook, then all you have to do is look for a ebook marketing funnels that are being shared around, duplicate, and use it as your own. Like this:
ClickFunnels Actionetics
Actionetics is ClickFunnels’ email marketing tool that lets you connect with subscribers and push them towards the next steps in your funnels, deliver products, content, and more.
Once you build lists, you create emails and broadcast them to your different audience segments. I’m not a big fan of Actionetics (I’m too used to MailChimp), but one cool perk is the analytics-like lead scoring that tells you how much each subscriber is worth.
With your cool new social metric, you can say who gets to live or die (on your subscribers list…).
Backpack
Backpack is ClickFunnels’ affiliate program tool.
This lets you quickly add an affiliate program to your site. Affiliate advertising is AMAZING for a growing business. It’s the only way to scale your business WITHOUT increasing your workload or spending more money.
You just get affiliates to do it all for you in exchange for a commission.
The tool itself is pretty easy too. I’ve read some complaints about it, but I’ve never encountered any personally.
Just click “Edit Page” and start editing the details: banner ads, swipes, email samples, etc.
I don’t recommend diving in headfirst though. Master funnels and landing pages first.
Other ClickFunnels Features
A few extras you’ll definitely make use of:
A/B testing
Social contact profiles
Improving your sales process
ClickPops
ClickOptins
Helpful Facebook group
Payment gateways
How to Use ClickFunnels
You should probably learn how to use ClickFunnels—unless you want to sign up, log in, and stare blankly at the Clickfunnels dashboard (it is pretty…) with analysis paralysis for 3 days straight.
Up to you…
I was a bit confused in the beginning myself. Setting up funnels is easy. Building landing pages is easy. Adding an affiliate section is easy.
But learning how it all works together to automatically grow your business organically is NOT EASY.
Let me just cover the absolute basics to get you started:
How to Get Started With ClickFunnels?
Getting started is pretty simple. You go to ClickFunnels.com and start your 14-day free trial.
https://linktr.ee/clickfunnelsaffiliate
This next step is kind of annoying, but it’s a small price to pay in my opinion. You have to “create an account” by giving your name, email, and PW.
Then, you enter your credit card details (your card won’t be charged) and you’re good to go. You’ve now got two weeks to see if ClickFunnels is for you.
After You Sign Up
Once you log in, you’ll find a few cool things lurking within ClickFunnels’ lair:
ClickFunnels Game: A quick funnel creation tutorial.
The Clickfunnels Dashboard: This is the central nervous system of ClickFunnels. It’s where you control everything.
Live Contact Activity: Here, you can view the activity of your contacts in real time across all funnels.
Favorite Funnels: Quick links to your most used funnels.
You also see:
Menu
Account profile
Help menu
Backpack
Actionetics (Depending on your plan)
Pretty straightforward.
Now, let’s talk about funnels.
How to Set Up You First Sales Funnel
Before we get into setting up a sales funnel in ClickFunnels, I want to drive home the idea of how a sales funnel works.
The 4 Stages of a Sales Funnel
Awareness: You start by using ads, SEO, or content to bring in targeted leads. This is the point where you let the visitor know you may have what they’re looking for.
Interest: The person has now taken a mild interest in you. You’ve got an email address or number. Now you can send them more information (ebook, webinar, etc.).
Decision: You’ve gently nudged them toward making a decision and now they’ve done it. They’ve made a positive decision about your product or service based on your sales pages/materials.
Action: It’s to get your MONEY! This is where they buy whatever you’re selling.
Setting up Your Sales Funnel
Now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for, it’s time to funnel some unsuspecting visitors through their buying journey and into your bank account.
Setting up a sales funnel is really easy.
You have two choices: Classic or Cookbook.
Classic is for more skilled chefs. You decide what you want to make, go to the store, pick your own ingredients, and cook it up.
Cookbook is for new chefs that want to follow a direct recipe. I’ll cover them both quickly.
Step 1: Classic Mode
If you want to do it all from scratch, start by choosing your Goal (Collect Emails, Sell Your Product, Host Webinar). Then, choose a Type and click Build Funnel.
Now, it’s on you to choose the templates for each page (Optin, Thank you, etc.) and build the funnel yourself. Once you’ve selected a template for each page, you can customize the page using the editor that I showed you before.
Don’t worry if this all feels confusing. There’s a Launch Checklist (your “ingredients” list) that’ll guide you.
Step 1A: The ClickFunnels Cookbook
There’s nothing wrong with following a pre-made recipe from an expert chef for your first meal. Is this analogy still making any sense?
Creating a sales funnel from the Cookbook is even easier:
Open The Funnel Cookbook
Select Industry
Choose The Type Of Funnel
Choose Your Goal
Select The Template Suggestion
Choose Your Template Free or Paid
Download or Purchase Your Funnel Templates.
Step 2: Add Integrations/Customizations
Now it’s time to add the specifics of your funnel. I usually add things like:
Email marketing integrations
Payment integration
A custom domain
Affiliate offers (via the Backpack system)
That’s really it! I told you this was really easy. Of course, you’ll have to add content to each of your pages as well as your products and pricing. But that is all really straightforward.
ClickFunnels is really easy to use, so I don’t see how you can get this wrong – there's effectively no learning curve.
This is a very basic overview, but it should demonstrate how easy this thing is to use. You choose the best funnel templates, add some content, add your product, and you’ve got a sales funnel – whether it's for online courses, a physical product, your service, a community or any other type of business model.
Want to push things to the next level? Start running A/B testing between a few different versions of your funnels and you're hitting guru status 🙂
PRO TIP: Don’t forget to add a follow-up email.
ClickFunnels Price – Is ClickFunnels Worth it?
People ask me every day about ClickFunnels' pricing.
“Is it even worth it?”
“Why is ClickFunnels expensive?”
“Is it worth the money to upgrade?”
“Hey, man. Do you have a discount?”
This is a terrible mindset for an entrepreneur if you ask me.
Yes, ClickFunnels costs about $100/m at a minimum. Yes, it’s monthly and not a one-time fee. Yes, there’s no free plan.
But WHAT DO YOU WANT? This tool literally builds a sales funnel for you that grows your business automatically. Do you want it for free? It’s the equivalent of an entire design, copywriting, and marketing funnel team in one tool.
It's the ultimate all in one solution.
AND you've got a 14-day free trial. https://linktr.ee/clickfunnelsaffiliate
Let me break down the pricing plans for you:
ClickFunnels’ Pricing Plans
Now for the most-read part of our ClickFunnels review in the last two years… The pricing (which hasn't changed and likely won't).
ClickFunnels costs $97/m. If you want the BOSS version (the etison Suite), that will run you $297/m.
I DO NOT recommend the etison Suite for new entrepreneurs or established solopreneurs. It’s overkill and you’ll bleed money for months before you figure out how to use everything you get.
That being said, if you’re a marketing agency or running a lot of sites, then YES, etison Suite is a must. You’ll get so much value out of having one tool to build your funnels, create and send emails, and maintain your affiliate programs.
For the average marketer and business owner, the basic plan is plenty to start with.
The $97/m Basic Plan Comes With:
A/B testing
20 funnels
100 funnel pages
20,000 visitors
3 custom domains
Email marketing tool integrations
Webinar, memberships, and optin funnels
Upsell/downsales
While all of that might look like a lot, you will quickly run into a ton of issues when you try to scale. 20,000 visitors aren’t that many when you have a few websites pumping on all cylinders.
ClickFunnels Etison Suite Features
I already covered a lot of these, but the main upgrades with the ClickFunnels Etison Suite are:
Unlimited funnels, pages, visitors, and domains
Actionetics – visual email builder, email lists, email analytics
Backpack – Your complete affiliate program center
3 SMTP integrations
3 billing integrations per type
ClickFunnels Review Verdict – Is It Worth It?
YES. ClickFunnels is a complete marketing tool that lets you market and sell your products almost automatically. It has a tool and integration for nearly everything you need.
Yes, it is expensive, but you get what you pay for. It is 100% worth it.
You'll see that within the first week of your 14-day free trial, basically guaranteed.
What I Don’t Like About ClickFunnels
You may have noticed throughout this ClickFunnels review that I have a few gripes with it.
It’s not perfect. Most of the things that irk me are minor, but you should know them before you buy.
#1 – The Editor Can Be Wonky
I mentioned before that ClickFunnels page editor isn’t the most powerful or flexible. I personally don’t think it’s as good as InstaPages’ editor.
Sometimes the widgets are a bit wonky and don’t snap into place exactly where you want them. It doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it’s super frustrating when you think you’ve got the perfect spot for an opt-in form and BA—it snaps into place 2 inches to the left.
It doesn’t always happen, but it has happened to me a few times.
#2 – The $97/m Program Is Too Limited
It’s fine for a solopreneur, but I don’t like the restrictions they’ve put on ClickFunnels. 20,000 visitors and 20 funnels is low for almost $100 a month. Of course, when you add in everything else, it’s definitely worth the money.
Also, there’s no FREE plan.
#3 – Some Templates Are Just “Meh”
You'll see this mentioned in every Clickfunnels review. There are plenty of awesome templates, but there are a few that aren’t very good. I think ClickFunnels should really look into upgrading some of their templates.
#4 – Integrations
I think I’m just being spoiled here, but I wish ClickFunnels integrated with more apps and tools, especially payment gateways. I have to rely on Zapier too much for my liking.
ClickFunnels FAQ
Q: Is ClickFunnels Legit?
YES. This is a massive and well-respected company with a huge following.
Q: Is ClickFunnels a Pyramid Scheme?
No, ClickFunnels is not a pyramid scheme. That doesn’t even make any sense. Do you people know what a pyramid scheme is?
Q: Is There a Free ClickFunnels Plan?
No, but they have 14-day free trial so you can give it a try with full functionality.
Q: How Much is ClickFunnels?
Either $97/m or $297/m depending on what features you need access to and how many visitors you expect your campaigns to generate.
Q: What Can I Do With ClickFunnels?
Build sales funnels, landing pages, email marketing, and affiliate programs, plus sell products.
Q: Are There Alternatives to ClickFunnels?
Yes, but I don’t recommend them for sales funnels. The most popular are Unbounce and InstaPage.
Verdict – ClickFunnels: Yes or No?
ClickFunnels is the best tool on the market for creating sales funnels. It’s easy, intuitive, powerful, and effective. Personally, I use it every time I release an info product, online courses, run a webinar, or sell a new product.
If you’re serious about growing your business, there’s no easier way to scale than with ClickFunnels. It’s worth every penny.
Click here to sign up for the 14-day free trial! https://linktr.ee/clickfunnelsaffiliate