Have you ever been so captivated by an advertorial that suddenly you found yourself with a credit card, ready to purchase? That’s the magic of a sales funnel at work. Wonder who’s behind the wizardry? Chances are that a funnel builder most likely created it. Even more likely, the funnel builder used was ClickFunnels. Debatable? I don’t think so.
ClickFunnels is a powerful sales funnel and marketing platform with drag-and-drop page builders, opt-in forms, email automation, analytics, and integrations. While CliCkFunnels excels at streamlining lead capture and conversions, it isn’t the best fit for those who prioritize ease of use and budget.
Curious to learn if and how ClickFunnels can help your business? Read on my biased ClickFunnels review to find out.
ClickFunnels – My Failed Attempt at an Unbiased Verdict
I’ve been using ClickFunnels since 2015 and my heart lies in it. Still, honest to God I tried to be as unbiased as possible with this review but I think I might have failed because it’s damn good!
I assessed ClickFunnels against five factors. Here’s my final score:
Overall Score: 87
ClickFunnels has made significant strides with version 2.0, enhancing the ease and flow of funnel building and landing page creation.
With the vertical workflow, setting up landing pages and sales funnels has become easier than ever before.
Split testing has become a breeze, and the enhancements in membership and course creation, along with their own video hosting, are notable improvements.
However, the platform still falls short in one key area – the scarcity of templates. For a tool that’s all about getting you up and running quickly, the limited template selection is a noticeable gap.
On the bright side, the new assets introduced in ClickFunnels 2.0 mitigate this to some extent by offering a quicker setup process.
Given its price point, I believe ClickFunnels could improve by expanding its template library. That said, ClickFunnels 2.0 is definitely worth trying for anyone looking to enhance their online business.
It offers a 14-day free trial, a great opportunity to see how it fits into your workflow and aids business growth.
All You Need to Know About ClickFunnels
ClickFunnels empowers solopreneurs and mid-sized businesses to scale their marketing effortlessly with its comprehensive, all-in-one marketing and funnel-building platform.
Its primary feature is its sales funnel builder, which allows you to create entire marketing funnels with a few clicks. The best part? You don’t need to be a tech whiz or marketing guru.
Other features, such as comprehensive email list management, digital asset management, A/B testing, and sales analytics, help business owners curate unbeatable marketing campaigns.
Integrating your funnel with other platforms is easy. Be it Shopify, Zapier, or Stripe, ClickFunnels offers an extensive library of third-party integrations that cover many popular business tools and services.
With a 14-day free trial, you basically eliminate any possible risk of losing your investment.
Advantages of ClickFunnels
From my experience, the best part about ClickFunnels is how it simplifies marketing to an almost effortless level. I call it a virtual marketing assistant.
You can create a funnel, complex or simple, for any business objective—be it increasing brand awareness, lead generation, or driving conversions.
How, you may ask? ClickFunnels was built by one of the best marketers on the planet.
After using this platform for so many years, it almost feels like he integrated every essential element of a successful marketing funnel into the platform.
All you need is a clear grasp of your business, what you offer, and who you’re offering it to, aka your target audience.
Adding even more value, ClickFunnels offers premium features that set it apart. My favorites include:
- Countdown funnels that build urgency.
- Store funnels that streamline shopping experiences.
- Smart checkout features enhance purchase processes.
- Seamless integration with your existing tech stack.
I am a big fan of the pre-built workflows. They make creating online sales funnels a breeze.
Think customizable templates, opt-in forms, sales pages, order forms, and email marketing management—all under one service umbrella.
As a marketer, I believe the marketing automations in their latest release (ClickFunnels 2.0) deserve a special mention. Now, you can:
- Set up automated email sequences that nurture leads based on their engagement level.
- Send targeted offers to customers who abandoned their shopping carts.
- Automatically segment your email list based on purchase history.
Of course, you can’t ignore A/B split testing and powerful sales analytics tools, which allow businesses to understand their customers better and improve their sales funnels.
Disadvantages of ClickFunnels
There’s not much to complain about with ClickFunnels, especially after the significant improvements with ClickFunnels 2.0.
However, price is a major deciding factor for most small businesses and solopreneurs.
ClickFunnels, while offering extensive features, may not fit all budgets, especially for those looking to scale their marketing efforts with more advanced plans.
Bringing out my empathetic self, navigating ClickFunnels can initially be a bit complex. The learning curve can be steep for the average business owner with little tech savvy.
However, catching up doesn’t take much time if you persist.
Adding to the cons, my experience with ClickFunnels support has been a mixed bag—some helpful moments but also frustration at delays and misunderstandings.
The wider sentiment, though, echoes louder. Many users find their support lacking, slow to respond, and sometimes missing the mark on solving user issues.
This is sloppy on ClickFunnels’ end, as they’ve been operating for over 10 years and haven’t gotten their support right (sighs).
That is why I decided to create this helpful ‘How to Contact ClickFunnels Support‘ guide for anyone who’s looking for the simplest path to get some concrete help from them.
Also, I’m not very fond of the hype marketing that ClickFunnels heavily relies on. Specifically, I feel like the platform’s emphasis on upsells and the ‘get rich quick’ narrative casts a shadow on their credibility.
It’s crucial to remember ClickFunnels for what it is—a great funnel builder that helps you sell online, not a magic solution for wealth.
Summary of ClickFunnels’ Best Features
I have dabbled with many funnel builders and found that the feature set ClickFunnels offers is notably impressive. Here is a quick summary:
- Customizable funnel templates to jumpstart your funneling process.
- Effective opt-in forms to generate qualified leads.
- Comprehensive email management system.
- Efficient digital asset management.
- Support for multiple payment gateways.
- A/B split testing capabilities to refine your marketing strategies.
- Swift domain integration.
- Dedicated membership area to enhance user engagement.
- Integrated affiliate management system to expand your marketing reach.
How ClickFunnels Fares Against Its Competitors
| Funnel Builder | Overall Score | Best For | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
 ClickFunnels | 87 | Driving conversions | Check Out On ClickFunnels |
 GoHighLevel | 86 | Marketing agencies looking to scale | Check Out On GoHighLevel |
 Systeme.io | 85 | Solopreneurs on a budget | Check Out On Systeme.io |
 LeadPages | 84 | Generating leads | Check Out On LeadPages |
 Kartra | 83 | Coaches and consultants | Check Out On Kartra |
 CartFlows | 82 | Building WooCommerce sales funnels | Check Out On CartFlows |
 Involve.Me | 81 | Lead generation | Check Out On Involve.Me |
This sentiment also reflects in my article on the best sales funnel builders.
ClickFunnels Reviewed Across 5 Factors
1. Ease Of Use
A. Building Specialized Landing Pages
Did you know that 77% of all landing pages are home pages?
For some, this might sound like any other random statistic. But for me, it highlights a critical oversight: many businesses overlook the potential of specialized landing pages for their offerings.
You can take a look at my article on the best ClickFunnels landing pages for some inspiration that will actually yield results.
ClickFunnels’ landing page builder and customizable funnel templates help you easily create these specialized landing pages. I particularly like the builder’s versatility.
My guide on ClickFunnels landing page templates will give you cool ideas on how you can deploy them for your business.
You can create unlimited supporting pages, say a dedicated sales page for your primary product, a customized order form for a unique checkout experience, or just a nice thank you page to honor a purchase.
Plus, setting up upsell and downsell offers is super easy.
But there’s a small catch. Coming from a background deeply rooted in WordPress, I found the ClickFunnels page builder less intuitive than expected.
It required a bit of a learning curve, with a few lengthy tutorials to get me up to speed. However, this was back in 2019. ClickFunnels 2.0 is a total beast.
The new assets they added to the editor significantly ease the learning process. Also, the availability of pre-built templates is a game-changer.
These templates allow anyone to quickly create effective pages, regardless of design or coding experience.
However, if you don’t like your marketing being salesy, you will have lots of frowns coming your way.
The biggest letdown, though, and I can’t stress this enough, is the extremely scarce number of templates in ClickFunnels 2.0.
This wasn’t the case with ClickFunnels Classic, and I’m shocked to see this change.
This is especially frustrating given how templates expedite creation by offering a foundation to modify and build upon quickly.
The bottom line? Businesses with 10-15 specialized landing pages see a 55% increase in leads.
Despite the limited number of templates, with ClickFunnels, more pages mean more content, which increases your chances of engaging prospects, boosting sales, and driving profits – all on one platform.
B. Creating Forms
While organic and sponsored content will help you reach your target audience, ClickFunnels’ opt-in forms will prompt them to enter your email list.
The best part? They allow you to manage your email list and digital assets for a dynamic funnel strategy.
And, yes, you can create pop-ups or exit-intent forms (no cutting corners here).
Moreover, you can customize them according to your brand identity to ensure that even the tiniest parts of your funnel embody your brand.
When it comes to e-commerce, order forms are a critical stage in the customer journey.
Unlike standard offerings from platforms like Shopify and BigCommerce, ClickFunnels allows you to create order forms tailored specifically to your target audience and their needs.
These forms are customizable and designed to maximize sales opportunities through intelligent upselling and downselling strategies.
To top it off, an order summary and a variety of payment gateways are integrated to reduce cart abandonment rates significantly.
2. Conversion Optimization
A. In-built Email Marketing
With a native SMTP, you can quickly draft and send emails on ClickFunnels.
This way, not only do you save money on a third-party email delivery service, you also nurture your prospects on repeat through well-timed emails.
You can create an email from scratch using the ClickFunnels drag-and-drop editor.
Or, if you like a plug-and-play approach, choose from hundreds of ready-made email templates across multiple use cases proven to generate leads.
Thanks to Broadcasts, setting up email sequences is also pretty smooth.
Whether you want to build anticipation for an upcoming sales event or get maximum viewership for a webinar, these scheduled emails will help you quickly guide prospects from initial awareness to action readiness.
Plus, with email list management, you can segment your audience based on multiple factors—purchase history, location, and interest, for example.
I love this feature because it allows personalized communications that resonate with audiences at different stages of the funnel.
From a user experience point of view, I am a bit disappointed with how this feature has been built. Having to enter your email details before you pick a template? Come on, ClickFunnels. You’re better than that.
Also, while the in-built email marketing tools do the job, they’re not exactly breaking new ground.
So, if you’re used to the deep analytics and customization you get with dedicated email platforms like MailChimp or GetResponse, ClickFunnels might leave you wanting more.
B. A/B Testing and analytics
The design and copy of your sales and landing pages are pivotal in determining your conversion rates.
ClickFunnels amplifies this effect with its built-in A/B testing tool, enabling you to experiment with two versions of your pages. This tool meticulously tracks essential metrics such as:
- Time on page
- Page views
- Conversion rate
- Bounce rate
- Unique visitors
Yet, understanding page performance is just one piece of the puzzle. To optimize your funnels, you need a comprehensive view of sales metrics.
ClickFunnels delivers this through deep analytical insights into important audience behavior, like:
- Sales
- Average order value
- Funnel conversion rates
- Total revenue
- Refund rate
These detailed metrics empower you to make informed decisions, fine-tune your strategies, and significantly improve your funnel’s effectiveness.
In essence, ClickFunnels offers a comprehensive solution for business owners to not only create and analyze but also continuously refine their sales funnels based on solid data.
3. Integration and Automation
A. APIs and Webhooks
One of ClickFunnels’ standout features is its seamless integration with a myriad of platforms, enhancing the functionality and efficiency of your sales funnels.
With webhooks, for example, integrating payment gateways like Stripe is hassle-free, ensuring smooth transaction processes for your customers.
Plus, ClickFunnels’ compatibility with various email autoresponders allows for automated follow-ups.
This means you can effortlessly reduce cart abandonment, welcome new leads, and segment your audience for tailored email campaigns. Compatible autoresponders include:
- iContact
- ConvertKit
- MailChimp
- Drip
- GetResponse
- AWeber
I find this feature pretty handy. It enables you to leverage multiple business tools to optimize every aspect of your sales funnel, from lead capture to conversion, all within the ClickFunnels ecosystem.
B. Mobile Optimization
Mobile optimization is critical in today’s smartphone-centric world. Yet surprisingly, only 50% of all landing pages are optimized for mobile visitors.
A site’s design and sales copy might be flawless, but without mobile optimization, their effectiveness drastically falls.
ClickFunnels addresses this by offering mobile-optimized page templates and customization options.
C. Domain Integration
A common hurdle for many business owners is connecting their domains. ClickFunnels simplifies this with its straightforward domain integration feature. And it’s not limited to your main site.
ClickFunnels lets you add as many subdomains as you need.
If you’re starting fresh, you can quickly get a new domain through the platform. Whether you’re transferring or starting new, ClickFunnels keeps it simple so you can focus on what matters: your business.
4. Membership and Community Management
For businesses looking to build a more interactive online presence, ClickFunnels extends its utility beyond sales funnels.
The platform empowers entrepreneurs, particularly coaches and consultants, to create exclusive membership areas.
With a sign-in gateway, you can give members access to courses, downloadable content, and exclusive deals.
This is a great way to build a loyal audience and offer premium content to paying customers, increasing the customer’s lifetime value.
ClickFunnels also allows you to create and moderate a thriving community. Members who log in to your portal can incorporate in-line video playback and embed media within posts.
Members get to see customizable feeds that allow them to engage with other members.
Imagine creating a community of people who love gardening.
You could offer them exclusive discounts on gardening products, and they could talk about how they used your products in their garden, meaning you can harness the power of user-generated content while building engagement with your brand!
5. Price and Value For Money
Let’s talk money. ClickFunnels isn’t your run-of-the-mill platform. Apart from being a funnel builder, it’s a solid marketing platform.
With a drag-and-drop page builder, email automation, and analytics, it has everything you need to build and manage your sales funnels. But quality comes at a price, right?
For solopreneurs and small businesses on a tight budget, ClickFunnels’ starting price might raise some brows.
Yes, it’s pricier, but think of it as an investment into a full-fledged sales and marketing system that will help increase engagement, capture leads, and drive sales for your business.
The question is, does the juice justify the squeeze?
If you’re all about optimizing every step of your sales funnel and ready to see those conversion rates climb, then yes.
ClickFunnels offers bang for your buck, giving you a centralized platform to attract, engage, and convert. It’s about weighing the upfront cost against the potential for increased revenue.
My suggestion? If you’re serious about scaling up and have the budget to back it, ClickFunnels is worth every dollar.
Want to test the waters? Try their 14-day free trial and see if it’s the right fit for your business.
I’ll Always Be a Bit Biased Toward ClickFunnels…
ClickFunnels is one of the best funnel builders out there. It’s easily in my top 3 and has been so for a long time.
With ClickFunnels 2.0, the platform has made big leaps in smoothing workflow management and making the page builder more fluid.
However, the limited range of templates has weakened its place at the top of the funnel-building toolkit.
Despite this, the overall improvements make ClickFunnels 2.0 a better tool for crafting funnels. It’s worth giving it a shot through a free trial, particularly for those looking to scale their marketing efforts quickly.