There are endless funnel diagrams online. In practice, an expert business runs on five, and you don't need all five at once. Here they are, in the order most people should build them.
1. The freebie funnel
What it does: turns a stranger into a subscriber. An opt-in page offers something useful in exchange for an email: a checklist, a short training, a template, a mini-course. A thank-you page delivers it, and a short email sequence introduces you.
Build it when: first. Everything else depends on having people to talk to. It's also the simplest to launch, which matters when momentum is the variable.
2. The tripwire funnel
What it does: turns a new subscriber into a buyer with a small, specific offer, usually $27 to $67, presented right after the opt-in. An order bump and a one-time upgrade often sit alongside it. The point isn't the revenue; it's that a buyer behaves differently from a subscriber.
Build it when: your freebie is working and you have something small and complete to sell: a workshop recording, a toolkit, a starter course.
3. The sales page funnel
What it does: sells a program or offer that people can buy without a call. A long-form page makes the case (promise, who it's for, what's inside, proof, guarantee), and a checkout closes it. Email drives people to it during a launch or evergreen.
Build it when: you have a defined offer at a price people will self-purchase, typically up to the low thousands.
4. The high-ticket application funnel
What it does: qualifies and books calls for premium offers. An invitation page explains the program, an application asks the questions that tell you fit, and a calendar books the conversation. Discovery before prescription: the call is a diagnosis, not a pitch.
Build it when: you sell something that needs a conversation, or when you want fewer, better calls.
5. The webinar funnel
What it does: teaches and sells at scale. Registration, confirmation, reminders, the live or automated class, the replay, and the offer page. It's the most moving parts of the five, and the most leverage once it runs.
Build it when: you've sold the offer one-to-one enough times to know the objections, and you're ready to say it to a room.
Build the freebie first. Add the one that matches your current offer. Let the others wait until they'd actually change something.
What they have in common
Every one of these depends on the same underlying pieces: pages, a contact record, email and text, a calendar or a checkout, and automations that do the follow-up. When those live in separate tools, every funnel is a wiring project. When they're one platform, a funnel is a template and an afternoon.