You post a great video. Hundreds of people watch it. A few DM "how much?", you reply hours later, and almost nobody pays. Sound familiar?
That gap between attention and payment is what a sales funnel fixes. This guide shows you how to create a sales funnel step by step, in plain English, for creators who sell courses, ebooks, coaching and paid communities in Nigeria and across Africa.
You'll get the six sales funnel stages, a worked example (a free WhatsApp masterclass that sells a ₦25,000 course), a fill-in sales funnel template, three example funnels, and how to build the whole thing in Serlzo.
What is a sales funnel?
A sales funnel is the path someone takes from first hearing about you to paying you, and then buying again.
It's called a funnel because it gets narrower. Many people see your content, fewer sign up for something free, fewer still buy. Your job isn't to force everyone through. It's to make each step clear, easy and timely, so the right people keep moving.
Without a funnel, every sale depends on you being online at the right moment. With one, the steps run whether you're awake or not.
The 6 sales funnel stages
Most guides list three or four stages. For creators, six is more useful, because the money is usually lost in the gaps between them.
1. Awareness
People discover you: a reel, a TikTok, a tweet, a WhatsApp status, a podcast guest spot. The goal here isn't a sale. It's to make the right people curious enough to take one small step.
2. Lead capture
You offer something free and useful (a masterclass, a checklist, a template, a mini-course) in exchange for a name, email and WhatsApp number. This is the most important stage, because it turns a follower you can't reach into a contact you can.
3. Nurture
You deliver the free thing and keep showing up: a reminder before the class, a useful tip, a short story from a student. Nurture builds trust, so the offer doesn't feel like it came from nowhere.
4. Offer
You present the paid product clearly: what it is, who it's for, what they'll be able to do after, the price, and why now. This is usually a sales page, the end of a live class, or both.
5. Checkout
The buyer pays. In Nigeria, this stage breaks more funnels than any other: a card that fails, a bank transfer that needs a screenshot, an account number typed out in a DM. Checkout should take a minute, accept the ways people actually pay, and deliver the product instantly.
6. Follow-up
Two kinds. People who started paying but didn't finish need a reminder. People who bought need a welcome, help getting results, and eventually the next offer. This is where one sale becomes a customer.
A sales funnel example: free WhatsApp masterclass to a ₦25,000 course
Imagine Ada, a Lagos creator who teaches small businesses to sell on WhatsApp. Her paid course costs ₦25,000. Here's her funnel, stage by stage:
- Awareness. Three short videos a week on Instagram and TikTok, each ending with "Free masterclass on Thursday, link in bio."
- Lead capture. The bio link opens a simple registration page with a form: first name, email, WhatsApp number, and "What do you sell?"
- Nurture. Straight after signing up, registrants get a WhatsApp welcome with the class link. A reminder email goes out the day before, and a WhatsApp reminder an hour before the class starts.
- Offer. In the last 15 minutes of the class, Ada presents the course and shares a link to its sales page. The same link goes out by email that evening.
- Checkout. The sales page links to a checkout where people pay by card, bank transfer or USSD and get instant access to the course.
- Follow-up. Anyone who opens checkout but doesn't pay gets a reminder. Buyers get a welcome message and a "start with Lesson 1" email. Non-buyers get a replay and a couple of helpful follow-ups over the next week.
Nothing here is fancy. It works because every step leads to the next, and nobody has to wait for Ada to reply.
How to create a sales funnel step by step
Here's the process, whatever you sell:
- Pick one paid offer. One product, one price, one type of buyer. Funnels for "everything I sell" convert nobody.
- Choose a free entry point that's a smaller piece of the same problem. A masterclass on WhatsApp selling leads naturally to a WhatsApp selling course.
- Build the capture page and form. Keep it short: a headline, three bullet points on what they'll get, and the form.
- Write the nurture sequence. Three to five messages across WhatsApp and email, spread over the days before your offer.
- Build the sales page and checkout. Answer the real questions you get in DMs: price, what's included, how access works, how to pay.
- Set up checkout recovery and post-purchase messages.
- Test it as a buyer. Sign up with your own number, go through every message, and complete a purchase.
- Send traffic and watch the numbers. Signups, attendance, checkout starts and sales. Fix the weakest step first.
Sales funnel template (fill in the blanks)
Copy this table into your notes and fill in each row before you build anything:
| Stage | Your answer | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Who it's for | Small business owners selling on WhatsApp | |
| Paid offer and price | WhatsApp Sales Course, ₦25,000 | |
| Free entry point | Free 60-minute WhatsApp masterclass | |
| Where traffic comes from | Instagram reels, TikTok, WhatsApp status | |
| What you collect on the form | Name, email, WhatsApp number, what they sell | |
| Nurture messages | Welcome, day-before reminder, 1-hour reminder | |
| Where the offer is made | End of the live class plus a sales page | |
| How people pay | Card, bank transfer, USSD | |
| Checkout follow-up | Reminder to people who didn't finish paying | |
| After the sale | Welcome, Lesson 1 email, invite to the next offer |
How to build each funnel stage in Serlzo
Serlzo puts every stage of the funnel in one dashboard, so you don't need a page builder, a form tool, an email tool and a payment link that don't talk to each other.
| Funnel stage | Serlzo tool |
|---|---|
| Lead capture | Page builder (opt-in, webinar and sales page templates) and forms |
| Contact list | CRM lists: every form submission and every buyer is saved as a contact |
| Nurture | Workflows that send WhatsApp, email and SMS messages with waits and If/Else branches |
| Offer | Sales pages built from a template, a prompt, or a blank canvas |
| Checkout | Storefront products with a shareable checkout link; cards, bank transfer, USSD and mobile money |
| Follow-up | Automatic nudge for abandoned checkouts, plus workflows triggered by a cart abandoned or a purchase completed |
Lead capture. Start from the opt-in page template, or describe the page you want. When you create a form, you pick a CRM list, and every submission lands there as a contact with their answers attached. Forms support conditional logic, so you can ask follow-up questions only when they're relevant.
Nurture. Workflows can start when a contact is added to a list or a form is submitted. Steps include WhatsApp messages, emails, SMS, waits, and If/Else branches such as "has replied to WhatsApp". Turn on "never send overnight" so a midnight signup gets your welcome at a sensible hour. The ready-made New lead welcome & nurture and Webinar & event sequence templates cover most of this. Our WhatsApp automation guide walks through the setup.
Checkout. Add your course, download, service or 1:1 call as a storefront product. Each product gets its own page and checkout link. On a naira sale, you pay 0.5% and the buyer pays a 4.5% + ₦100 checkout fee, so you keep 99.5% of your price. Withdrawals to your bank are free.
Follow-up. Buyers who leave checkout get an automatic nudge. For more control, use the Interest & checkout recovery workflow template, and the Post-purchase onboarding template to welcome new buyers.
Two things to know. Funnels are labelled Beta in the Serlzo dashboard, so expect them to keep improving. And plan limits matter: funnels, pages and workflows start on the Basic plan ($13, about ₦17,500 a month), which includes 3 funnels, 7 pages, 5 forms and 5 CRM lists.
How to create a sales funnel for free
You can run a simple funnel on Serlzo's free plan. It includes a storefront with up to 15 products, 1 form, 1 CRM list, and email and SMS marketing.
A free version of Ada's funnel looks like this:
- Share your form link in your bio instead of a full landing page.
- Every signup goes into your one CRM list.
- Send the class reminders as email campaigns to that list.
- Share your storefront checkout link at the end of the class.
What you give up on the free plan is automation: workflows, WhatsApp marketing and funnel pages need a paid plan. A sensible path is to start free, prove the funnel works, then upgrade when doing follow-ups by hand gets old.
3 sales funnel examples you can copy
1. Lead magnet to low-priced product
For ebooks, templates and planners.
- Instagram reel offering a free checklist.
- Form collects name, email and WhatsApp number.
- Checklist delivered by email, plus a WhatsApp welcome.
- Two days later, an email introducing the full template pack for ₦5,000.
- Storefront checkout link; abandoned checkouts get a reminder.
- Buyers get a thank-you and a tip for using the pack.
2. Application to a 1:1 coaching call
For coaches and consultants.
- Content that speaks to one specific problem.
- Application form with conditional logic (budget, goals, timeline).
- Applications land in your CRM; you send qualified applicants a WhatsApp message with a link to book.
- A 1:1 call product where they book and pay in one step.
- After the call, a workflow sends notes and the offer for your full programme.
3. Free challenge to a paid community
For creators who teach over time.
- Announce a free 5-day challenge on social media and WhatsApp status.
- Registration form adds people to a challenge list.
- A workflow sends a lesson each day by WhatsApp and email.
- On day 5, invite them to your paid community with monthly access.
- Members are saved to your CRM and get a welcome sequence.
Frequently asked questions
What are the stages of a sales funnel?
For creators, the six stages are awareness, lead capture, nurture, offer, checkout and follow-up. Many guides merge them into three or four (awareness, interest, decision, action), but splitting out checkout and follow-up shows you where most sales actually get lost.
How do I create a sales funnel for free?
Use a free form to collect leads, a free email tool to follow up, and a checkout link to take payment. On Serlzo's free plan you get 1 form, 1 CRM list, email and SMS marketing and a storefront, which is enough for a simple funnel. Automated workflows need a paid plan.
What is a good sales funnel example?
A free live masterclass that ends with an offer for a paid course is one of the most reliable funnels for creators. People get real value first, see you teach, and can buy while they're most interested.
Do I need a website to create a sales funnel?
No. A landing page, a form and a checkout link are enough. Serlzo hosts all three (pages are on paid plans), and you can share the links in your bio, WhatsApp, SMS or email.
How long does it take to build a sales funnel?
A simple funnel (one form, a few messages and a checkout link) can be built in an afternoon. Writing good copy for each stage usually takes longer than the setup itself.
Build your first sales funnel this week
You don't need a perfect funnel. You need one offer, one free entry point, and follow-up that doesn't depend on you being online. Start simple, test it as a buyer, and improve the weakest step.
Last updated November 2026. Serlzo publishes this blog.