Mastering Sales Funnels, Part 2: Take Charge of the Buying Process

As we discussed in last week's blog post, if you’re not the one controlling the sales funnel, you’re basically handing the profits to someone else. That’s why so many successful online marketers will tell you: if you really want to build long-term income, you’ve got to sell your own digital products — and build a funnel around them that you control.

So what does that look like in practice?

It starts with creating your own product and building out a funnel. But here’s the thing — you’re not just creating one offer. A strong funnel includes multiple offers designed to increase the value (and revenue) from each customer interaction.

At a minimum, you’ll need a main offer and then an upsell — also known as a one-time offer or OTO. But these days, it's not uncommon for funnels to include three, five, even ten offers. You’ll see a mix of upsells (enhanced or advanced versions of the original product) and downsells (more affordable alternatives with slightly fewer features).

There are really only two big rules to follow here:

1. Your upsells and downsells should be related to the main offer and add genuine value.

2. They should be optional. The core product should still be complete on its own — no tricks or forced upgrades.

Now, will everyone buy the upsells? Of course not. But some will — especially if you present them right after the initial purchase. That’s when buyer enthusiasm is high and trust is fresh.

Think of it like this: when you order a burger, you're often asked if you want fries and a drink (that’s a cross-sell). Or maybe you upgrade to a deluxe meal with extra toppings and a milkshake (hello, upsell). Same logic applies online.

And here’s where it gets even more powerful: if someone doesn’t take the upsell, you can offer a downsell — a similar product at a slightly lower price. Studies show this works really well, because people love feeling like they’re getting a deal.

So, the takeaway? You need to own your funnel and start driving qualified traffic to it — now. The sooner you build it, the sooner you’ll start stacking income from multiple offers, and growing a list of customers who already trust you and are more likely to buy again.