Quit the Funnel and Doubled Sales. That’s exactly what happened when I ditched my overly complex automated funnel and reintroduced real conversation into my process.
Let me say something I probably shouldn’t say as a marketer:
Funnels aren’t magic.
And I say that as someone who once built a funnel so complex it needed a user manual.
I had all the pieces dialed in—tripwires, timers, sequences, scarcity, automations… the whole nine yards.
And it worked.
Until it didn’t.
What I’m about to share might feel like business heresy… but hear me out.
Because quitting the funnel didn’t kill my sales.
It doubled them.
And more importantly?
It brought me back to life.
Table of Contents
The Funnel That “Worked” — On the Surface
Let’s rewind a little.
My business was humming.
My funnel looked like something out of a Russell Brunson dream:
- Freebie opt-in →
- 7-email nurture →
- Webinar invite →
- Automated countdown →
- Scarcity-based offer window →
- Retargeting ads to catch the stragglers →
- Upsell email series →
- Bonus expiring in 72 hours
I was getting leads.
I was getting conversions.
I was waking up to Stripe notifications like clockwork.
So what was the problem?
The Hidden Burnout of a “Perfect System”
Here’s what you don’t see behind the scenes of a slick funnel:
- Writing content that sounds robotic because it’s optimized to convert.
- Spending hours tweaking subject lines that still don’t feel like you.
- Feeling out of touch with the humans behind the clicks.
- Worrying if the countdown timer feels manipulative.
- Questioning your value when the conversion rate dips 1.2%.
- Dreading the tech issues at 3 AM when the funnel breaks.
It wasn’t the funnel itself.
It was what it did to my energy. My creativity. My connection with people.
I didn’t start this business to become a glorified Zapier engineer.
But that’s exactly how it felt.
Quit the Funnel and Doubled Sales: The Wake‑Up Call
The tipping point came during a coffee with a friend—another entrepreneur.
We were swapping stories, and she asked:
“Do you like how you sell right now?”
I laughed.
Not a haha-funny laugh. A laugh that meant:
“Hell no, but I don’t know what else to do.”
She said:
“Then maybe you’re selling the wrong way.”
Oof.
Simple. Sharp. True.
That night, I shut down the funnel.
Not forever — just to see what would happen.
Spoiler alert:
Everything changed.
Quit the Funnel and Doubled Sales: What I Did Instead
Here’s the part most people don’t believe until they try it:
When I quit the funnel…
My sales didn’t slow down.
They sped up.
Why?
Because I replaced the funnel with something we forget matters in business:
Human connection.
Let me walk you through it:
✅ 1. I Sold in Real-Time Conversations
Instead of pushing people through a funnel… I just talked to them.
Literally.
DMs. Comments. Emails.
Not bots. Not sequences. Me.
I asked:
- What are you working on?
- What’s keeping you stuck?
- Want to jam on this together?
Not pitchy. Not scripted.
Just present.
And you know what happened?
People leaned in.
They asked about working together.
And when I told them how — they said yes.
✅ 2. I Made the Offer Obvious and Simple
Instead of fancy multi-step pages, I had one:
A Notion doc with:
- What the offer is
- Who it’s for
- What’s included
- How it helps
- A Calendly link
That’s it.
No scarcity countdown.
No fake urgency.
Just clarity.
And it converted better than my long-form sales page ever did.
✅ 3. I Built Trust With Truth, Not Tactics
I stopped obsessing over “conversion copy.”
I started telling stories again.
- The messy ones.
- The honest ones.
- The behind-the-scenes ones.
I wrote like I speak.
I shared like I care.
Because I do.
Instead of positioning myself as some guru…
I showed up as a guide who’s been in the mud, too.
And people connected.
Which led to clients.
Which led to sales.
Go figure.
✅ 4. I Let the Buyer Decide the Timeline
I stopped pressuring people to buy “before midnight.”
Instead, I said:
“Here’s how I can help. When you’re ready, I’m here.”
And funny enough?
When you remove pressure… people decide faster.
Because it’s on their terms.
Not yours.
Not your funnel’s.
Not your sales timer.
Quit the Funnel and Doubled Sales: The Results
After ditching my automated funnel, here’s what changed:
- Sales doubled. (Yes, really.)
- Clients stayed longer.
- My stress levels dropped.
- My creativity returned.
- I reconnected with why I started.
And no — this isn’t some fluffy “burn the funnels” movement.
Funnels work.
But only if they align with how you want to show up in the world.
Mine didn’t.
So I stopped forcing it.
And built something better — for me.
Questions You Might Need to Ask Yourself
This whole thing might sound wild.
So before you tear up your funnel (or cling tighter to it), ask yourself:
- Do I enjoy how I’m selling right now?
- Would I still do it this way if I knew the money would come either way?
- Am I optimizing for conversions — or connection?
- Is my funnel serving people — or just moving them through a process?
- What would I do if I trusted that conversations convert better than copy?
- Could I simplify how I sell… without sacrificing results?
Write your answers down.
They might change everything.
Final Thought: Connection Converts Better Than Code
I’m not anti-funnel.
I’m anti-funnel dependency.
You don’t need a 37-step flowchart to help people.
You need clarity.
You need presence.
You need trust.
And none of that comes from a countdown timer.
It comes from you.
So whether you quit your funnel or tweak it to feel more like you — just remember:
People buy from people.
Not automations.
Not tactics.
Not cleverness.
And when you show up real?
The right people say yes.
Want My Anti-Funnel, Pro-Connection Sales Flow?
DM me the word CONVERT and I’ll send you:
✅ My “1-Doc Offer” template
✅ The 5 conversation starters that bring clients to you
✅ My minimalist sales workflow that doubled revenue
✅ A simple, funnel-free way to nurture leads with actual trust
You don’t need to be louder.
You just need to be clearer.
Let’s build sales around real connection — not artificial urgency.