If Your Funnel Feels "Forced," Your Leads Feel It Too
Have you seen your socials? Your funnel’s a bit much.
Not all the time. Just… in that awkward way a first date gets when they ask if you’re “ready for marriage” before the starters arrive.
You know the vibe.
Someone clicks on your ad. “Ooh, that looks useful,” they think. They give you their email address—because the lead magnet is actually decent. And before they’ve even downloaded the PDF?
Boom.
Sales email. Another sales email. A “Hey, just circling back” email like you’re old LinkedIn mates from 2008. Then a weird countdown timer. Then a fake “closing soon” message (on something that’s never closed).
By the third message, your lead has already unsubscribed and is mentally telling their mates, “Nope. Not them. They’re a bit… desperate.”
We’ve all done it. We’ve all felt it.
And if your funnel feels forced to you?
Your leads already clocked it yesterday.
“It Converts!” they said. “It’s Conversion Murder,” your leads replied.
Let’s rewind.
Marketing teams love funnels. We love a funnel. (We’ve built plenty of them.) Funnels look so good in diagrams. Arrows! Stages! Numbers that go up! “Look at our metrics,” someone says, pointing at a pie chart that means nothing.
But here’s the unfiltered truth: a funnel that’s built to satisfy a marketing manager’s reporting needs doesn’t always work for real people. Especially not the ones with inboxes crammed full of “just checking in” emails from other funnel-happy brands.
Forced funnels are predictable. Predictable is boring. And boring doesn’t convert.
What Even Is a Forced Funnel?
Glad you asked.
A forced funnel is what happens when you build the journey you want your lead to take—without giving a single thought to what your lead wants to do.
It assumes everyone is:
Ready to buy right now
Just one email away from getting out their card
Totally cool with being spammed for 10 days straight
Emotionally invested in your “Last chance! Offer ending!” message… even though they only met you two emails ago
It’s the digital marketing version of that salesperson who stands too close in the shop, asks your size, and starts suggesting shoes when you’ve only popped in for a browse.
And it’s not just annoying. It’s off-putting. You might win a few panicked clicks. But what you’re losing? Trust.
Are We Forcing It? Let’s Check
If your funnel does any of the following, it may be guilty as charged:
Auto-starting sales sequences as soon as someone downloads a top-of-funnel freebie
Using fake scarcity to try and manufacture urgency (“Only 3 spots left!” Even though it’s a video download)
Emailing everyone the exact same way, regardless of what they do (or don’t do)
Relying more on templates than on your audience’s actual pain points
Offering “one-time” bonuses... every single week
Sound familiar?
You don’t have to admit it out loud. Just nod. We’ve all been there.
Why Forced Funnels Fail (Even if They Look Good on Paper)
Because they’re built backwards.
They’re built to “convert” a lead. Not to earn a lead. Not to understand what they need. Not to help them figure out what’s best for them (even if it’s not you).
Here’s what forced funnels ignore:
Timing – Your lead might be perfect for your offer… just not yet.
Context – Not every click means they’re ready to buy. Some are just curious.
Energy – If your email energy is “BUY NOW OR I’LL EAT MY HAT,” your lead is out.
Individuality – Every person in your funnel is on their own path. You’re not their main character—they are.
And when your funnel says, “This is the journey, like it or not,” you become background noise. Or worse, an unsubscribe.
If It Feels Gross to You, It Definitely Feels Gross to Them
Have you ever been in a funnel that made you go: “Ugh, I need a shower”?
Me too.
It’s the one where you buy a low-ticket course and suddenly the brand’s shouting in all caps about their £6,000 mastermind.
You’re not even sure what the course is about yet. But now they’re sending you screenshots of their Stripe account like that’s meant to prove something.
Let’s retire the braggy tactics. The funnel-flogging. The “Bro Marketing Lite” that feels like a cheap trick from a late-night infomercial.
Let’s build something better.
Let’s Talk About Funnels That Don’t Feel Forced
A good funnel isn’t a funnel. It’s a conversation. A good funnel feels like:
The brand actually knows who you are (because they’ve tracked your behaviour with a decent CRM)
You’re not being pushed—you’re being invited
You have time to explore, learn, think, without someone metaphorically breathing down your neck
The emails feel like someone real wrote them—not a robot named FunnelBot 3000
The calls-to-action are useful, not desperate
It doesn’t have to be fancy. It has to be thoughtful. Smart. Human.
UltimateCRM Makes Funnels Feel Like They’ve Got Manners
This is where UltimateCRM quietly saves your sanity.
It helps you build the kind of funnel that listens.
Because it’s not just about who your leads are—it’s about what they do. What pages they view. What emails they open. Where they click. What they ignore.
UltimateCRM helps you segment based on real behaviour. So you can send nurturing content to the curious, offer demos to the warm, and just chill for a bit with those who aren’t quite ready.
No more carpet-bombing your list with “time-sensitive” guff that just makes you look needy.
Just simple, strategic moves that meet your people where they actually are.
Case Study: One Client’s Funnel Was So Pushy, Even They Opted Out
Yes, really.
We had a client come to us after their own marketing manager unsubscribed from their funnel. She called it “aggressive.”
When we looked under the bonnet, it was classic funnel-overkill:
Immediate upsells
Six emails in 48 hours
Subject lines that looked like they were shouting
A countdown timer... on every page
We rebuilt the funnel with better pacing, clearer segmentation, and actual respect for where the lead was in their journey.
We also plugged in UltimateCRM so they could trigger emails based on behaviour, not assumption.
And guess what?
Conversions up by 57%
Unsubscribes down by 80%
And the marketing manager stayed on the list this time
Want Your Funnel to Work? Start Here.
Before you add another upsell or slap a timer on your landing page, take a breath.
Ask yourself:
Would I enjoy going through this funnel?
Am I sending this email because it's helpful—or just because it’s “next in the sequence”?
Does this funnel feel like a conversation or a campaign?
If this brand showed up in my inbox, would I open or delete?
You’ll know the answer.
Oh, and Can We Please Ditch the “Just Checking In” Email?
If your funnel includes the phrase “Just checking in to see if you saw my last message,” please… delete it. Bin it. Burn it. Send it to the email graveyard where all forced funnels go to die.
If someone didn’t respond, they saw it. They just weren’t ready. Or you weren’t relevant. Either way, “just checking in” never fixed it.
Try:
“This might not be the right time—and that’s OK.”
“You probably get loads of these, so I’ll be quick…”
“Still on your radar? If not, I’ll leave you in peace.”
See? Polite. Normal. Human.
Funnels Aren’t Tinder. Stop Asking for Commitment Too Soon
Would you ask someone to move in on the first date? No. Not unless you want them to bolt out the pub toilet window.
So why does your funnel treat people like they’re already emotionally invested?
Just because someone downloaded your free checklist on “10 Ways to Unleash Funnel Magic” doesn’t mean they’re ready to hop on a discovery call. They’re not planning a wedding. They’re checking their phone between meetings, probably while muting a Slack channel and wondering if it’s too early for a digestive biscuit.
Slow. It. Down.
Your funnel isn’t supposed to be a one-night stand in a desperate suit. It should be more like a slow burn. You build rapport. You prove you’re useful. You become familiar. Comfortable. Then, and only then, do you say, “Fancy a chat?”
The conversion doesn’t come from pressure. It comes from pacing.
Remember: if your funnel’s giving speed-dating energy, your leads are already swiping left.
📌 Ready for a Funnel That Doesn’t Make People Cringe?
If you’re starting to suspect your funnel is a bit... thirsty, we should talk.
Book a FREE funnel strategy session with Ultimate Marketing.
We’ll gently (but honestly) rip your funnel apart, put it back together properly, and show you how to use UltimateCRM to build something that actually respects your audience.
You’ll get:
✅ A clear sense of what’s working (and what’s not)
✅ A smarter strategy that puts timing and trust first
✅ A funnel that feels natural—and works harder
No pushy tactics. No “hacks.” No sales-y waffle.
Just a strategy your audience will actually enjoy being a part of.
