How to Build a Sales Funnel on Systeme.io — Free Plan, Step by Step

Before you start — what you need

• 1A free Systeme.io account — takes 2 minutes, no payment info
• 2A lead magnet — a free PDF, checklist, mini-course, or anything you're giving away in exchange for an email address. It can be a Google Doc link if you don't have anything else yet.
• 3A headline for your opt-in page. You don't need a designer. You need one good sentence that tells someone what they're getting and why they should want it.

Step 1 — Create your account and get oriented

Go to systeme.io and click "Start for free." Enter your name and email. You're in.

The dashboard has a left sidebar with: Funnels, Emails, Courses, Memberships, Blogs, Affiliate, and Settings. You're going to use Funnels and Emails today. Ignore everything else for now.

Step 2 — Create a new funnel

Click Funnels in the left menu, then click Create a funnel. You'll see options:

• Collect leads: opt-in page + thank you page. This is what you want.
• Sell a product: includes order page, upsell, thank you.
• Run an evergreen webinar: adds webinar registration.

Select Collect leads. Give the funnel a name — "Lead Magnet Funnel" or whatever you're calling it. Pick a currency (CAD or USD). Click Save.

You'll now see the funnel canvas with two default steps: Squeeze page (opt-in) and Thank you page. These are the two pages you'll build.

Step 3 — Build the opt-in page

Click Edit page on the Squeeze page step. You'll see a template picker. Systeme.io has about 20–30 opt-in page templates. Pick one that looks close to what you want — you're going to replace all the text anyway, so pick based on layout, not colors.

Once inside the editor:

1. 1.Click the headline text and replace it with your actual headline. One sentence. What's the thing and why should someone want it. Example: "Get the 7-step AI Content System That Saves 4 Hours a Week — Free Download."
2. 2.Click the subheadline and add one supporting sentence — who it's for, what they'll be able to do.
3. 3.Click the CTA button and change the button text to something specific: "Send me the guide" or "Get free access" beats "Submit."
4. 4.The form fields are pre-configured to collect name and email. You can remove the Name field if you want — email-only forms typically convert higher because less friction.

Colors and fonts: spend 5 minutes here, not 45. A good headline on an ugly page beats a beautiful page with a weak offer every time.

When done, click Save in the top right, then Back to funnel.

Step 4 — Build the thank-you page

Click Edit page on the Thank you page step. This page shows after someone opts in. It has two jobs: confirm the signup and tell them what happens next.

The minimum version: "You're in. Check your inbox — your [lead magnet] is on its way." That's it. Add a link to the lead magnet directly on this page too — some people won't open the email, so giving them the download here prevents frustration.

Optional: add a soft CTA. "While you wait, here's [your best article / your main offer]." Don't hard-sell on the thank-you page — people just gave you their email, they didn't consent to an immediate pitch. A soft link is fine.

Save and go back to the funnel.

Step 5 — Set up the welcome email

Click Emails in the left sidebar, then Email campaigns. Create a new campaign — call it "Welcome Sequence" or similar.

Add the first email. This is your welcome email: it delivers the lead magnet and introduces yourself in 2–3 sentences. No pitching in email 1. Subject line: "Here's your [thing], + one thing to know about me." Keep it short. A welcome email that arrives instantly and delivers what was promised is all you need to start.

Now connect the campaign to the funnel. Go to Automations in the left sidebar. Click Create rule. Set the trigger to: "Contact opts in to" → your funnel's opt-in form. Set the action to: "Subscribe to campaign" → your Welcome Sequence.

Save the automation rule. Now when someone fills out your opt-in form, they'll automatically receive the welcome email.

Step 6 — Test the whole thing

Go back to your funnel. Click the preview icon on the Squeeze page step — this shows the live opt-in page URL. Open it in a browser (or incognito), fill in the form with your own email address, and submit.

Check three things:

1. 1. You land on the Thank You page correctly
2. 2. The welcome email arrives in your inbox (may take 1–5 minutes)
3. 3. The contact appears in your Systeme.io contacts list with the correct tags

If all three work, your funnel is live. The opt-in page URL is what you put in your bio, your content, your social posts. Every click that comes through is a potential subscriber.

What to build next

The funnel above is the foundation. Once it's getting signups, you build on top:

• →Email sequence: Add emails 2–5 to your campaign. Email 2: more context on who you are. Email 3: your best free content. Email 4: a case study or example. Email 5: introduce your main offer. Drip these out over 5–7 days.
• →Sales page: Add a third funnel step for your paid offer. Systeme.io has sales page templates with order forms built in. Connect your Stripe account in Settings → Payment to go live.
• →Upsell: Add an order bump or one-click upsell after purchase. This is one of the highest-ROI things you can do — someone already decided to buy, offering them something adjacent at a discount converts well.
• →Affiliate program: Under Affiliate → Program, create your affiliate program. Give your affiliates a link to your opt-in page. If they refer a buyer, Systeme.io tracks and pays the commission automatically.