How to Create an Automated Sales Funnel in 6 Steps

A lead fills in your contact form on Tuesday morning. You’re in client meetings all day, so you reply on Thursday. By then, they’ve booked a call with someone who answered first.

An automated sales funnel is a set of tools that moves a stranger from your website to a signed proposal without you doing each step by hand. A form captures their email, emails build trust, a booking link fills your calendar and your proposal software tells you when to follow up. You step in where a person makes the difference: the call, the proposal and the follow-up.

This guide shows how to automate each of the six stages of a service business sales funnel, with the emails to send, the tools to use and the parts to keep personal. We make proposal software and run several email sequences like these for Nusii, so you’ll also see what our customers automate at the proposal stage.

What to automate and what to keep personal

Clients hire people. Automation gets the right people to you faster and handles the admin around each conversation. The conversations themselves, and the judgement in your proposal, stay with you.

1. 1 Step 1: Capture leads
   When A visitor asks for your free resource

   Runs on its own The download email, a tag for what they asked for and a new contact in your CRM

   You do Choosing the one problem your free resource solves
2. 2 Step 2: Nurture
   When Someone joins your email list

   Runs on its own Five welcome emails over two weeks, then a regular email every other week

   You do Writing the emails in your own voice, and answering every reply
3. 3 Step 3: Discovery call
   When A lead clicks your booking link

   Runs on its own The booking, the intake questions, the calendar invite and two reminders

   You do The call itself
4. 4 Step 4: Proposal
   When The discovery call ends

   Runs on its own A template with your standard sections and prices, and a first draft from your call notes

   You do The client's problem in their words, the scope and the price
5. 5 Step 5: Follow up
   When The client opens your proposal

   Runs on its own An alert the moment it's opened, and a reminder when it's time to follow up

   You do Every follow-up message
6. 6 Step 6: Close and onboard
   When The client signs

   Runs on its own The deposit, the deal marked as won, the welcome email and the new project

   You do The kickoff call

As a rule, automate anything that’s the same for every lead, such as delivering a download, booking a call or sending a reminder. Keep anything that depends on the client in front of you, such as the scope, the price and the answer to their question.

How to create an automated sales funnel in 6 steps

Build the steps in this order. The first two start working as soon as they’re live, while you set up the rest.

Step 1: Capture leads with a form and an instant download

Every automated funnel starts with an email address. Offer one free resource that solves a problem your clients have before they hire you, such as a checklist, a template or a short guide. Put the sign-up form on the pages where it fits. Our sales funnel guide covers what makes a good one.

Then automate what happens after someone signs up:

• Deliver it right away. The email with the download should arrive within a minute, while they’re still thinking about the problem.
• Ask for the email address and one question at most. On our own proposal template downloads, we ask which proposal tool people use, so later emails can fit their situation.
• Tag leads by what they asked for. Someone who downloaded your pricing guide needs different emails from someone who downloaded your onboarding checklist.
• Add them to your CRM, so the lead’s history is in one place before you ever talk.

At Nusii, the link to each template lives only in the email. The form sends the request to our app, and our email tool sends the template within a minute.

Step 2: Write a welcome sequence that runs on its own

Most new leads aren’t ready to hire you yet. A welcome sequence keeps the conversation going for the first two weeks, while they still remember who you are. Five emails are enough, and you can adapt these:

1. Email 1 Right away
   Subject: Your [free resource] Hi [first name], Here's the [free resource] you asked for: [link] If you only have five minutes, start with [the most useful part]. It's the part that [why it matters to them]. Over the next two weeks I'll send you four short emails about [your topic]. If a question comes up before then, reply to this one. It comes straight to me. [Your name]
2. Email 2 Day 2
   Subject: The [topic] mistake I see every week Hi [first name], The most common mistake I see with [topic] is [the mistake]. It costs [type of client] [what it costs them], and it usually happens because [the cause]. To fix it, [one step they can take today]. Are you dealing with this right now? Reply and tell me. I read every answer. [Your name]
3. Email 3 Day 5
   Subject: How [client] [got the result] Hi [first name], When [client] came to us, [their problem, in one sentence]. We [what you did, in two or three steps]. [How long] later, [the result, with a number]. The whole story is here: [link to the case study] [Your name]
4. Email 4 Day 9
   Subject: How we work, and who we're not for Hi [first name], Before anyone hires us, I like them to know how we work: 1. [A 30-minute call to understand the problem] 2. [A proposal with two or three options within two days] 3. [The first results within a month] We're not the right fit if [who you don't work with]. Better to know that now than after a call. [Your name]
5. Email 5 Day 14
   Subject: Want me to look at your [thing]? Hi [first name], If [the problem] is on your list for the next few months, let's talk. On a 30-minute call I'll [what you'll do on the call]. You'll leave with [what they get], whether or not we work together. Pick a time that suits you: [booking link] [Your name]

Write them once, in your own voice, and they’ll work for every lead you get this year. Give each email one job and one link to click. Send them from your own name and address, and answer replies yourself. Someone who replies to a welcome email is often your warmest lead.

After the welcome sequence, move leads to a regular email every other week, with one useful idea or a client story. It keeps you in mind until they’re ready, whether that’s next month or next year. We run several sequences like this at Nusii, from delivering template downloads to helping new accounts get set up.

Step 3: Let leads book their own discovery call

Finding a time by email can take four messages, and every one of them is a chance for the lead to go quiet. Put a booking link in every welcome email, on your services page and in your email signature. A scheduling tool handles the rest:

• Ask two or three questions when they book, including a budget range. You’ll know before the call whether it’s worth having.
• Send reminders the day before and an hour before, so fewer people forget.
• Create the deal in your CRM when they book, so you see their downloads and email clicks before you talk.
• Offer only the slots you want, with a buffer between calls.

Keep the call itself personal. It’s where you hear the client’s problem in their own words, and those words are what your proposal is made of. Our client interview guide has the questions to ask, including how to ask about budget.

Step 4: Send the proposal within 48 hours of the call

Right after the call, the client is as interested as they’ll ever be. Christian Asche, co-founder of the recruiting software company Coveto, explains why they move fast:

Software can’t write your proposal for you, but it can take care of most of the work around it:

• Start from a template. Keep one per service, with your standard sections, terms and prices already in it, and write only the parts about this client. Kevin Griffin of Griffin Consulting told us that since switching to Nusii, “75% of my proposals are done within 5 minutes of creating a new one.”
• Reuse sections. Your process, case studies and terms rarely change. Save them once and add them in a click.
• Offer options. Two or three packages, or optional extras whose prices add up as the client picks them, let the client choose how to work with you.
• Connect your CRM. With the HubSpot integration, the deal moves to the next stage when you send the proposal and again when the client accepts. The signed PDF is saved to the deal.

Across a year of proposals sent through Nusii, agencies and consultants won around four in ten. A fast, specific proposal is how you end up on the right side of that number. Our guide to proposal automation goes deeper into this step.

Let AI write the first draft

AI helps most at this step, as long as it drafts and you decide. With Nusii’s connector for Claude, you can paste your call notes into Claude and ask for a proposal from one of your templates. Claude creates the draft in Nusii with your own sections and prices, and you review it and send it from Nusii. It never sends anything itself. The same connection works with ChatGPT, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot.

Read every line before it goes out. The client’s problem, the scope and the price are the parts that win the work, and they should sound like someone who was on the call.

Step 5: Get an alert when it’s opened, then follow up yourself

Clients look at a proposal almost straight away, and take longer to sign it. In a year of proposals sent through Nusii, the median time from sending to the client’s first look was 48 minutes, and three in four were opened within a day. Half of the accepted proposals were signed within three days, yet a third were signed more than a week after they were sent. A proposal that’s been quiet for a week isn’t lost, so keep following up for at least two weeks.

Let software remember the follow-ups for you, and write the messages yourself.

• Get an alert when the client opens it. Nusii emails you the moment a client opens your proposal, and the Slack integration can post it to a channel. Call while it’s fresh, ideally the same day. Our guide to proposal tracking explains what else to watch.
• Set follow-up reminders. On Nusii’s Agency plan and up, you set a reminder interval for each proposal, so a follow-up doesn’t slip on a busy week.
• Write the follow-up yourself. Nusii reminds you but never emails your client on its own. A good follow-up answers the client’s question or brings something new, and only you know what that is.

Three follow-ups cover most situations:

1. Follow-up 1 A day or two after they open it
   Subject: Any questions about the proposal? Hi [first name], I wanted to make sure the proposal for [project] reached you, and to answer any questions before you decide. Would 15 minutes on [day] help? I can walk you through the options. [Your name]
2. Follow-up 2 About a week after you sent it
   Subject: One more idea for [project] Hi [first name], On our call you asked about [their question]. Here's [the answer, an example or a short resource]. The proposal is here whenever you're ready: [link] [Your name]
3. Follow-up 3 About two weeks after you sent it
   Subject: Is [project] still a priority? Hi [first name], I haven't heard back about [project], so I'm guessing the timing has changed. If it's still on your list, I'm happy to adjust the scope or the start date. If not, just let me know and I'll check in again in [month]. [Your name]

If price is what’s holding them back, our guide to proposal objections has replies that keep the deal alive.

Step 6: Take the deposit and start onboarding automatically

Signing should be the easiest part of the funnel. Let the client accept, sign and pay in one place, then let the paperwork run itself.

• Sign online. Every step between yes and signed, such as printing and scanning a PDF, gives the client a reason to wait.
• Take the deposit at signing. With Stripe connected, the client can pay right after they accept the proposal. Asking for money up front doesn’t seem to put clients off. Among Nusii accounts with Stripe connected, 61% of the proposals that asked for a deposit or payment were accepted, against 43% of those that didn’t, and two in three of those accepted were paid in Nusii. It’s a small group of 119 proposals, and clients ready to pay may simply be further along, but it’s a good sign.
• Start onboarding when they accept. Nusii can send a webhook or start a Zapier or Make automation the moment a proposal is accepted. Use it to send your welcome email, create the project in your project tool, draft the invoice and mark the deal as won.
• Schedule the referral request. Set a reminder for the end of the project to ask for a review and an introduction. Referrals bring new leads straight into step 1.

Plenty of our customers already work this way:

Example: an automated sales funnel for a two-person consultancy

Here’s how the six steps fit together for a two-person IT consultancy that works with small law firms. Green marks what runs on its own. Yellow is the consultants’ own time.

1. Day 0
   Runs on its own A managing partner downloads “The 15-minute security check for small law firms” from a LinkedIn post. The checklist reaches her inbox within a minute, and she lands in the CRM as a new lead.
2. Day 2
   Runs on its own Welcome email 2 arrives, about the most common security mistake in small law firms.
3. Day 5
   Runs on its own Welcome email 3 tells the story of a 12-person firm the consultancy helped.
4. Day 6
   Runs on its own She clicks the booking link and picks a time. Her answers to three questions, budget included, go into the CRM. Reminders go out the day before and an hour before.
5. Day 8
   You The 30-minute discovery call.
6. Day 9
   You The consultant turns the call notes into a proposal from their template, starting from an AI draft, checks every line and sends it.
7. Day 10
   Runs on its own She opens the proposal, and a message lands in the consultancy's Slack.
8. Day 10
   You The consultant calls that afternoon and answers her two questions.
9. Day 12
   Runs on its own She signs and pays a 50% deposit. The deal moves to won in the CRM, a welcome email goes out and the project appears in their project tool.
10. Day 15
    You The kickoff call.

Over two weeks, the consultants spent a few hours on this lead: the call, the proposal and one phone call to answer questions. Everything else ran without them.

The tools you need

You don’t need an all-in-one platform. Most service businesses run their funnel on five or six tools, connected by an automation tool:

Most of these have a free plan to start, so you can build the whole funnel before you pay for much. All-in-one platforms such as HubSpot cover several rows at once at a higher price. They make sense once several people on your team are selling.

What not to automate

• Replies to a real question. An automatic “Thanks, we’ll get back to you today” is fine. A canned answer to a specific question tells the lead nobody read it.
• The discovery call. A booking form can filter out bad fits, but the call is where a client decides whether they trust you.
• The content of your proposal. Templates and AI give you a strong first draft. The client’s problem, your scope and your price need your judgement.
• Follow-ups. Let software remind you, and write each one for the client and the proposal in front of you.
• Fake urgency. Countdown timers and invented deadlines don’t suit a service someone pays thousands for. Give them a real reason to decide, such as your next available start date.

Frequently asked questions