Did you know that ClickFunnels is now a decent option for e-commerce? I’m not just talking about digital products, either. It has most of the required features for physical products, too.
I took an in-depth look into everything it offers for e-commerce, and here’s what I found.
Key Takeaways:
- Sell unlimited amounts of digital and physical products, including bundles
- Create a dedicated storefront and use funnels for specific offers
- Build smart checkouts with upsells and order bumps
6 Reasons to Use ClickFunnels for E-Commerce
1. Sell Unlimited Physical and Digital Products
If you had asked me a couple of years ago, I would have strongly advised against using ClickFunnels to sell physical products.
Technically, the capability was there, but the platform didn’t have the right features to support it properly.
Fast-forward to now: While ClickFunnels definitely isn’t Shopify, it now boasts enough e-commerce tools to make selling physical products an efficient process.
Now, you can sell physical and digital products alongside each other—on an unlimited basis.
This gives you the flexibility to scale your store in whichever direction you like and with relative ease.
2. Multiple Funnels Specifically for E-Commerce
ClickFunnels wouldn’t be, well, ClickFunnels if it didn’t have a few e-commerce funnel templates up its sleeve.
And, with several on offer, the platform doesn’t disappoint.
I’ll get into the specifics of these later in the article, but they all come with prebuilt funnel steps and pages.
Whether you want to promote a specific deal or your store in general, more than enough options are available.
All you have to do is customize them with your products, and they’re ready to go.
3. Smart Checkout Features
The ClickFunnels checkout feature gives you a lot of versatility. You can choose between a one-, two-, or three-step checkout process and embed it on any page.
Configure the various options to get it looking precisely how you want, and add order bumps and upsells to increase the value of your offer.
If you’re unsure how you want your checkout to look, there are several prebuilt templates to choose from.
I particularly like the SMART checkout feature because it reduces friction at the transaction stage. It recognizes the customer’s details and auto-fills the form for them (including payment details).
All the customer does is click to authenticate the transaction, and it’s job done—sale made!
4. Dynamic Collections
This is one of the features that has made ClickFunnels a game-changer for larger e-commerce stores. The platform can automatically assign items to product collections based on your set criteria.
For instance, if I assign tags to products such as “Courses” or “Books” and tell the system to add items with these tags to the relevant collection, it will do so without my intervention.
Then, the store that features said collection will also automatically update to display the new products.
This is a big time saver, especially if you frequently add new products to your store.
5. Automatic Sales Tax Collection
Nowadays, no one wants to worry about whether they’re complying with their local tax laws.
I also don’t want to manually calculate sales tax on every sale. That would be a surefire way to eat up all of my time (and sanity!).
Fortunately, if you use ClickFunnels’s native payment gateway—Payments AI—the system will handle all sales tax collection and payments for you.
You simply select the appropriate tax category for each of your products, and ClickFunnels will do the rest.
6. Add Customers to Automated Campaigns
Once a customer has bought from you, they are more likely to purchase from you again, so you should make the most of the opportunity.
I don’t mean spam them incessantly with other offers, but strategic use of the ClickFunnels automated workflows tool can automatically add your customers to targeted campaigns for products they’ll love.
For instance, a customer who purchases a three-month supply of vitamins could be added to a campaign that prompts them to repurchase when their current supply is running out.
Or, someone who buys a piece of gym equipment may be interested in a survey that matches additional accessories to their workout goals.
Let ClickFunnels do the hard work of moving the customer through the pipeline on your behalf. All you have to do is set it up and watch the sales roll in!
3 Features I Wish ClickFunnels Had for E-Commerce
1. No Transaction Fees
I think this is super sneaky.
If you use the ClickFunnels Payments AI feature, you don’t have to worry about this.
But, if you rely on Stripe or one of the other payment gateways, you will notice that ClickFunnels applies an extra 1% charge on ALL transactions.
So, essentially you get penalized for not using the ClickFunnels payment gateway.
Okay, so 1% isn’t exactly life-changing, but over time, it will add up to a significant amount—especially if you sell big-ticket products.
To rub even more salt in the wound, those who aren’t based in the US and can’t use Payments AI have no choice but to suck up this extra charge.
2. More Store Templates
There is a grand total of one store template available.
Don’t get excited.
Called “Hero Theme,” it’s about as basic as it gets. Really, you have to build your store’s aesthetic from scratch.
To flesh out your store and give it some personality, you must add sections and elements. Plenty of templates exist for these, but you have to sift through them all to find ones that match or look cohesive.
This is annoying and time-consuming.
In contrast, platforms like Shopify have fully built themes you can plug in and use immediately.
Hopefully, ClickFunnels will introduce full-store templates at some point in the near future.
3. Better Shipping Options
ClickFunnels facilitates shipping via two third-party platforms—Shippo and ShipStation.
Although most major e-commerce platforms have native shipping built into their platforms, having native integrations for shipping isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Except…
Shippo and ShipStation have terrible online review scores.
Shippo slopes in at 2/5 on TrustPilot.
While ShipStation limps behind with a score of 1.4.
You can’t afford to make mistakes with shipping. Customers trust you to ensure their orders arrive on time and in one piece.
Unfortunately, these companies don’t seem to be the most trustworthy.
You can use a different shipping partner, but you will have to add the rates manually into ClickFunnels. This isn’t ideal if you have lots of items.
Connecting ClickFunnels to a shipping service via Zapier may also be possible, but you’re still adding additional layers of complication and increasing the potential for error.
How to Set Up Your ClickFunnels E-Commerce Store (In 4 Key Steps)
1. Build Your Storefront
To get started with your storefront, you need to add and setup the Store app:
- Click Add Apps > Store > Add App.
- Give your store a name and description.
- Click Create Store.
- Next, click Customize Store.
- The editing screen will open, and you can build your store and customize its appearance.
- Hover the mouse over the different areas to add new sections and elements.
- Browse the various templates and click to add them.
- Edit text directly on the screen.
Designing your store will probably take you the most time. Be sure to review each section carefully and configure it properly.
2. Create Product Listings
Now your storefront is ready, fill it with products!
- Select Products > All Products > Create New Product.
- Give your product a name and description.
- Assign a price (one-time cost, subscription, or payment plan).
- Now, go through the configuration page and add the necessary details, such as the SKU number, inventory, item weight, etc.
- Remember to toggle the button at the top right corner to show the product in your store.
You also have the option to add variations. For instance, if the product comes in various colors or sizes.
You can add more than one variation for your products.
Don’t forget to adjust the SEO so it shows up in SERP results.
When you’re done, click Update Product and move on to the next.
3. Connect a Payment Gateway
To set up a payment gateway, install the Payments AI app in your ClickFunnels workspace.
Follow the on-screen steps to go through the initial setup process.
If Payments AI is enabled for your country, you will see the option to sign up on the screen. Click the button and follow the steps.
However, if you’re like me and don’t have that option available, you will have to pick and use one of the third-party gateways.
Click the blue Connect button on your preferred gateway and follow the steps to connect.
Once you’re done, you can start making sales!
4. Configure Shipping
Finally, you just need to set up the shipping profiles for any physical product sales:
- Head to Workspace Settings > Shipping > Profiles > General Profile.
- Now, you can set up shipping profiles for both domestic and international orders.
- Set rules that increase or decrease prices based on weight, etc., and set individual rates for each country.
- Or, opt for the Shippo and/or ShipStation integrations and set live rates.
ClickFunnels E-Commerce Template Options (For Funnels)
ClickFunnels has been busy doing what it does best and has a number of premade funnel templates suitable for selling products.
Each template type has six style variations. Although aside from the color theme, there are not many changes between them.
Book Funnel
Begin with a cheap product (book or otherwise) and use it to upsell higher-priced products.
This funnel template consists of three steps:
- Two-step order form/sales page
- Upsell
- Order confirmation
Cart Funnel
Nice and simple. Get a sales page with an embedded checkout for a smooth transaction process.
Three steps make up this funnel:
- Two-step order form and tripwire page (A tripwire is a smaller offer or freebie that leads to an upsell)
- Upsell
- Order confirmation
Storefront
Channel people from your main storefront into your product or deal funnels. Or, use this funnel to promote several products at once.
Storefront templates consist of three steps:
- Storefront sales page (showcasing multiple products)
- Order page
- Confirmation page
Product Launch
Want to generate hype around your upcoming release? Use this funnel to get people buzzing.
This option has a whopping five steps!
- Opt-in
- Thank you
- Product launch pages
- Order page
- Confirmation
Daily Deal
This template is ideal for running a flash sale or lightning offer.
It involves two simple steps:
- Order page
- Confirmation
Bottom Line: Should You Use ClickFunnels for E-Commerce?
As long as you know the limitations, there’s no reason not to use ClickFunnels for e-commerce. Especially if you plan to use all the other features on the platform, like the course builder and email marketing.
That said, it still lacks the tools required by ultra-large e-commerce, so I don’t recommend it for stores that stock thousands of items.
However, if you have a couple hundred items or less, it’s more than adequate for your needs.
3 Successful ClickFunnels E-Commerce Examples
Before we wrap up completely, let’s just take a quick look at how other businesses are using ClickFunnels to sell products.
LadyBoss Lean
LadyBoss has a couple of different products on the main website, each with its own sales page.
The three-step order form has been used, and buyers can select the other products regardless of which sales page they are on.
You’ll also notice that customers can purchase the product via an ongoing subscription rather than a one-time purchase. This is a great way to generate repeat sales.
The sales pages also contain social proof to build trust.
And to build on that trust, a money-back guarantee is offered.
Brave Body Method
The Brave Body Method is a great example of using the book funnel. The two-step order form allows buyers to purchase directly on the sales page.
Purchasers get a free copy of the physical book and are just asked to cover shipping.
The order form contains an upsell for a $17 audiobook.
Detailed customer testimonials build social proof.
Bok Bok Box
The Bok Bok Box is a specialized chicken feeder. It comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee.
The one-step order form is pretty long and is on a separate page from the main sales page.
It has a couple of interesting features. First, at the top, there is an offer to save money by purchasing two or three boxes at once.
Then, there are a couple of one-time offers toward the bottom of the order form.
One is for a chicken feeding guide ($27), and the other is a box upgrade option for $17.
The creators have chosen to use scarcity tactics and promote buyer urgency using a low stock indicator.
Further down the initial sales page, the product bundle offers are promoted in more detail.
Customer photos and reviews add social proof.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Integrate ClickFunnels with Third-Party E-Commerce Apps?
ClickFunnels does not offer any native integrations with third-party e-commerce apps. However, you can use the API or Zapier to connect the two platforms and send data between them.
How Many E-Commerce Stores Can I Have on ClickFunnels?
You can have one e-commerce store per workspace in your ClickFunnels account. The Startup plan provides three workspaces, while the Pro plan provides ten.
How Many E-Commerce Funnels Can I Build with ClickFunnels?
ClickFunnels lets you create and use unlimited funnels regardless of the funnel type of your chosen payment plan.
