Funnel & launch vocabulary,
without the agency theatre.
Plain-English definitions for the terms operators use when they brief us. If you're shipping a funnel for the first time, start here. If you've shipped twenty, keep going — most studios use these words loosely.
Sales Funnel
A sequence of pages, emails, and offers that guides a prospect from first awareness to purchase. A funnel isn't a single page — it's the system that surrounds the buying decision: opt-in, indoctrination, pitch, cart, upsell, and follow-up.
Launch Funnel
A funnel optimized for a finite launch window — typically 5 to 14 days. Built for velocity, scarcity, and affiliate-driven traffic. Launch funnels die when they're built like evergreen funnels: they need urgency mechanics, cart deadlines, and bonus stacking to convert.
VSL (Video Sales Letter)
A long-form video pitch that replaces a written sales page. VSLs hold attention longer than text and convert higher on emotion-heavy offers — coaching, courses, transformation products. Typically 20–90 minutes, with the offer revealed in the final third.
OTO (One-Time Offer)
An upsell page shown immediately after checkout with a time-limited offer that won't appear again. Used heavily in JVZoo and digital product launches. Stack 2–4 OTOs in sequence to multiply average order value without raising front-end price.
Order Bump
A small add-on offer placed directly on the checkout page — usually a single checkbox at $7–$47. Bumps lift average order value by 20–40% without adding friction. Best bumps complement the front-end offer with a fast-implementation companion product.
Tripwire
A low-priced front-end offer ($7–$27) designed to convert cold traffic into buyers fast. Tripwires aren't profit centers — they're buyer-list builders. Buyers convert at 5–10× the rate of non-buyers on subsequent offers.
Lead Magnet
A free resource exchanged for an email address. Ebooks, templates, swipe files, mini-courses, quizzes. The best lead magnets are 5–15 minute consumption pieces that deliver a single, immediate win — not 200-page guides nobody finishes.
Challenge Funnel
A 3-to-7-day live event funnel where prospects work through daily exercises with the host. The challenge structure earns the right to pitch high-ticket on day four or five. Common for coaches, course creators, and methodology businesses.
Webinar Funnel
A live or evergreen webinar that delivers training and pitches an offer in the same session — typically 60 to 90 minutes. The pitch starts in the final 20 minutes after the content has established authority and demonstrated transformation.
Evergreen Funnel
A funnel that runs continuously — no launch dates, no scarcity windows. Built for steady traffic and consistent conversion month over month. Replaces launch urgency with automated deadlines, replay scarcity, and email cadence.
JV Launch (Joint Venture)
A launch driven by affiliate partners ('JVs') who promote the offer to their own audiences during the launch window. Common on JVZoo, WarriorPlus, and ClickBank. The JV page sells the launch to potential affiliates: prizes, leaderboards, swipe copy, EPC stats.
LTD (Lifetime Deal Offer)
A one-time-payment lifetime license to a SaaS product, typically launched on AppSumo or via a self-funded launch. LTDs trade lifetime revenue for a cash injection — used by bootstrapped SaaS to fund development without venture funding.
Cart Funnel
The post-pitch sequence: cart page, checkout, order bump, OTO, downsell, upsell, thank-you. The cart funnel is where most of the launch's revenue gets made — a strong front-end pitch with a weak cart funnel leaves 40–60% of revenue on the table.
Conversion Rate
The percentage of visitors who complete a target action — opt-in, purchase, upsell acceptance. Conversion rate is the single most important funnel metric. A funnel converting at 3% on the same traffic generates 3× the revenue of one converting at 1%.
EPC (Earnings Per Click)
Affiliate-side metric: total earnings divided by total clicks sent. EPC is the affiliate's decision metric — they promote funnels with high EPC because their traffic monetizes better. Strong launch funnels publish EPC stats on the JV page to recruit affiliates.
AOV (Average Order Value)
Total launch revenue divided by total buyers. AOV is the lever most operators ignore — adding strong OTOs and order bumps can double AOV without changing front-end conversion rate. A $47 front-end with $150 AOV is the launch-funnel sweet spot.
LTV (Lifetime Value)
Total revenue a customer generates over their entire relationship with the business. LTV is what justifies aggressive front-end customer acquisition cost. A $97 front-end product with $1,200 LTV (via SaaS upgrades, coaching, courses) can profitably acquire customers at break-even.
Indoctrination Sequence
The 3–7 day email sequence between opt-in and pitch that warms the prospect, establishes authority, and reframes their problem. Strong indoctrination sequences improve cart conversion by 40–80% over launches that go straight from opt-in to pitch.