Someone's got a leaky funnel

Welcome back to This Isn't a Marketing Problem, a 7-part series on how startups burn cash not because of bad marketing but because they never built the right message, system, or audience to begin with. Didn't read Parts 1–4? Don't embarrass yourself. Catch up here:
📌 Part 1: We Built It. Now Just Make People Buy It
📌 Part 2: You're Selling Features, Not Outcomes
📌 Part 3: No One Knows You Exist
📌 Part 4: Stop Building for "Millennials who save time."

In Part 5, Someone's got a leaky funnel

🚰 Why most startup funnels were never real to begin with
🔍 Where funnels actually leak
🧠 Most founders skip the funnel
📊 What you should be tracking (instead of just CVR)
🧰 Leaky funnel fix checklist
🔥 TL;DR: Plug the Leak Before You Scale the Flow

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🚰 Why most startup funnels were never real to begin with

I've come to learn that there is a fundamental law of marketing. One that founders don't necessarily pay attention to. Or, worse, they think it doesn't apply to them. The law is this:

Marketing exists to amplify your USP. If you don't have a meaningful differentiator, marketing will not save your business.

In other words, marketing won't fix your offer. And it won't fix an offer that users don't understand because of poor site UX. So when you hear founders saying something to the effect of "we're getting traffic but no one is converting" then they might have a funnel problem, not a marketing problem.

Here's what’s probably happening:

• Users land on your page, scroll a bit, and bounce.

• Or they click your CTA, hit friction, and peace out.

• Or they get there and think, "Wait…what is this again?"

Most early-stage "funnels" are just disconnected touchpoints duct-taped together. No trust. No narrative. No flow. Just clicks → confusion → silence.

🔍 Where funnels actually leak

Funnels don't usually fail because of a lack of traffic (although you might have a problem if your marketing mix is targeting a platform where your ride-or-die customers don't engage with). They fail because of structural leaks that lose trust, momentum, and clarity. The first common leak is on the landing page and user flow. Most visitors bounce before they even finish reading the headline. If your page takes longer than 2 seconds to load, isn't mobile-friendly, buries the value prop below the fold, or has a vague CTA like "Learn More," you're creating friction. Add in broken links or the absence of clear social proof, and you've got a dead-end. As a rule: users don't bounce because they’re bored. They bounce because they're blocked.

The second leak shows up in offer and price alignment. Even with solid traffic and UX, if your offer doesn’t clearly match the customer's need or feels mis-priced for its perceived value, people won't bite. You have to show exactly why now, why you, and what makes this worth it. Generic offers, weak differentiation, and no urgency? That's a recipe for a forgettable landing.

Lastly, creative and messaging misalignment is where good campaigns quietly die. If your ad promises one thing but the landing page delivers another, you've lost. Declining CTR might signal creative fatigue, but mismatched headlines and inconsistent CTAs between your ads and your site often cause even bigger drops in trust. The story has to stay consistent across every step. If expectations don't match reality, your funnel breaks down before action is even an option.

In short: most funnels don't need more traffic to "get fixed." They need better flow, better alignment, and a story that holds together after the click.

🧠 Most Founders Skip the Funnel. Here’s What to Do Instead.

You need a lightweight funnel that earns trust. Here's the structure:

Top of Funnel → Hook + Context

• Don't just run traffic. Run stories.

• Think: "Finally, a solution for X" (not "Here's our product")

Middle of Funnel → Trust Loop

• Show proof. Show people like me using it.

• Answer: "Why now?" and "Why you?"

Bottom of Funnel → Frictionless Action

• CTA is punchy and specific. Form is fast.

• Page reminds them what they're getting, not just asking for info

Once you've got signal, you're ready to get specific.

📊 What You Should Be Tracking (Instead of Just CVR)

Early-stage founders obsess over conversion rate. But that's a lagging metric. Start here:

✅ Scroll depth
✅ Time on page
✅ CTA clicks (even if they don't finish checkout)
✅ Email opt-ins
✅ Retargeting engagement
✅ Share saves or comments on key landing content

These are "conversion signals" or "micro-conversions."

🧰 Leaky Funnel Fix Checklist

If your funnel's leaking, it's not a traffic problem. It's a system problem. Clicks aren't converting because users are getting confused, blocked, or unconvinced at key moments in the flow.

First, check your landing page and funnel fundamentals.

• Is your mobile speed under 2 seconds?

• Is the value prop clear above the fold?

• Is the CTA unmistakable?

• Are there any broken links, weird scroll behavior, or lack of proof before the user even scrolls?

Next, audit your offer and pricing alignment. Even with a polished page, if the offer feels vague, mismatched, or overpriced compared to its perceived value, people won't convert. Ask yourself:

• Is this offer differentiated?

• Does it create urgency?

• Does it solve a real problem for this segment right now?

Finally, your creative and messaging need to stay tightly aligned. If your ad headline promises one thing but your landing page leads with another, you've already broken the trust.

• Is your CTA consistent from ad to page?

• Is there ad fatigue in your top creatives?

• Do expectations match reality?

✅ Use the full checklist here to run a Leaky Funnel Fix audit on your own site

🔥 TL;DR: Plug the Leak Before You Scale the Flow

Before you spend more…audit what happens after the click.

Because if you're pouring good traffic into a broken system, you're not learning. You're lighting money on fire.

Your funnel isn't a homepage.

It's a trust machine. And right now? It's leaking.

Next week: Part 6 – Execution Dies After Week 2
We walk through why some startups start strong, founders often fade fast.

This newsletter is for you. What marketing challenges are you facing in your startup journey? Reply directly to this email with your questions or topics you'd like to see covered in future issues.

Until next week,

Adam

P.S. Found this helpful? Forward it to another founder who might benefit—we're all in this together.