Let me tell you something I learned the hard way:

Trying to run an online business without leads is like trying to make a horse push the wagon.

You’ve got your shiny affiliate links.
Your eBook is live.
Your blog is beautiful.
You might even have a few Pinterest ads running.

And yet… crickets.
Nothing moves. Nothing sells.

Why?
Because the horse—the thing that’s supposed to pull it all forward—is missing.

That horse?
It’s your leads.

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🐴 The Horse Is Not Optional

I used to think I could just put content out there and people would find it. I believed the right headline, or just enough hustle, would make the internet notice.

Spoiler: it doesn’t work like that.

Every affiliate product, every eBook, every blog post you create—it all becomes much easier to sell when you have leads. Actual people. Real interest.

The wagon is the product. The horse is the people who want it. (What’s with the long faces, people?)

Put the horse behind the wagon and… good luck pushing uphill.

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✉️ Start With the Lead, Not the Sale

We’re building a funnel now—a proper one—with a simple idea:

Give something valuable for free, get the right people onto your list, and then show them the rest.

It sounds obvious. But it took me a while to get here. Why? Because it’s tedious work to set it up the first time.

I mean, first you’ve got to:

• Set up email marketing tools
• Write that lead magnet (ours is a short eBook)
• Format it so it doesn’t look like 1997
• Choose a platform (we switched three times before Systeme.io clicked)
• Deal with privacy laws and all that fun stuff

Which brings me to…

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📮 The “Legal But Private” Bit No One Tells You

If you’re going to send emails legally (and keep your account from being suspended), you need a real business address.

Not your home.
Not your mum’s.
A virtual address or PO box.

We went with a UK virtual mailbox that forwards and filters. It keeps things legal and keeps weirdos from sending carrier pigeons to my front door.

The verification process can be annoying, but it needs to be done for the “protection of the people”. I kinda agree with it, but it can be like counting the dewdrops in a pond.

It’s an important step—if you skip it, you’re already off-track.

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🧠 Build Before You Launch

I used to think I needed traffic to make sales, but what I really needed was trust.

And trust starts with the right people, people who said yes to your free offer, people who want to hear from you, people who become a community—not just clicks.

Now, when I publish something, I don’t shout into the void, I whisper to the ones already listening.

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💬 Your Turn

If you’re building something—anything—ask yourself:
Do you have the horse? Or just a very heavy wagon?

Let me know in the comments.
And if you’re figuring out your own funnel, ask away. I’ve stepped in most of the cowpats already—might as well help you avoid a few.