Hey there! I’m Max, the founder of SMITLINK, a Telegram Ads agency that’s been rocking the platform since its launch. In just the past few months, we’ve burned through over $800,000 in ad budgets on the TON cabinet alone, driving results for top brands.
Today, I’m spilling the beans on our hard-earned expertise. We’ll dive into how to build killer funnels in Telegram Ads for lead generation. Which funnel is right for your business?
Right now, Telegram Ads is absolutely booming. With over 1 billion monthly active users, Telegram is a powerhouse. Plus, the native ad platform recently rolled out banner and video ads, supercharging campaign performance and opening new doors.
But here’s the catch: most advertisers are still figuring out this new tool. They don’t realize Telegram works differently from traditional channels, and funnels here need a unique approach.The key thing about Telegram traffic is that you have to engage users inside the ecosystem itself — through content, funnels, or TMA
Let’s fix that!
1. Funnel to a Channel: Long-Term Investment
This is my go-to for niches with long sales cycles and a high ticket, like real estate or coaching, where trust takes time to build. You attract subscribers via Telegram Ads, feed them valuable content to keep them engaged, and convert them down the line—weeks or months later. Unlike fast funnels, a channel is a long-term investment: you’re building a loyal audience for repeat sales.
Advantages: High engagement and high delayed ROMI, the ability to make repeat sales to the same audience, high lifetime value (LTV)
Downsides: It demands content resources and time for nurturing.
How to build the funnel step by step:
- Channel Setup: Create or optimize a channel with a focus on a content funnel. Test formats (text, video, infographics, polls). Stick to the 80/20 rule: 80% value content (insights, tips, case studies) to build trust, 20% with offers. Integrate with DM-messaging, bots, or websites for lead capture. Use Prizma.tools to track subscriptions, unsubscribes, and ER.
- Nurturing and Conversion: Traffic lands on the channel, where users get content (news, pain points, solutions). Offer posts (promo posts) lead to CRM, bots, or sites. For faster leads, try a hybrid: divert some traffic to promo posts with direct offers. Monitor ER and reach — content should spark reactions and comments. Weak content kills ER — test formats and boost value if engagement drops.
- Analytics and Optimization: Track via Prizma.tools: keep unsubscribes under 20-30% (higher means low-quality traffic). Test content variations and tweak collections. If you need leads faster, redirect 30% of traffic to posts.
When to use: If you’ve got content resources (a team or posting plan) and are ready for long-term growth (subscribers as an investment). Perfect for 3-6 month sales cycles in real estate, edtech, or coaching, where content is king. Not for quick sales — bots are better there.
Understand: this is a delayed payoff but delivers high LTV (lifetime value) from loyal audiences.
2. Funnel to a Bot: Automation and Fast Qualified Leads
This is a powerhouse for automated lead generation, where the bot acts as a virtual assistant handling Telegram Ads traffic. Bots excel in niches with short sales cycles, quickly qualifying leads, uncovering pains and needs, collecting contacts, guiding users to the next step in the funnel and building a database for future sales (cross-sell or up-sell). Unlike channels with delayed nurturing, bots work in real-time with interactivity.
Advantages: The bot’s user base is yours forever, enabling repeat launches without extra ad spend.
Downsides: Requires technical setup and moderation compliance.
How to build the funnel step by step:
- Bot Setup: Create a bot, structure it with robust functionality: greeting, option menus, segmentation questions. Add valuable content (mini-courses, quizzes, calculators). Ensure moderation compliance (no aggressive sales, focus on value).
- Internal Bot Funnel: Post-click, segment users (questions like “What’s your main challenge?”), warm them up (pain point breakdowns, case studies, personalized responses), present the offer (main product), and drive to a CTA (site link, chat, or payment). Add push notifications for drop-off recovery. Connect managers in the bot chat for closing.
- Analytics and Optimization: Use deep links to track sources. Monitor daily: starts, interactions, lead conversions. Test short/long branches: short for warm audiences (straight to offer), long for cold (with nurturing).
When to use: Perfect for trading, edtech, e-commerce with short-cycle products and "Gray" business niches
The bot’s database is gold for cross-sell, especially for repeat sales. Not for complex B2B with long cycles — use channels or sites there.
Potential pitfalls and how to avoid them: Overloading the bot with too many steps leads to drop-off (aim for 3-5 interactions to CTA).
Pass moderation with a full bot, then direct traffic to short branches for action. Ignoring segmentation is a mistake—add pain-point questions to qualify leads (+20-30% efficiency).
Integrate with CRM for seamless data transfer.
3. Funnel to a Specific Post
This is a fast, flexible way to test offers without building a full channel or waiting for long nurturing. Unlike a channel funnel, the focus is on one or two key posts that act as mini-landing pages within Telegram. It’s perfect for quick A/B tests of creatives or offers, letting you measure response and tweak strategy. Industry guides note these funnels work best in niches with short decision cycles, where users act right after seeing content.
Traffic to a post can essentially serve two functions: it’s the same as building an audience for a channel for further monetization, plus if the post leads to the next stage of the funnel, it also enables more efficient lead generation.
Advantages: Low entry barrier , direct traffic minimizes unsubscribe losses
Downsides: Limited for complex products requiring deep nurturing.
How to build the funnel step by step:
- Post Setup: Create a post in your (or a partner’s) channel. Structure it as a mini-funnel:
- Intro: Grab attention with a pain point or question (e.g., “Struggling with low Wildberries sales?”).
- Value: Offer free content (short case study, tip, or infographic) to build trust.
- Triggers: Spark curiosity (“Discover 3 hacks for 300% ROI”) and scarcity (“Offer valid for 48 hours”).
- CTA: End with a strong call-to-action—button or link to a bot, site, form, or mini-app. Use Telegram features: add reactions (emojis for engagement) or polls for interactivity. Pin the post or schedule it for timely visibility.
2.Nurturing and Conversion: Users see the post post-click, getting instant nurturing. If it leads to a bot or site, add UTM or deep links for tracking.
When to use: Ideal for e-commerce (quick purchases), online courses (testing mini-offers), “gray” niches or short campaigns with cycles under a week. If you have a channel but want to focus traffic on a specific offer without diluting content.
Potential pitfalls and how to avoid them: Don’t make posts too long (200-300 words max) to avoid losing attention. Steer clear of aggressive sales — Telegram’s moderation is strict, prioritize utility. Test 3-5 post variations to find a winner. A common mistake is ignoring mobile optimization — ensure posts look sharp on smartphones.
Good idea: pairing posts with mini-apps for quizzes, boosting conversions. Revive old posts after 2-3 months — new audiences, passed moderation.
4. Funnel to Direct Messages
This is a budget-friendly option for high-touch sales where personalization is key. It’s better to use it as an addition to support the conversion of main funnels. Unlike automated bots, the focus is on human interaction, building trust and boosting conversions in high-ticket niches (consulting, services).
Advantages: Free (except ad costs), partially scalable with bots, and shortens sales cycles to 1-2 days with prompt responses.
Downsides: Needs a sales team, or you’ll drown in messages.
How to build the funnel step by step:
- Profile and Link Setup: Optimize your profile with an appealing avatar, bio, and pinned message. Use invite-links to a DM. Add parameters for segmentation.
- Conversation Scripts: Structure DMs for engagement:
- Greeting: Personalized welcome with value (“Hey! Saw your interest in [ad topic]. Quick tip: [useful advice]”).
- Qualification: Ask 2-3 pain-point questions (“What’s your main challenge in [niche]?”).
- Nurturing: Share proof (short case study, testimonial) and an offer (“I can offer a consultation for [price]”).
- Closing: Use urgency (“20% off today”) or scarcity (“Only 3 slots this week”). End with a CTA (payment, form).
- Automation: Use a bot for initial messages or templates, with sales managers stepping in for key stages.
When to use: For personalized niches (coaching, consulting, services) with 1-2 day cycles. If the budget is tight but you have a team to handle 5-10 messages daily per person. Not for mass lead gen — bots are better.
Respond within an hour to avoid drop-off. Starting too salesy scares users —l ead with value. Use AI templates for speed without losing personalization.
Conclusion: Choosing the Right Funnel
- Assess Your Resources: Start with a self-audit. No content team or time for posts? Skip channels and go for bots or DMs. These are automated: bots qualify leads on autopilot, DMs offer personal touch for free.
- Content Is Your Strength: Launch with a channel if you have structured content (insights, case studies, no skimping on value). It builds loyalty, cuts unsubscribes and delivers delayed payoff.
- Match Niche and Sales Cycle: Short cycles (1-2 weeks) — Bots or posts. Long cycles — channels. Low budget? DMs or posts.
- Test and Measure: Don’t guess—run tests with €500-1000. Track CPS, CPL, ROMI to pick the best funnel.
Want to hand it over to pros?
SMITLINK are first to offer fully managed Telegram Ads traffic
✔️ 200+ projects, over $4M+ in ad budgets
✔️ Proprietary traffic analytics system for Telegram
✔️ We’ll help launch from scratch or optimize your Telegram sales funnel
👉 Book a free consultation with us! We’ll review your project and provide a concrete step-by-step plan for Telegram success.