# Find where signups drop off

> A step-by-step walkthrough: define activation, build a ClickClacks funnel from the pricing page to a first deal, set the window and counting, read the results, see who dropped off and what they did instead, break it down, save it and add it to a board.

- Canonical URL: https://clickclacks.io/docs/walkthroughs/activation-funnel
- Section: Walkthroughs
- Last updated: 2026-09-26

Plenty of people sign up for Acme CRM. Fewer of them ever create a deal, which is when the product starts to be useful. This walkthrough builds the activation funnel, finds the biggest drop, looks at the actual people who fell out, and puts the answer on a board.

## The question {#question}

_Of the people who look at our pricing page, how many sign up and create their first deal within a week, and where do we lose the rest?_ You need a few weeks of events, and the developers’ events in place: `Signed up` from the app, `Contacts imported` and `Deal created` (from the browser or the server; the [developer track](https://clickclacks.io/docs/walkthroughs/first-events.md) sets them up).

## 1. Define activation {#define}

Activation is the first action that shows someone got value. For a CRM, signing up isn’t it; putting real contacts in and working a deal is. Acme settles on:

1. Viewed the pricing page (`$pageview` on `/pricing`, on the marketing site)
2. `Signed up`
3. `Contacts imported`
4. `Deal created`, within 7 days of step 1

Write the definition down where the team can see it (a Lexicon description, or a note on the board in step 10). A funnel is only useful if everyone reads it the same way.

## 2. Check the events exist {#check}

1. Open **Lexicon** (under Data) and search for each event name.
2. Check each has events in the last 30 days, and that there is only one spelling of each.

> **What you should see**
>
> `Signed up`, `Contacts imported` and `Deal created`, each with recent activity. If you find `Signed up` and `signup_completed`, merge one into the other first ([Merge duplicate events](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/lexicon.md#merge)), or the funnel will miss half the sign-ups.

The pricing page is on `acme.com` and the rest is on `app.acme.com`, so this funnel crosses two sources. That only works if people are carried across. Open **Sources** › **Identity** and check the _acme.com → app.acme.com_ hop reads 80% or more.

## 3. Build the funnel {#build}

1. Open **Funnels** and click **New funnel**.
2. Pick `$pageview` for the first step. The picker lists custom events from the last 30 days and autocaptured ones.
3. On that step click **+ Filter**, choose Page, tick or type `/pricing`, and click **Apply filter**. The step now reads Page is any of `/pricing`.
4. Click **+ Add step** and pick `Signed up`. Add `Contacts imported` and `Deal created` the same way. A funnel has 2 to 8 steps.

There are templates under **Or start from a template**, such as _Signup → activation_, but their steps are example event names. Replace every step with your own events if you start from one.

> **What you should see**
>
> The **Live preview** on the right fills in as you add steps, with a bar per step. It always uses the last 30 days, whatever your filter bar says.

If a step matched no events in the last 30 days, saving is blocked and the step is named. Fix the event name, or click **Widen to 90 days** if it’s rare.

## 4. Set window, count and order {#settings}

- **Conversion window**: **7 days**. Someone has a week from viewing pricing to create a deal. The choices are 7, 14, 30 or 90 days.
- **Count**: **Unique people**. You are asking about people, not visits.
- **Steps must happen in order**: leave it on. Importing contacts before signing up isn’t possible anyway, and order makes the drop-offs meaningful.

## 5. Save it {#save}

Name it _Activation: pricing → first deal_ and click **Save funnel**. Funnels are shared with your whole team.

> **What you should see**
>
> The saved funnel opens with your filter bar’s date range. Set it to **Last 90 days** for a steadier picture.

## 6. Read the result {#read}

Four cards sit at the top:

- **Overall conversion**: pricing view to first deal. This is your activation rate.
- **Converted**: how many people finished, out of how many entered.
- **Median time to convert**, with the 90th percentile underneath. If the 90th percentile is close to 7 days, the window may be cutting people off.
- **Biggest drop-off**: the pair of steps where most people are lost. Start there.

Because this funnel spans two sources, the top of the results also shows how well identity is carrying between them. If it’s low, the drop between step 1 and step 2 is partly people counted twice, not people lost.

The table under **Conversion by step** lists each step with people, conversion from the previous step and from the start, how many dropped, and the median time to reach it.

> **What you should see**
>
> Four bars that shrink from left to right. At Acme, the biggest drop is between `Signed up` and `Contacts imported`: people create an account, then never bring their data in.

## 7. See who dropped off {#dropped}

1. Click the drop before step 3 (on its bar, or on its drop percentage). The drawer opens as _Dropped before step 3_.
2. Open **What they did instead**: the last thing each person did, including _Nothing — session ended_.
3. Open **Where they were**: the top pages and events they reached afterwards.
4. Open **People** and click a few people to read their timelines.

> **What you should see**
>
> A pattern. At Acme, many people who dropped last viewed the import page and left: the CSV import is where they got stuck. **Export** downloads the people as a CSV, for example for a follow-up email.

From there, [Heatmaps](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/heatmaps.md) and [Friction](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/friction.md) show what happens on that page.

## 8. Break it down {#split}

Is the drop the same for everyone? Split it:

- **Break down by** › **Device**: does mobile activate worse? Each value gets its own card with its difference in points from the combined baseline.
- **Break down by** › **UTM source**: a funnel breakdown reads the value on each person’s _step 1 event itself_, not the visit’s. Here that is the `/pricing` pageview, so only people who landed on pricing from a tagged link get a value; the rest are left out of the split. To compare campaigns fairly, use segments (below and in the [acquisition walkthrough](https://clickclacks.io/docs/walkthroughs/acquisition.md#channels)).
- **Compare segments**: tick up to five saved [segments](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/segments.md), plus _Other_, such as people on the Growth plan against everyone else.

The chart draws the top 3 breakdown values that have at least 500 people entering; smaller ones are listed in the table only. A breakdown and a segment comparison replace each other.

## 9. Watch it over time {#trend}

Switch **Conversion by step** to **Over time** to see conversion by the day people entered the funnel, and to **Time to convert** to see how many finished within an hour, a day, a week or longer. Turn on **Compare** in the filter bar to show the previous period next to **Overall conversion**.

The most recent days always look worse: people who entered yesterday haven’t had their 7 days yet.

## 10. Add it to a board {#board}

1. On the funnel, click **Add to board**.
2. Under **Tile**, choose **Linked**, so the tile follows the saved funnel if you edit it.
3. Under **Filters**, choose **Follow the board**, so it uses the board’s date range.
4. Under **Board**, pick **New board** and call it _Acme weekly_.

> **What you should see**
>
> A new board with one funnel tile. The [weekly reporting walkthrough](https://clickclacks.io/docs/walkthroughs/weekly-reporting.md) builds the rest of it.

## Common mistakes {#mistakes}

- **Trusting a cross-domain funnel with weak identity.** If the carry-over rate is low, people appear to vanish between the site and the app. Check [Identity](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/identity.md) first.
- **A window that’s too short.** If the median time to convert is days, a 7-day window undercounts slow teams. Compare with a 14-day copy before deciding.
- **Counting events instead of people.** With **Events**, each person-and-session pair counts separately, and the results say _Counts are sessions_. For activation, count people.
- **Reading the last few days.** Recent entrants haven’t had the full window yet.
- **Expecting page filters to be saved.** **Add filter** in the filter bar applies to the page you’re looking at only. Save a step filter in the builder with **+ Filter**.
- **An event that started mid-range.** If `Contacts imported` was only added two weeks ago, earlier sign-ups can’t convert, and the funnel looks worse than it is. Start the range after the event went live.

## Next {#next}

Activation tells you who got started. Whether they stay is the next question: [Are users coming back?](https://clickclacks.io/docs/walkthroughs/retention.md)

## Related {#related}

- [Funnels](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/funnels.md): Every control, view and setting.
- [Flows](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/flows.md): Find the real paths before building a funnel.
- [Segments](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/segments.md): Compare funnels for different groups.
- [Boards](https://clickclacks.io/docs/guides/boards.md): Keep the funnel in view.