How to Build and Maintain Momentum in a VSL Funnel
Treat your VSL funnel like one fire that needs fuel, using ongoing improvements across messaging, ads, applications, and sales.
By Nick Verge · Article published October 27, 2026
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Original video: How To Think About VSL Momentum
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome. Today, we are talking about VSLs and the secret behind VSLs that absolutely cook. The ones that crush and the ones that flop. And the way that I have constructed this lesson for you based on $40 million in results from my clients producing VSLs that have taken cost per book calls down from 300 to 150 and help people go from a 2x ROAS to like a 6x ROAS. I can sit here and talk about the case studies all day. You can
go watch other videos for that. But today, we're talking about the actual concepts behind how I think about VSLs and what I've seen between the ones that really did well and the ones that didn't do well. And so, I've constructed again a nice little metaphor for us. So, why don't you go ahead and bring this camera on over here? We're going to talk about VSLs. So, this right here is the idea of your offer. And what happens is you have a good idea and you think, "Hey, you know what I should do? I should probably go ahead and get some,
you know, just momentum for this idea and get some people interested in this idea." And so, you know, you start marketing it and the fire represents your marketing. And so, you're starting to get some good results here and you're like, "Okay, hey, hey, hey, it's catching up. You know, we're actually starting to see it cook up. People are buying. People are starting to see it." And inevitably, you start to catch more momentum. And so, you could see that you're starting a bigger fire. And this is usually how most offers go. You start off with organic, maybe just testing it to your email list, trying to see what works,
and starts to work. And then inevitably, what happens is you start larger and larger audiences and you start running ads to it. And the the fire starts working, starts growing and growing and growing, and this momentum starts to pick up. But here's the thing, it's not like that. happen. You have to keep adding fuel to the fire. And so, this is the effort from your marketing funnel. This is you testing ads, trying VSLs, new leads, different offers, trying to figure out what's the VSL that's going to make the most sense. And so, you could see now,
the fire's really going. What was first just this is now ripping inside of this fireplace that we have right here. And if I want this fire to keep cooking, I have to keep adding fuel. Why don't you come show it real quick? What you can see is the main logs, let's call it hitting critical mass in the market. They have not caught on fire yet. And so, what I have to do is really make a concerted effort to keep the fire alive. This is, upon launching a VSL offer,
making a deliberate effort to test to actually put effort into the funnel. That may be more time being spent on the sales process, more time being spent on the messaging. And look what happens when the critical mass doesn't hit on it. You can see the fire isn't necessarily starting all the way, but it's starting to do a little bit. We're starting to catch that up there. So, the the offer's going up. This could be an example of like we hit a high 100k, 200k month, but then inevitably comes back down, and now it's operating like 50 or 60 because we
had a launch model, and the launch did really well, but now we're trying to make it more consistent. So, you can see this VSL is still trying to stay alive. The fire's still trying to stay alive. And so, what we need to do is keep adding things to make this thing work. So, we Come on over to YouTube land, and we get some more organic YouTube videos that work. We hire some sales consultants to try and, you know, make our stuff more efficient. And so, we pour more resources into our fire to make it burn brighter. And so, we keep finding resources. Hey, Hormozi shared this thing, and now I know to do this thing with my application. And so, we keep adding it
in. And oh, the wind is getting very intense. And these resources are starting to cook. And so, now we're starting to see some real progress, and momentum is starting to pick up. And inevitably, what I've seen of the biggest offers, the biggest VSLs that have produced the most, like I have one client who's done $17 million the with one VSL. The main thing that he did is he kept putting fuel in the fire. Notice I didn't run over here. I'm going to go start a fire over here now. Maybe I can get this one big. If I do this one I could try that one right there. No, I didn't do that. I'm keeping one fire alive right here.
Because scaling one VSL is hard enough. Like starting one fire is hard enough. And I need to put all of my resources, my effort, my time into that VSL. Most people, they're more focused on keeping up with what all the marketers are saying to do. And I've definitely fallen into this. But, if we want to keep a fire going, we have to make a concerted effort to keep pouring in this fire. And so, you'll see that at some points the fire is very bright. At some point the fire is catching up. But,
we can see what inevitably is happening is because we are sticking with this fire and allowing it to grow, we are starting to hit critical mass on it. The logs are actually starting to catch and they're actually starting to grow. And we're starting to see the fire grow. And so, now I start pouring ad spend into it. I'm spending instead of 5K testing budget, I'm starting to spend 10K, 20K, 300K, 500K, whatever your capital is that you have access to. We can start loading in these logs that are more and more
resources into our VSL. And I hope you guys can see the metaphor that I'm trying to explain to you here. Everyone wants to have the VSL at a point where the fire looks like this, where it's it's just chucking. The thing is burning. It's doing really well. We are proud of our fire. We're like, "Fuck yeah, this thing's working really well." But, nobody wants to put the resources and the time and the energy and the effort into the VSL to make it work. And so, what I have found
is that the more you pour into it, and that's not just you like spending time. Okay, hey, let me split test intros, or let me try and figure out what I need to do. It could be you hiring consultants to come in and fix specific parts of it like the sales process or your ad process or the VSL itself. It could be looking at the actual sales process that follows after hey, what are the texts that these guys are getting? What's the application they're going through? How are the sales reps showing up on the calls? There are so many things that you can do to a VSL funnel and test to make
it better. But, that's how you actually get the fire pumping. Pour time, energy, and effort into it. And so, what I was trying to communicate to you guys today, and I hope this metaphor helped you see it, is that everything starts small. And once it's actually going, cuz we'll be here for another 20, 30, 40 minutes, and this fire will still be going, that fire is going to start to die down. And unless I take that wood right there and more resources from around here and keep pouring it into that fire, that fire will die out. In other words, if you
stop putting time, energy, effort, resources into the VSL, it will die out. It's It's like a child. It's like a plant. You have to water the plant. You have to feed the child. You have to take care of the dog. You have to put wood into the fire. So, a lot of people with the VSLs, they try and make it in a set it and forget it manner. They don't want to touch it, and this is why people pay me stupid sums of money to come in and fix their because they haven't touched it in months and years, and they're like, "Can I just hire you,
Nick, to come in and fix everything for me and make it more efficient so I can make more money and be more handsome and have have more cats that like me and walk up to me on the street, and I can buy more cool cars, and I now have six-pack abs." Yes, you can pay me for that. That's exactly what we're going to do. And so, hope you guys found this useful. Quick little metaphor for you. Next time that you're working on a VSL, just remember we're adding more wood. The more wood you fire into or throw into the fire, the longer the actual fire is going to burn for. And no one gets to escape this truth. The harder
people work on their funnel, the more the funnel performs. That's it.
Everybody wants a VSL that is cooking. The offer is selling, the ads are working, and the funnel is producing enough momentum that you can put more resources behind it.
What people tend to underestimate is the work required to get there and keep it there.
The way I explain this is with a fire. Your offer begins as an idea. Your marketing starts the flame. If you want it to grow, you have to keep adding fuel. If you stop, eventually it dies out.
I’ve seen this across VSLs that helped cut cost per booked call from $300 to $150 and move offers from around a 2x ROAS to around a 6x ROAS. The biggest difference isn’t that someone found a magical script and never touched the funnel again. They kept working on it.
Build VSL funnel momentum with small tests
Most offers start with a small amount of momentum. You might test the idea through organic content or send it to your email list. People begin buying, and you start seeing what resonates.
Then you reach larger audiences and introduce paid traffic. The flame gets bigger, but that does not mean the main logs have caught.
In my metaphor, those logs represent reaching critical mass in the market. Until they catch, you have to make a deliberate effort to keep the fire alive.
That can mean testing ads, different VSL leads, messaging, or elements of the offer. It can also mean spending more time on the sales process. You’re giving the offer enough support to move beyond the initial flicker of attention.
Don’t mistake a good launch for consistent momentum
You might have a $100,000 or $200,000 month during a launch and then come back down to $50,000 or $60,000. That doesn’t mean the fire was never real. It means the launch produced a burst that you haven’t yet turned into consistent performance.
At that point, keep putting resources into the funnel.
Maybe organic YouTube videos help bring in better prospects. Maybe a sales consultant can help the team handle calls more efficiently. Maybe a useful improvement to the application helps the right people get through the process.
You’re looking for ways to make the same fire burn brighter, rather than assuming the launch alone should keep everything going indefinitely.
Keep your effort on one fire
One client generated $17 million with a single VSL. The thing I want people to understand about that is that he kept putting fuel into it.
He didn’t run off to start a different fire every time a marketer suggested another opportunity.
Scaling one VSL is hard enough. You need to put resources, time, and effort into making that funnel work. I’ve fallen into the trap of trying to keep up with everything marketers say to do, so I understand the temptation. But scattering your effort doesn’t keep the original fire alive.
You will have brighter periods and weaker periods. Staying with the funnel gives you the opportunity to turn those early bursts into something more substantial.
Add fuel across the whole funnel
Working on the VSL does not only mean sitting at your desk rewriting the first 30 seconds.
It can mean hiring someone to fix a particular part of the system. It can mean improving the ad process, the sales process, or the video itself.
Look at what happens after someone watches:
- What application do they complete?
- What text messages do they receive?
- How do sales representatives show up on the calls?
- Where could the process be more effective?
Those are all parts of a VSL funnel you can work on and test. A weak follow-up process does not become irrelevant just because the script is good.
The fuel is your time, energy, effort, and resources applied to the parts that need improvement.
Increase resources as the funnel develops
Once the main logs begin catching, you can put more behind the system. You might move from a small testing budget to larger amounts of ad spend, depending on the capital you have available.
But the bigger flame still needs fuel. Even a fire that looks strong now will fade later if nobody adds wood.
That is why I push back on the set-it-and-forget-it idea. People leave a VSL untouched for months or years, then ask me to come in and make it efficient again. The funnel needs continued care, just as a plant needs water or a child needs food.
Next time you work on your VSL, think about the specific piece of wood you’re adding. Maybe it’s a better lead. Maybe it’s a stronger application, better follow-up, or help for the sales team. Keep improving the one system you’re trying to grow.
The people who keep putting work into their funnel give that funnel more opportunity to perform. Nobody escapes the need to keep the fire alive.