Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you sign up through our link, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
I Used to Run My Business on Five Different Tools
Before GoHighLevel, my business ran on a patchwork of subscriptions. ActiveCampaign for email. A separate CRM to track leads. ClickFunnels for landing pages. Calendly for bookings. Twilio for SMS — though I barely used it because making it work with everything else was too painful.
Every month I paid for all of them. None of them talked to each other properly. Every time a lead came in, I was manually copying data from one platform to another.
I knew the system was broken. I just didn’t know there was a better option until I found GoHighLevel.
The Switch
I started my GoHighLevel trial expecting to spend a week evaluating it and probably go back to what I had. Instead, I spent that week rebuilding my entire business infrastructure inside one platform — and cancelled everything else by the end of month one.
Here’s exactly how I use it today.
My GoHighLevel Setup
CRM: Where Every Lead Lives
Every lead I generate — from my website forms, social media, or referrals — lands in GoHighLevel’s CRM automatically. I have one pipeline with five stages:
- New Lead
- Discovery Call Booked
- Proposal Sent
- Follow-Up
- Closed / Won
When a lead moves to a new stage, it triggers an automation. No manual follow-up. No forgetting to check in. The system handles it.
Lead Capture: One Form, Full Automation
My primary lead capture is a simple opt-in page built in GoHighLevel. When someone submits their name and email:
- They’re instantly added to the CRM as a new contact
- A welcome email goes out within 60 seconds
- A text message follows two minutes later
- A calendar link is included so they can book a call immediately
The average time between a new lead and them booking a call dropped from 48 hours to under 4 hours after I set this up. That alone changed my business.
Email Sequences: Set Once, Run Forever
I have three email sequences running in GoHighLevel:
- Welcome sequence (5 emails over 7 days): Introduces my brand, shares value, builds trust
- Nurture sequence (1 email per week): Keeps warm leads engaged who aren’t ready to buy yet
- Re-engagement sequence (3 emails): Triggers if a contact hasn’t opened an email in 60 days
These run completely on their own. I wrote them once.
Booking: No More Calendly
GoHighLevel’s calendar feature replaced Calendly for me. I set my availability, blocked off personal time, and embedded the booking link everywhere — email signatures, landing pages, SMS follow-ups. Appointments sync to Google Calendar automatically.
SMS Follow-Up: The Game Changer
SMS is where GoHighLevel earned my loyalty. The open rate on text messages is 98%. Email can’t touch that. I now have automated text follow-ups for:
- Every new lead (sent 2 minutes after opt-in)
- Appointment reminders (24 hours and 1 hour before)
- No-shows (a text 10 minutes after a missed call)
The missed-call text alone has recovered bookings I would have permanently lost.
What I Wish I’d Known Before Switching
1. Give it two weeks before judging it
GoHighLevel has more features than any single tool you’ve used before. The first week can feel overwhelming. By week two, the logic clicks and it becomes second nature. Consider starting with the 5 Day Challenge — it shortens the learning curve dramatically.
2. Use the Snapshots
GoHighLevel’s Snapshots are pre-built business systems you can import in one click. I wish I had loaded a Snapshot first instead of building everything from scratch. It would have cut my setup time in half.
3. Set up your email domain properly
Deliverability matters. Take 20 minutes to set up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your sending domain. Without it, your emails may land in spam. With it, GoHighLevel’s email works beautifully.
4. You don’t need to use every feature on day one
I started with just the CRM, email sequences, and calendar. I added SMS in month two and funnels in month three. Start with the one or two features that replace your biggest pain points. Expand from there.
The Bottom Line
GoHighLevel didn’t just replace my tools. It changed how I think about my business. When your CRM, your email, your SMS, and your booking system all work as one system, you stop feeling like you’re managing software and start feeling like you’re running a business.
I was spending $340/month across five disconnected tools. Now I spend $97/month on one that does more than all of them combined.
If you’re running your business on a stack of disconnected subscriptions, take the 14-day free trial. You have nothing to lose and a lot of time to gain.
Try GoHighLevel Free for 14 Days →
Cancel anytime.